Scunthorpe United FC

The Iron were on the wrong side of a five goal thriller at Glanford Park after they suffered a 3-2 defeat against local rivals Doncaster Rovers at Glanford Park.

The M180 derby had been in doubt as the pitch was covered in snow, however, fans and staff of the club came together to ensure the pitch passed a mid-morning inspection.

Karl Hawley scored United's second goal of the afternoon after he got the last touch on the ball which evaded Gary Woods in the Rovers goal.

For minutes before the break Mark Duffy scored United's only goal saw his spectacular free kick beat a diving Gary Woods as the ball nestled in the top left hand corner. .

The Iron's hottest property, halved Rovers' lead two  minutes after Iain Hume scored the visitor's second.

United were awarded the set piece by referee Scott Mathieson after James Coppinger was adjudged to have felled Karl Hawley on the edge of the area.

The visitors took the lead inside five minutes when United defender David Mirfin fortuitously passed the ball into Eirik Holmen Johansen's right-hand post from a couple of yards out.

Hume's cross from the right took a slight deflection off an Iron defender taking the ball away from Johansen which put Mirfin - who resigned for the club last summer - in an awkward position.

Rovers came close to opening the scoring inside the opening 40 seconds after David Cotterill's free-kick was too long for the former Iron defender Jamie McCombe who came close to getting on the end of it.

United's first attempt on goal came through Jimmy Ryan after 13 minutes. However, his shot never troubled the visiting goalkeeper Gary Woods as it cleared the stand.

Rovers almost doubled their lead in the next attack when Hume - who is on loan from fellow League One side Preston North End - cut in from the right wing unchallenged before unleashing a venomous shot from just outside the box which went straight into the hands of the Iron goalkeeper.

United captain Paul Reid made a goal scoring challenge as the visitors showed their league superiority as the visitors found themselves outnumbering the United defence.

James Husband - who has three goals to his name this season - chose to try and find Hume inside the box, when he was in a better position to shoot, but the Carlisle born defender put the ball behind for a corner.

Just after the half an hour mark Iron striker Akpo Sodje was shown a yellow card after kicking the visiting left-back Tommy Spurr in the face.

The former Sheffield Wednesday defender wanted to instantly return to the, however, he was instructed by the referee and visiting medical staff to receive treatment.

The visitors assistant manager and captain, Jones, slipped gifting Sodje with an opportunity to close down on goal. However, McCombe was across quickly to prevent the Iron striker equalising.

Rovers, who remained top of League One following the victory, doubled their lead when Hume beat the offside trap, after former Iron defender Rob Jones' pass cut out all of the home side's defence.

Three minutes after the restart, Rovers restored their two goal lead. Spurr kept the ball in on the left hand touchline before releasing Husband who crossed on the by line allowing Doncaster born striker Brown to tap the ball home.

Minutes before the hour mark Ryan came close to scoring for the Iron. However, his powerful drive on the angle went just wide of Woods' left hand post.

On the hour, the United striking partnership of Sodje and Karl Hawley got in each other's way. Their miscommunication was enough to allow McCombe to clear up field.

The visitors threatened to restore their three goal lead when Spurr cut into the box before striking the ball with the outside of his left foot, only to see it go well wide of the far post.

Andy Barcham, who replaced Anthony Forde, thought he had won the Iron a penalty after he collided with Paul Quinn following a one-two with Ryan.

The referee waved away his protests and gave a corner, which the home side failed to convert despite numerous chances.

With just over 20 minutes left to play, Brown came close to getting his second of the afternoon. He beat Canavan to the ball only to foul Johansen before he hit the crossbar from four yards out.

Brown and Coppinger played a series of successful short passes on the edge of the area before the latter of those two players saw his shot bounce back off of the electronic scoreboard situated above Woods' goal.

Mike Grella, who has not scored for the Iron since the first home game of the season against Crewe Alexandra, closed down on goal but he was caught by Quinn who poked the ball out for a corner as he way about to shoot.

With six minutes to go, Nolan was blocked off with the arm of Spurr. The resulting free kick was played short by Duffy to Ryan whose shot was deflected behind by Quinn.

The resulting corner led to Hawley's strike which ensured the visitors would have a nervous final five minutes.

With seconds of added time remaining Duffy's shot was blocked behind by Quinn. Johansen was sent up for the corner by manager Brian Laws, like he did in the defeat to Coventry two weeks ago.

The ball fell out to the edge of the area but Ryan's shot - which turned out to be the last kick of the afternoon - was always curling away from goal.

TEAM LINE-UPS
Scunthorpe United: Johansen, Nola, Reid, Mirfin (Canavan, 46), Newey, Duffy, Collins, Ryan, Forde (Barcham, 57), Hawley, Sodje (Grella, 72)
Substitutes not used: Severn, Ribeiro, Hornsey, Alabi

Doncaster Rovers: Woods, Quinn, Jones, McCombe, Spurr, Cotterill, Lundstram, Husband, Coppinger, Hume (Paynter, 82), Brown
Substitutes not used: Sullivan, Wilson, Wakefield, Sinclair, Griffin, Bennett.

Attendance: 5,288 (2,120 away).