All Golds v Doncaster KPL1 2017 Final

Money troubles were never<br />

far away however and new<br />

owner John Wright had<br />

to rescue the club in 1991<br />

before announcing in 1997<br />

that the club would have<br />

to be liquidated unless<br />

new owners were found<br />

who arrived in the shape<br />

of Shane Miller and Craig<br />

Harrison.<br />

In 2007 the club moved to<br />

the new Keepmoat Stadium<br />

on the edge of town and<br />

dropped their short lived<br />

‘Lakers’ moniker to be<br />

known as the Dons again.<br />

a half thousand the Dons<br />

moved to a new stadium<br />

on Bentley Road in 1953,<br />

which was later renamed<br />

Tattersfield in honour<br />

of former chairman Len<br />

Tattersfield.<br />

Success was elusive,<br />

however. Between 1956<br />

and 1961 <strong>Doncaster</strong> were<br />

bottom of the league every<br />

year, in the bottom three<br />

between 1963 and 1968<br />

and only twice out of the<br />

bottom three between 1970<br />

and 1985.<br />

The appointment of<br />

former Great Britain<br />

international Tony Fisher -<br />

a tough uncompromising<br />

Welshman - as coach<br />

heralded happier times in<br />

the 1990s. Promotion from<br />

Division 2 was achieved in<br />

the 1993/4 season when<br />

<strong>Doncaster</strong> finished second<br />

behind Workington Town.<br />

Overseas players such<br />

as Jamie Bloem (who<br />

later became a referee),<br />

Vila Matautia and Sonny<br />

Whakarau and stalwarts like<br />

Audley Pennant, Tony Miller<br />

and Robert ‘Rocky’ Turner<br />

formed the backbone of<br />

the team.<br />

A sensational start in the<br />

top division with wins over<br />

St Helens, Widnes and<br />

Wakefield Trinity saw the<br />

Dons briefly on top of the<br />

league. Sadly it did not<br />

last and <strong>Doncaster</strong> finished<br />

their only season in the top<br />

flight at the bottom, their<br />

last win coming against<br />

Hull on 15 January (winter<br />

rugby league in those days,<br />

of course).<br />

Relegation and liquidation<br />

followed but the club<br />

reformed as the <strong>Doncaster</strong><br />

Dragons in the bottom tier<br />

of the league in 1995/6.<br />

Tattersfield had been sold<br />

for housing and the club<br />

moved to the Meadow<br />

Court Greyhound Stadium<br />

then later shared the Belle<br />

Vue stadium with <strong>Doncaster</strong><br />

Rovers FC.<br />

After St John Ellis became<br />

coach in 1999 the club<br />

began to prosper again.<br />

Playing a tough, aggressive,<br />

physical style, their ground<br />

was referred to as “the<br />

House of Pain” by Ellis an<br />

ebullient larger than life<br />

character who sadly died<br />

all too soon on New Years’<br />

Eve 1995.<br />

With the legendary<br />

Ellery Hanley at the helm,<br />

<strong>Doncaster</strong> (with a young<br />

Luke Gale at scrum half)<br />

won the 2008 National<br />

League 2 play off final<br />

18-10 against Oldham at<br />

Warrington’s Halliwell Jones<br />

Stadium to earn promotion<br />

to the game’s second<br />

tier. Unfortunately Hanley<br />

resigned shortly after citing<br />

financial constraints and the<br />

club were relegated back<br />

to the third tier the next<br />

season.<br />

History repeated itself in<br />

2012 when player coach<br />

Paul Cooke led the Dons<br />

to another play-off victory<br />

in Warrington, 16-13 against<br />

Barrow, as well as winning<br />

the League Leaders Shield.<br />

Now back in the third tier<br />

and owned by the town’s<br />

football club, <strong>Doncaster</strong> are<br />

looking to newly-appointed<br />

coach Richard Horne to<br />

guide the club to better<br />

times ahead - a far cry from<br />

the days of “Another Bloody<br />

Sunday”. The Documentary<br />

is available on YouTube:<br />

CLICK HERE<br />

7<br />

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