Note the kick off time of 2pm

Everything you need to know about Sunday: Match is a 2pm Kick off at Heywood Road, Sale. M33 3WB. Anyone who wishes to travel on one of the supporters coaches should contact Tracy Armstrong There is very little parking at the ground so reserved mainly for Blue Badge holders who need to book a space in advance by contacting Swinton Lions directly. All other cars should park on the surrounding streets, 'resident only' parking restrictions do not apply on a Sunday. Tickets for the game can be bought here: https://swintonlionsrlfc.co.uk/match-day/admission/ The game will be streamed live here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-VqwaKc8B4 Come On You Dons!

Everything you need to know about Sunday: Match is a 2pm Kick off at Heywood Road, Sale. M33 3WB. Anyone who wishes to travel on one of the supporters coaches should contact Tracy Armstrong There is very little parking at the ground so reserved mainly for Blue Badge holders who need to book a space in advance by contacting Swinton Lions directly. All other cars should park on the surrounding streets, 'resident only' parking restrictions do not apply on a Sunday. Tickets for the game can be bought here: https://swintonlionsrlfc.co.uk/match-day/admission/ The game will be streamed live here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-VqwaKc8B4 Come On You Dons!

Bet365 ...

Doncaster +12 Evens
or
Doncaster +12.5 5/6

7/2 to win

Skybet ...

Doncaster +16 10/11

4/1 to win

Interesting... funny how they thought we were on a par with Rochdale last week, that was a blunder. Giving us 16 start on Sunday seems too high.

It's a strange old format whereby Swinton have already beaten us in the play-offs once but if we win this time we go up, not them.

Connor Robinson interview (in bed!) before the Swinton game:

[urlhttps://www.rugby-league.com/article/61002/connor-robinson-interview-%7C-doncaster[/url

Cracking interview. A scrum half who looked 'propped' up in bed

Squad for Sunday:

[urlhttps://www.doncasterrugbyleague.co.uk/article/1240/news-|-squad-named-for-2022-grand-final[/url

No place for Ben Howe.

Here's a link to The Sportsman's You Tube channel for this afternoon's match:

[urlhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-VqwaKc8B4[/url

We tried hard and did our best but we weren't quite good enough on the day.

Well done to Swinton. On balance over the season they've been the second best team in the league behind Keighley and deserve to go up.

It's a shame that Championship rugby has eluded us again as it'd be nice to be watching the likes of Featherstone, Bradford, Halifax and York instead of West Wales, Cornwall, and London Skolars.

Thank you to all the Dons players who have put their necks on the line for us this season. You've done yourselves proud and have shown why rugby league is a great sport.

The rose tinted specs are out again but it's another year and another failure. Keighley have seen the writing on the wall as regards restructuring the league and done something about it.Club Doncaster couldn't give a monkeys putting it mildly. So it will be carry on as per usual trying to get a miracle out of mediocrity.

Whose rose tinted specs are you referring to Tatty?

Quote from Steve Hossack at the Free Press:

Richard Horne’s men, who were in contention until Swinton’s third try in injury-time, put up a much better showing than against Workington Town at Derwent Park in last season’s final.

But that will prove scant consolation as they face up to the prospect of an eighth successive season in the third tier of the British game where no ambitious club wants to find themselves at a time of great change within the sport.

Not only will the defeat rob the club of some crowd-pulling derby games next season but it is also likely to see the departure of several fans’ favourites in the coming weeks and thwart plans put in place to strengthen the squad had they been promoted.

[urlhttps://www.doncasterfreepress.co.uk/sport/other-sport/doncaster-rlfc-suffer-play-off-final-heartache-for-second-successive-season-3864429[/url

I wonder who he's got in mind for leaving?

My assessment of the season and the Club Doncaster position:

1) The players gave their all and probably achieved as much as their skill levels suggest they should. Keighley and Swinton had more class in their squads.

2) Not having been a great fan of Richard Horne in the past, I think the tactics we used this season probably got the best out of the team. I just wish he'd show his face and come and acknowledge the crowd from time to time.

3) Club Doncaster would surely want the Dons to be in a higher league as the revenue streams would be far greater. Home crowds, with away fans attending, would bring in much more money, benefitting the Club Doncaster coffers.

4) Eight years of not getting out of this league suggests that the coach is not being given sufficent funds to put a team together that it better than the rest OR the coach is getting sufficient funding but isn't using it wisely.

5) If the coach isn't get enough money, this is either because Club Doncaster don't have the funds or believe we should be able to get promoted on the size of budget they supply.

6) If Club Doncaster aren't able to invest more, they should look to bring in other interested parties to play an active role in the rugby side of things.

7) It doesn't make sense that a city the size of Doncaster is in the third tier of rugby. Our aspirations should be to at least compete in the top half of the Championship or higher. The aim of 'survival' ought not be where the bar is set.

I for one know the wealth of our owners far outweighs the keighleys owners that's just facts, so you can eliminate all those factors by just saying the owners lack the ambition and drive to make this club a championship one. They have the money to take the dons into the championship, they have the money to invest in the rovers to be at least a league 1 side and they have the resources to get the belles back in the super league where they once was but they would prefer to go into their old age plodding along with no dramas.

Reticent to post this on the book of faces as I will no doubt get shot down by the happy clappers and people who state I can only have an opinion if I go to games (YAWN).

We did well to make the final, but in contrast to Swinton and The Cougars we lacked creativity, we tried to play a forwards game when we don't have to punch up front to play forwards game. Ben Johnston tried his best but he's our only real strike player who can create a bit of magic (especially when Watson is playing at 9) if they mark him out of the game we look very flat, to be honest apart from the 2 man steal in the closing stages today we managed to nullify their 7 to.

Misi has been dependable and I am sure the young lads learn a lot from him, but we do need a more dynamic back line with some pace and skill, Tali cannot do it all on his own. We have the ability on the fringes but we just choose to barge up the middle very one-dimensional and very easy to defend against. Having seen the majority of tries we've scored this year there aren't many that have been scored from long range (apart from Travis's two in recent weeks).

I said last year Horne has taken them as far as he can now, two finals two losses time for some fresh ideas, Get Matty, Sweeting and Peltier back in the side, try to keep the spine of the time from this year and add some flair and get a coach who plays to it rather than trying to win a battle of attrition in the middle.

Just to reiterate the lads did well today, they tried, but they were outclassed and out-thought and when the chips were down didn't really have any "ace in the hole" to try to pull the points back.

The richard horne experiment hasn't worked, he's been given ample time but I've not seen anything that makes me believe he's an up and coming coach in the game, the lack of passion and emotion doesn't sit right with me. Swinton's coach is an absolute gobe of the highest order but he was running in every ball, tackling and verbal throughout the 80 mins on the sideline where as ours didn't move from the corner of the stand! Good players don't always make good coaches and for me he has to go

Horne has consistantly failed to achived what he has been tasked with - time for some new ideas.

Let's face it we are playing in a numpty division and have done since 2015.
Only half a dozen decent teams in it and we came 4th out of those six...
No need for analysis....we continually fail, lose our best and have to start again and by the time they have got half decent the season is over.
We are Steptoe and Son, hoping for success on too little outlay.
Well let them that are happy with it continue with it........

Best players to be head hunted, CEO says we would have kept them had we got promoted, season tickets at give away prices. RH and CH reach for the Carl Harrison winter sale catalogue. All is forgiven at the back slappers end of season do where the club congratulate each other for another successful season and players who are leaving smile sheepishly for the camera.

And the mysterious Ethan Wade O'Gorman has posted that this team is going places, well some of the players will be - Sheffield, Dewsbury, Leeds. If we manage to hang onto Watson then I'll be one smacked gob.

Have a good Winter folks and try and keep warm.

Those who were head-hunted last year don't seem to have set the Championship alight. Some may have left last year because of the uncertainly surrounding League One. They presumably got better financial offers too.

I'm not sure who the Championship clubs would be targeting this season. Our best players: Tali? Johnston? Taulapapa? No, no, he's getting on a bit now. Connor Robinson possibly? Ruan to Leeds?

I like Wilf's reference to Craig Harrison's winter sale catalogue!

I reckon we need plenty of new blood for next season. If we think a little bit of tinkering will be enough because we had a 'near miss' we will be making a mistake.

To win the league with little change would be relying on other clubs not being as good as Swinton and Keighley. That may prove to be the case but it's not something I would care to take a chance on.

We should aim to be the Keighley of 2023, not stumble over the line through the play-offs. Better quality players are needed to do that... no offence meant to the players we've got as they given their all this season and we could ask nothing more of them.

I personally think we were 2 props and a fullback short this season, I thought that early on and I still think that now. I hear that the core of this squad is remaining in tact and we shouldn't have the wholesale changes of last year, but some changes are still needed

The "Craig Harrison Winter Sale" made me physically laugh its true its the only place we get players from, despite him being a terrible human being we seem to keep going back to him and lining his pockets.

I'll be brutally honest the vast majority of the squad needs a refresh and a different way of playing, we have a ground that lends itself to expansive rugby we just need a coach who can make the best of it.

With the incoming changes I dont feel we can afford not to get promoted next season - as DM has said we should Go Large and try to gain promotion, I am sure we have more finanancial backing than both the Cougars and Swinton and I'd dare to say our local rivals in the Eagles, the question is does Club Doncaster have the desire?

77 mins on the clock 12-10 in a game where the winner gets promoted and there's 1 coach running up and down the touchline screaming at his players and the other coach sat in the corner of the stand thinking of what he's gonna have for his supper later!

I hope that what Jemmo has heard regarding the squad has some semblance of truth, we really cannot afford to be 'gelling' as a team into the new season. Are the two clubs who are coming down into League 1 as good as the two that have achieved promotion? at this moment in time you ought to think that they are not.

On paper we should be classed as one of the favourites for promotion next year, as my dear old Father in Law says approaching his 93rd year, "get a bloody move on whilst I get chance to see it"