Ferguson exit - being "dropped" by Darren kept me on my toes

Darren Ferguson doesn’t suffer fools.

Not players, press or board members. A conflict of views with the latter proved to be the catalyst from his departure from Doncaster Rovers.

I was there for his unveiling as manager in October 2015 (above) and was present at what proved to be his final post-match interview 928 days later following a dour goalless draw with AFC Wimbledon.

He looked fed up.

In his first interview though he was bristling with eagerness and wanted to cut short the pleasantries in order to get on with the job in hand.

Doncaster had begun the 15/16 season sluggishly but shaking them out of their slumber never seemed insurmountable for the Scot who boasted prior success at Peterborough.

Rovers were relegated but Ferguson stayed put. He was going to have to be pushed before he would walk and highlighted once more his belligerent streak.

The louder the dissenting voices grew, the more he dug his heels in – it was admirable in a way.

A summer rebuild was in order, but trying to draw a more personal side to the son of Sir Alex proved trying.

One local journalist in particular probed fruitlessly for a good 45 minutes in the manager’s office – save for a throwaway line about how he enjoyed his dozen games in Sparta Rotterdam’s midfield during the late 90’s.

Bouncing back to League 1 at the first attempt provided Ferguson with some joy, yet the feel good factor was curtailed.

His guard was concrete – perhaps due to the once frosty relationships between his father and some sections of the media – and occasionally reinforced with what can only be described as a “drop.”

Allow me to clarify. An interview would be going swimmingly and then “BANG” – Ferguson would get irritable either with the line of questioning or the amount of questions and issue a cutting retort. It could be quite dry, sarcastic or he might even ask you to be more specific.

This manifested itself when he bemoaned a referee’s performance – this was rare, granted – and suggested that to “shoot them” might be a viable option to improving standards.

It was unwise but not entirely uncharacteristic as he pressed his tongue firmly in to his cheek.

Several times he would “drop” me, leaving me scrabbling around. It was a small victory for him, even if his team hadn’t delivered the goods.

Overall, though, Ferguson did more good than bad and was well liked within media circles. There were certainly no grey areas and if he didn’t like someone then they’d receive short shrift.

I wanted him to succeed at Doncaster and so did he. It drove him to distraction and, ultimately, out of the club.