By Rovers Reporter Zak Armitage.
Doncaster Rovers suffered a disappointing defeat at the hands of Charlton Athletic on Friday afternoon at the Keepmoat Stadium.
Boss Andy Butler will have gone into the encounter hoping his Doncaster team could return to winning ways after a frustrating defeat at the hands of MK Dons last Saturday, but Rovers once again slipped up in a close encounter with fellow playoff chasers Charlton.
The visitors had a bright start to the game in South Yorkshire and took the lead after just 12 minutes when Dutchman Ian Maatsen showed excellent composure to control a headed pass, before guiding the ball past young Louis Jones in the Doncaster goal.
Donny responded well to this however and could've levelled just minutes later when some sumptuous skill from Omar Bogle, against his former club, gave him the space to manoeuvre a shot from within the box which produced an impressive save from Charlton's Ben Amos.
After the flurry of early chances, the game once again settled down, until some slack defending from Charlton, who failed to clear their lines, gifted an opportunity to Fejiri Okenabirhie, who fired his close-range shot straight at Amos.
The last chance of the opening half came at the other end where an attempt from Ian Maatsen, produced another good save from Louis Jones. This brought an end to an even first half in which Rovers may have been scratching their heads at being a goal down.
After the restart, Charlton striker Jayden Stockley added a second however the goal was disallowed, with the English striker having strayed offside.
After this, the game once again went quiet with few chances created, as both sides had a relatively even share of possession and opportunities.
While Butler did push late on to rescue a point out of the game with the introduction of the lively youngster Taylor Richards, it was unfortunately too little too late and Charlton was able to hold on for a vital three points, which sees them leapfrog Rovers in the League Standings.
Ultimately, it was another afternoon to forget for Andy Butler and his men who were below-par and could've easily taken something out of the encounter, as their miserable run of form continues which is severely affecting Rovers playoff credentials.
