We Are The Champions: And that’s Only the Beginning

The 27^th April will go down in Doncaster Rovers folklore, not only did it secure the club their forth promotion in ten years, but in dramatic style in which they were staring defeat and the subsequent play-offs in the face, won the League One title in the most dramatic of twenty seconds. 

Rovers needed a draw to clinch promotion to the second tier after just a one year absence, and as added time started they were on course to achieve it with the scoreline 0-0 against Brentford.

But as the full time whilst sounded at then-league leaders Bournemouth’s match with Tranmere ending goalless, Michael Oliver made the decision to point to the penalty spot at Griffin Park’s tie in Brentford’s favour.

The penalty was undoubtedly dubious, with several news outlets reporting different things- the football league show declared it Jamie McCombe’s handball, yet the BBC’s website report suggested it was a foul by Dean Furman. You can probably work out from this confusion; the decision was far from clear-cut.

Yet, defeat for Doncaster would have sent the side crashing into the play-offs, a Brentford victory would have sent them promoted in their place. So the referee would have needed to be certain with his call.

But it was enormous pressure for the spot-kick. Undoubtedly newspaper headlines and a £6million financial reward would be the prize for promotion and it was Marcello Trotta that fancied writing his name in the history books, much to the annoyance of regular taker Kevin O’Connor.

Trotta stepped up and went for power. Sullivan was beaten as he dived to his right, but the ball crashed against the crossbar. A desperate scramble in the penalty area followed and Doncaster’s Paul Quinn pumped the ball upfield. Substitute Billy Paynter received the ball with the whole field in front of him completely empty of Brentford defenders. He sprinted from the halfway line into the penalty area, before squaring the ball to the far-post where Doncaster’s James Coppinger slotted the ball into the net. Incredible. 

And with that Doncaster were champions, seconds after being down-and-out.

Bournemouth fans demanded “We Want Our Trophy Out” at Prenton Park, completely unaware what had happened in West London as Rovers completed a fine season with the trophy they undoubtedly deserved.

Rovers fans barely had time to get their breath back when Brian Flynn made the decision to move into a Director of Football role with the club. This left the manager’s position vacant for the second time in four months, with Flynn (formerly a scout at Rovers) had succeeded Dean Saunders who left for Wolves.

Saunders’ move in hindsight was a mistake. As his old Rovers side won promotion to the Championship, Wolves were relegated from it. Many expected Saunders to be prepared to admit to his mistake, as he was sacked at Molineux, but he refused to reapply for his old role, and Rovers entered a thorough application programme.

Considering Doncaster were playing in the Conference in 2003, there were some very high-profile names linked with the club, many with Premier League experience, showing how far the South Yorkshire side has come in a short space of time. Just last season Neil Warnock and Owen Coyle were managing with Queens Park Rangers and Bolton Wanderers respectively in the Premiership, yet suddenly the pairing were both 10/1 for the Keepmoat Stadium vacancy. Former Sunderland manager Terry Butcher admitted an interest, whilst Simon Grayson and Kenny Jackett were low odds during the process after over achieving in the Championship with clubs of similar size of Doncaster at Blackpool and Milwall.

But as the weeks passed by, two major candidates emerged. Paul Dickov and Michael Appleton are believed to have gone head-to-head for the final weekend, after Stuart McCall and Craig Levein reportedly completed the shortlist. Dickov was odds-on favourite from an early stage, and the media were unsurprised when he eventually won the race. However, the fans weren’t as convinced - unlike the press - until the last moments, when odds-on favourites in previous vacancies were rarely appointed by Rovers chairman John Ryan; such as Mark Robins who claimed this position early on in the season before Flynn was appointed.

Dickov, a former Manchester City striker, excited the Rovers hierarchy with his strong links to several sides including the 2012 Premier League champions, and arrives with energy and a both a long-term and short-term plan.

The Scot spoke passionately about unearthing quality from the Rovers academy in the longer term and utilising his contracts to add immediate short-term quality in Donny’s survival fight next season. He was also incredibly enthusiastic and optimistic, stating: “I don’t want to go into the Championship with the expectation of staying in the division. I want to raise the bar… why can’t we be pushing for the top half of the table?”

This was met with favourable support from the Rovers supporters. Of 221 supporters surveyed on the club’s VSC forum, just six were critical, with most backing another careful, shrewd decision from the board which has churned success over the last decade.

Dickov has a huge task on his back though. The club has very few Championship-quality players with 5 key signings targeted by John Ryan. Rovers lack quality down the side of the team, most notably with the absence of a first choice goalkeeper following the departure of Gary Woods. Rovers too are very weak in central midfield following the expiring of Dean Furman and John Lundstram’s loan spells, whilst striker Iain Hume has also returned to Preston North End.

The football league releases it fixtures on the 19^th June and despite Dickov’s great optimism the club are 100/1 for a second successive title.