LOMAS ON MANSFIELD TOWN: Stags show battling qualities as Rose ponders his future

After impressive pre-season wins over Championship opposition and a comfortable 3-0 home win over Newport County in the season opener it was the first time David Flitcroft’s men had been forced to fight back from being behind.

The fact they did it twice - and almost won it - again bodes very well for the new season.

Five goals in two games shows they know where the net is, but the determination shown in Saturday’s game after twice going behind was even more pleasing.

Questions were asked of them and they were promptly answered.

It brought a difficult week off the field to a close after the unrest surrounding Danny Rose.

It would appear he could now remain a Mansfield Town player for the rest of the season unless someone – probably Peterborough United – come in with a deal to take take him on loan until January after finally agreeing a realistic price.

That was the big stumbling block last week as Rose and his agent were apparently told by Peterborough he would definitely be joining them by the deadline on Thursday and that a deal would be struck. So you can only imagine his agony when that didn’t transpire.

He had even seemingly been encouraged to ask to go on the transfer list at Mansfield Town – possibly thinking this would help force Mansfield’s hand on allowing an unhappy player to leave below the club’s valuation.

All credit to the Radfords for sticking to their guns and not bowing to the Posh pressure to try to take their top scorer at a cut-price fee.

Peterborough were told what Danny would cost them all along and failed to pay it.

That now temporarily leaves Rose in limbo as to his future.

Having left Rose at home at the weekend to digest the week’s happenings, Flitcroft said he will sit down and speak to him this week about the situation.

With the loan window open until the end of the month, the transfer deadline of last week is far from the end of things and the next two weeks could go either way for Rose.

If he believes he has been badly advised by other people and wants to fight for his place at the One Call Stadium it would be a big boost for the Stags if he asked to come off the list.

If he is adamant he still wants to go, then other clubs are now very alert to his availability as well as Peterborough.

One man who did leave on deadline day was fellow striker Lee Angol.

Shrewsbury Town have taken a punt on a man with such rich promise but so frustrating in being able to get that promise out of him.

He did score goals here and there when given the chance last season, but many Stags fans were unhappy with his body language and apparently casual running.

Supporters like to see players like Alex MacDonald who give every last sinew for the cause and Angol was not one of those players.

Reading Flitcroft’s comments on him, it sounded to me like he had all but given up on helping Angol become the player he could be and was ready to move on to someone who wanted to buy into his philosophies.

Sensibly, though, Flitcroft’s deal with Shrewsbury has a sell-on clause built into it should the penny drop for Angol and the goals and performances start flowing and take him on to bigger and better things.

There is a very good player in there somewhere and Shrewsbury will be hoping they can find him and bring him out.

If the loan window closes without further departures it will also be interesting to see if transfer-listed duo Paul Anderson and Calum Butcher can fight their way into the team.

Butcher was a late substitute on Saturday while Anderson remains a periphery figure, despite his enormous experience and talent.