Tottenham have clearly got the taste for this silverware lark. In times gone by, the prospect of a gutsy League One up-and-comers like Doncaster Rover coming to town for an early-season cup clash would have given off all the vibes of a Spurs banana skin.
Not these days. Not against the Europa League winners, for heaven’s sake. And certainly not against this now steady and serious Tottenham side under Thomas Frank. He’s made no secret that there’s a hunger for more trophies and he made sure his side got the job done.
Makeshift centre-back Palhinha’s overhead kick inside a quarter of an hour before an own goal by Doncaster’s Jay McGrath was enough to put the game beyond Grant McCann’s side.
They didn’t even need Lucas Bergvall’s disallowed goal in stoppage time finish to count but Brennan Johnson still made sure of it with the last kick of the game after a scintillating counter-attack.
It was three in the end but it could have been so many more. Mathys Tels twice found thin air from a few yards out after dangerous crosses, Rodrigo Bentancur put a header just wide, Achie Gray had a low shot saved, and substitute Richarlison couldn’t quite get on to the end of another good low ball across goal.
You wonder how much more of a fight Doncaster would have put up had manager Grant McCann not shuffled his pack quite so vigorously with nine changes from the weekend.
Tottenham cruised into round four of the Carabao Cup after beating Doncaster Rovers 3-0
Joao Palhinha opened the scoring with a stunning bicycle kick after just 14 minutes
It was soon 2-0 as Jay McGrath diverted Wilson Odobert’s dangerous cross into his own net
Frank selected a strong side and Brennan Johnson added a third goal right at the death
Perhaps not much, but Rovers had the edge for a brief spell in the second half once McCann brought on his big guns.
It always feels a shame when lower league sides care even less about this competition than the giants.
Still, what a story this Doncaster one continues to be under McCann, who hauled Doncaster from the lower reaches of League Two to the title and have made a decent fist of life in League One, and whose name was sung by the hardy 3,860 travelling supporters who had made the 170-mile trip in great voice.
They watched their side give it a go, too, brimming with that same Yorkshire spirit. They had chances.
Toyosi Olusanya nodded a free header wide after a cross from Spurs loanee Damola Ajayi, who had been given permission to face his parent club.
Antonin Kinsky needed to pull off a stunning diving save to tip Doncaster skipper Owen Bailey’s scissor kick around the post.
Glenn Middleton hit the side-netting with a late free-kick that half the stadium thought had gone in.
But, in the end, the gulf was just too great. No banana skins here.
