What bad luck for Shaun Leaf. He really does cop for some bad luck. He's been a great servant to this club and shame on the RFL for not allowing him a testimonial. It's not fitting that his last season with the club is going to be the Dons worst in recent memory.

As for today's performance, it was a horror show. It emphasized all our weaknesses. Every glimmer of hope that comes our way is snubbed out by a grim return to reality.

Before the game, I said I thought it was wrong of the club to build this game up as the most important in the club's history. It certainly wasn't but it probably ranks amongst one of the worst performances. Having said that, I don't think we need to have a go at Carl Hall. Anyone who is as committed to Doncaster rugby as Carl gets my support any day.

On the field, amongst other things, we committed the same ultimate sin twice in the same game: No dummy half waiting to collect the ball. That is just unforgiveable



The teams we've come up against this season have all been bigger and faster than us, They've had more skillful players too. The end result is that we can't stop them when they get near our line and we struggle like hell to break theirs.

Some of the decision making was awful again today too. Sometimes it's not how good you are, it's how well you think the game out, and we came up short in that department too.

On reflection, I think we perhaps didn't give Paul Cooke enough credit for his on-field expertise last season, and we've been sadly lacking that this season.

Ultimately, the club really got it badly wrong with the recruitment policy during the winter. This has resulted in our demise.

I recently posted that I thought most of the current players wouldn't be at the club next season. After today's showing, I doubt the new coaching team will have been impressed enough to consider offering many new contracts.

To the players' credit they did keep going in the second half when they were so far behind. Effort is great but when you're being outclassed, there is only one inevitable outcome. Well done to Lee Waterman on his performance. He always gives his best and will run through a brick wall for the team.

Unless Club Doncaster decide to invest some money, I fear for the calibre of player who may be at the Dons next season because RFL funding, sponsorship, and gate receipts will all be well down on this season.

Sadly, we must now be a very short price to go through the season without recording a win. The Dons' fans don't deserve this.

Sorry DM, and I know we want the best for the Towns RL fans, but Carl Hall has to take some of this. I take no pleasure in this at all but the Clubs fans deserve better and this heartfelt posting comes out of being associated with one of the Clubs most ardent fans. Like Huby he has been there since the Greyhound track days and the bloke who is 86 this year deserves better than this awful mess. Not sure how many years (fingers crossed) he has left but he and all the other die hards do not deserve this bloody awful mess. The bloke got me into RL and although I couldn't believe some of the stuff served up in the late seventies and early eighties this is taking the biscuit. ( None of this is aimed at you DM)

I almost came to Castle Park today as I thought we stood a chance of a win I am glad I saved my money if that was the best we could do against our fellow strugglers.

People on the book of many faces already calling for GT's head which is uncalled for I don't think Houdini could have saved us this year the team are beaten before they get out on the pitch and something is very rotten at the club from the team upwards.

It did occur to me today that what if relegation to CL1 was the "Club Doncaster" plan after all, relegation means the club is no longer a viable concern and therefore wound up or best case scenario relegated to the athletics track, this would leave the Keepmoat the sole province of the Rovers which is something they have always wanted. They have played the long con with us, kill off support recruit on a tight budget to ensure failure..make some token signings when its already to late.

Compound that with the fact that PC left us in a "cannot play anymore" state and has score 2 for Fev today and apparently been the difference between the two sides....makes you think that he knew the writing was on the wall and jumped.

I think its now pretty safe to say we are relegated so with that in mind we need to look forward (if we do survive) and have a complete root and branch audit of all the staff at the club, this may mean that some players who are fans favorites move on but clearly there hearts are not in the Donny shirt this year.

Something drastic has to have happened at the club for us to go from a top 4 side to one that is on course to loose every game of the season and have a loosing run of over 365 days.

I think the club should refund the ticket price to every single Dons fan who turned out today to watch that shambles.

have not posted for a long time.I can't believe this result.There is no Desire.The team is changed every week.GT needs to get a settled team and stop tinkering.defence is weak in the middle but yet wingers get dropped.whats going on????

It would not surprise me if the club merged with either Wakefield or Sheffield

A double dose of Steve & Geoff , too much after todays performance !

There are some misery-guts out there ...
we won that second half 18-14.

Mind you Haven were 30 miles up the A1 by then.
lol

Not going again to watch players feeling sorry for themselves.

I will have a look see again when they win a game.
If I live that long.

I joked about Bloody Sunday the sequel ... but it's becoming reality!

There is something very sour in this Rovers link up and I think this is the end.
COYD

So Paul what reasons would you give for the position the club finds itself in at the present?

Bad recruitment during the off season is the main reason. I think PC's hands were tied.
However with out Club Doncaster we may not have started this season.

Clearly now we are playing without confidence .

At last someone else has cottoned on to the Club Doncaster intentions. In the days of Sunday Bloody Sunday we were awful and could do nothing about it because of a lack of funds. This season we have also been awful and Club Doncaster could have stopped the rot back in March if the commitment had been there. The supporters have been conned all season by the management.Even the appointment of Thornton with Green as a sweetener was a charade to cut down on any money the other so called quality candidates would have wanted to spend.Totally disgraceful treatment of loyal supporters and sadly I can see the days of another supporters consortium to keep the club going not too far around the corner.

I'm afraid that giving Thornton your coaching job was a huge mistake. The guy is a charlatan. The most league matches he's ever won in one season at this level is 7. We wasted over six years of the club's history with him in charge - thanks to a chairman who refused to sack him out of blind loyalty.

I'm a big fan of giving people a chance, the predicament we are in is not the fault of GT, he inherited a team so low on confidence it was always going to be a tough job. This seasons gone, build for next season IF club Doncaster back him, then half way through next season , I'll judge him.

I thought the score at half time was 0-36 when it was 0-38.
Mind you I had been sitting in the concourse for 15 minutes having a pint before the first half ended and for 15 minutes after the second half
started and missed a fair amount of the embarrassment.

Oddly enough, I didn't walk out as intended but went back in and watched the Dons have a mini-fight back.
Then I had something to eat and watched the first half of the Eagles game as well as a bit of the Saints game on the TV.
It was just nice to watch some proper rugby for a change on what turned out to be a lovely afternoon.

A root and branch clear-out is required and we need a fresh line of approach with another coach.

Had to smile to myself when I read about Tom Carr being not far away from playing after two operations.
No disrespect to Tom, I am sure he is a decent player and it will be good for him to play again, but he will be nowhere near his best after such a lengthy lay-off.

His situation is a metaphor for our entire season.

I am not going to attend the remaining games in my season ticket. I have had enough of the Rover's Dons.
The Dons don't exist anymore in my eyes.

Happy hunting for those less fickle than myself and goodbye to rugby and this forum.

I will also cancel my DD, which was for Paul Cooke, not the Rover's.

I'm sorry that you all feel sorry for yourselves yes we didn't play as well as we should but the turning factor in my eye was the bad decisions from the ref haven should have been down to 12 permanently after that spear tackle from palmer and the 2 knock on that gave 2 trys would have had a knock on effect on the team when your against it from all corners I think we all have the same mind set as the team

I appreciate that none of this is aimed at me Moonlight. Thanks for mentioning it though.



Everyone at the club is collectively responsible for the mess we're in, including Carl. But we need to remember that Carl was the man who probably saved the club from going out of existence. That doesn't mean we should turn a blind eye to all that has gone wrong recently but I think it is unfair to question Carl's integrity in all this, as seems to be the case with the accusations being made against Club Doncaster. That primarily was the point I was aiming to make.

If Carl is caught up in the perverse battle to drive the Dons down, as suggested elsewhere, then I feel even more for the guy.

As for people (elsewhere) claiming that Gary Thornton should be sacked ... well, please send for the men in white coats to deal with them. None of this has got anything at all to do with Gary Thornton.

I'm really sorry to see S/O calling it a day. I fully understand everyone's frustrations and annoyance at what we're having to endure this season. I hope you'll be back soon, mate.

PS. The best part about Sunday was actually the joke you posted about Donny!

Will miss your humour and posts.

Not sure what games you've been at but the featherstone game most of the tries went through mistakes by Hodson or fox. Same applies to last week. Winger being dropped rightly so I would have played Dave at fullback and brought sam onto the wing toms been on imo.

I don't know this to be fact but the RL-press seem to think that Graham Steadman was 'in for the job'.

I heard that as well but apparently the Club would only give him a contract till the end of the season I believe that Derryck Fox also applied who is coaching in Australia

It's not Paul who should be answering that Question--It's the people who run the club.

I so wish I hadn't read that ...

as per usual, not picking the best man for the job but the one who wants less money,
Club doncaster stinks, we were doing all right until Carl sold to them.
Its all about NOT spending money, no players bonuses for winning, that tells its own story.
No MOTM prize money, so no ones going to bust a gut, everyone would be if bonuses and a MOTM prize was on offer.
They have ruined the club in less than a season.

Those are some interesting statements Onedon, are they from a reliable source? if they are true then then its pretty damming for the side.

Maybe something our SLO could clear up with the owners at the meeting they are having next week.

Disagree slightly there OD that players won't bust a gut without prize money being available tho I agree a decent club will add those little sweeteners. Sad fact is some of the squad just aren't good enough at this level and it goes right back to recruitment. Some will improve and some are at their limit. What's sad is our better players will probably leave at the end of the season......then what???

Not probably they will, why stay?

Ive just watched carl's in the dugout speech and how surprising was it that after the THIS IS IT massive game cmon lets get behind the boys we need you ramble last week he totally ignored the 1st question asked about last sundays game? i quite like carl and admit he has done alot of good things for our club but it seems the passion is waning and now until the end of the season its just a case of him begging for bigger crowds to line the pockets of the money men at club doncaster! It might be me being cynical but i care about the dons and feel we have lost our identity. Even some of our happy clapping fans can see the club is crumbling big style! COYD