Matt Taylor felt Exeter had ‘no option’ but to beat Doncaster

Exeter interim manager Matt Taylor tasted victory for the first time on his return to Devon – at the ninth attempt – with a 3-0 thrashing of Doncaster in a match he said his side had “no option” but to win.

It ended a dire 15-match winless run for the Grecians, who have gone from mid-table security to the thick of a relegation battle and while this win did not taken them out of the bottom four, it keeps them in touch with those fighting for survival.

Jayden Wareham’s drilled finish gave City the lead after 42 minutes and substitute Josh Magennis made it 2-0 after 69 minutes, firing a superb shot in off the post from a narrow angle. Wareham was then on hand to notch his 21st goal of the season from close range six minutes from time to complete a much-needed win.

“We had no option,” Taylor said. “If we didn’t win today, we were too far away from where we need to be and I think that showed in our performance. Doncaster have got the points they have this season for a reason.

“They got some good players, but I thought physically we were at it right from the off. We added a little bit of quality, but just the endeavour throughout was what pleased me the most, and then we added the goals and the quality on top – not just at the top end of the pitch. There was some quality defending in there as well.

“Jayden’s performances have probably warranted more in recent games and he’s led the line so well and we’ve not quite been close enough to him. I thought every single man knew their role today, including the players who came onto the pitch, including the fans and the staff. We were very clear in terms of what was needed today. Less talking, more action. I hope that showed.”

Doncaster boss Grant McCann was not happy with what he saw from his team, who were booed off at full-time.

“As bad as we were, we had enough opportunities to score, but we don’t really test the keeper too severely. Everything we did was straight at him, or weak into him,” McCann said.

“We had decent enough control in the game but I think what’s happened today really for us is that we were out-muscled, we were out-run and we were out-fought. They were more aggressive than us, they wanted it more than us.

“I don’t know whether some of our players in the changing room are sitting there thinking we’ve got 50 points, we are safe, we’re not, we need another win.

“Today, we just lacked any sort of hunger or desire. They worked harder than us. They were more aggressive than us and it’s not a place where I want to be where we are being booed off by our fans and I’m being booed off by our fans, that’s not what I want to be. It’s certainly something I don’t want to be a part of.”