10 years ago this month, our wonderful photographer John Ashton, or more commonly known by his social media handle, @ickledot took his first photos of the club & has been coming back ever since!
In honour of John’s 10 years at the club, here is a look back at 10 of his brilliant snaps!
1. Doncaster Knights v Richmond in a blizzard
2. Bristol Bears v Doncaster Knights, Championship play off final, second leg at Ashton Gate, 16,000 in the crowd.
3. Doncaster Knights v Bristol, Tyson Lewis in ‘typical try scoring mode’
4. Morgan Bunting kicks & the ball boy mimics his action
5. Rory Pitman behind a scrum
6. Post match team picture after the second leg of the play off final, Knights won the game, but were beaten on aggregate
7. Telusa Veainu on his way to score against Newcastle at Kingston Park
8. The full time whistle at this season’s huge away win in Ealing
9. Ben Hunter breaks free of the maul to score against Pirates
10. Thom Smith celebrates Telusa Veainu’s try against Sale Shark
Doncaster Demons will be out in force at Castle Park on Sunday 23rd February as both of their teams host opposition in league action for the first time together.
Demons Firsts host Lincoln Ladies, whilst the Seconds host Selby — both games kick-off at 2.30pm — so get down to cheer on the teams on this historic day for the Demons.
If you can’t make it this week don’t worry as both teams will be in action together at Castle Park twice again before the season ends on the 9th March and 6th April.
Today, everyone at Doncaster Knights is remembering our wonderful friend, Ian Williams. Ian is a deeply missed member of the Doncaster Knights community and our thoughts are with everyone who knew him and anyone who is celebrating Ian’s life today.
For the first time in a long time, Doncaster Knights are pleased to announce the return of our very own Golf Day, proudly sponsored by ORB Recruitment, at Styrrup Golf Club.
You will be fed plenty throughout the day, with a coffee/tea and bacon sandwich on arrival before you tee off, and a 2-course meal to follow your round.
Play will begin with a shotgun start from 1pm with competitions occurring throughout the day, such as Longest Drive and Closest to the Pin, with the Top 3 teams claiming prizes for the best scores.
On the day, if you’ve not having a perfect round, you can purchase mulligans with all proceeds going to the Knights Foundation.
Or if you’d like to promote your business during the day, we are offering hole sponsorships for each of the 18-holes. For the affordable price of £50, this add-on creates a great balance: you can promote your company with prominent signage placed at your chosen hole, focusing the attention on a business-orientated event, whilst also connecting with potential clients in a relaxed, social setting.
We look forward to welcoming you on 1st July– for all bookings and enquiries, please contact Tom Foy: tomfoy@castle-park.co.uk
Doncaster Knights excelled in their final group cup game against Caldy, winning by an almighty 48-0.
Morgan Bunting opened the scores early on as Semesa Rokoduguni made a break up the wing to bring us in the 22. Rokoduguni then popped the ball to Aidan Cross, who delayed his offload to Bunting, allowing him to go over in the corner. Alex Dolly slotted a brilliant touchline conversion to take a 7-0 lead.
Aidan Cross
Archie Smeaton was the next on the score card. Morgan Strong carried the ball up to the line off the line out and the forwards continued to make carries, but Smeaton was the player who managed to squeeze the ball over, extending the lead to 12-0. Dolly’s conversion hit the posts.
Smeaton’s try
Caldy spent a long time in attack around the 20 minute mark, but the same Doncaster defence that we saw in Sale prevented Caldy from gaining any points. They stopped the driving maul on multiple occasions and when we regained possession, it was try time again!
Maliq Holden scored the next for the Knights as they shipped the ball out to Cross on the wing. Cross showed great pace to ignite the line break, before popping the ball back inside to Holden, who carried the rest of the distance and dove over the line. Another of Dolly’s conversions hit the post, 17-0.
Shipping the ball out to the wing seemed to be the Knight’s best way into the try line as they moved it quickly off the scrum again to Semesa Rokoduguni. Rokoduguni squeezed his way over in the corner and Dolly slotted another two points. Half time score 24-0.
Scrum domination meant that Doncaster could continue to attack early in the second half, and a penalty allowed us to kick into the 22. Rokoduguni then claimed his second try as a well executed line out led to very quick handling, shipping the ball out to him on the wing. Dolly converted another from the touchline. 31-0.
Shortly after, Caldy worked their way up to the line, but more superb maul defence from Doncaster meant we won a scrum and could regain possession.
Sam Wadsworth, who has joined us on short term loan, scored his first Knights try on home debut. A long ball out wide from Bunting opened the gap for him to go over. 36-0.
Another opportunity for Caldy in their attacking 22, but their line out went wrong and Doncaster stole the ball back. A penalty gifted the Knights a 5m line out, and a fantastic rolling maul sent Ben Chapman over. Followed by a great touchline conversion from Bunting, 43-0.
In the final few moments, Caldy spent a while in attack, but made no ground as Doncaster double tackles sent them backwards.
With the clock in the red, the Knights claimed a final five points as Holden scored a second. The hosts whipped the ball out to the wing, allowing the full back to dive into the corner.
Full time score 48-0. Player of the match was awarded to Adam Hopkinson, for a full 80 of brilliant defending, dominant carries and clean line outs.
The Knights will then turn their attention back to the Championship for a huge game, as we host current league leaders Ealing on March 22. Tickets on sale here!
Here is your guide to Doncaster v Caldy, all the important information for Saturday’s game!
14:30 PM Kick-Off
Saturday 15th February
Castle Park
Turnstiles open from 12:00!
Tickets:
Tickets for the fixture are cheaper when purchased online, however can be bought from the ticket window on the day.
The ticket window is located around the back of the Lloyd De Mulder stand.
U16s tickets are FREE but they must still get a ticket to get through the turnstiles.
Turnstiles:
We have now added turnstiles to the ground allowing easier and quicker match day access! It is as simple as scanning your ticket at the gate to trigger entry through the turnstile!
We have worked with the engineers to speed up the function of the turnstiles. To help with a smooth entry to the ground, where possible, please distribute e-tickets so that each fan has their own ticket on their own device. If this is not possible – please can the ticket holder scan everyone through before entering the ground last.
Parking:
Parking is available on site and operates on a first come, first serve basis.
Parking is also available for £3 at Outwood Academy Danum, which is just a short walk away from the ground.
Food and Drink:
We will have a variety of Food and Drink options available on match day. All bars will be open!
BRAND NEW DONUTS! We have now started selling donuts on all of our bars!
Our famous Cow Pie will be available at the Knights Fayre, along with a selection of other hot food. You can also purchase pasties and hot drinks at the end of the concourse bar.
CAM Coffee will be on site for hot drinks and you can purchase your sweet treats from the sweet van!
Joe Ford and Sir Ian McGeechan have named their Doncaster Knights to face Caldy in the final group stage of the Premiership Cup.
The Knight’s front row remains the same as last week, with Logovi’i Mulipola and Joe Jones as the props and George Roberts at hooker. Adam Hopkinson moves back into the second row to partner captain, Ben Murphy. The back row consists of Morgan Strong, Archie Smeaton and Jasper McGuire.
Our replacement props are Conor Davidson and Lewis Thiede, with Ben Chapman replacement hooker. Taniela Ramasibana, Cory Teague and Fred Davies are the other forwards on the bench.
Our halfbacks remain unchanged, with Alex Dolly at 9 and Morgan Bunting at 10. Ollie Fox is the replacement scrum half. Connor Edwards returns to from injury and slots back into the centres, joined by Zach Kerr.
Maliq Holden shuffles to full back with Semesa Rokoduguni and Aidan Cross on the wings. Sam Wadsworth is our final back replacement.
Starting XV | 15, Maliq Holden. 14, Semesa Rokoduguni. 13, Zach Kerr. 12, Connor Edwards. 11, Aidan Cross. 10, Morgan Bunting. 9, Alex Dolly. 1, Logovi’I Mulipola. 2, George Roberts. 3, Joe Jones. 4, Ben Murphy (C). 5, Adam Hopkinson. 6, Morgan Strong. 7, Archie Smeaton. 8, Jasper McGuire.
Replacements | 16, Ben Chapman. 17, Conor Davidson. 18, Lewis Thiede. 19,Taniela Ramasibana. 20, Cory Teague. 21, Fred Davies. 22, Ollie Fox . 23, Sam Wadsworth.
Unavailable For Selection | Andrew Turner, Thom Smith,Russell Bennett, Will Parry, Arthur Green, George Wacokecoke, Harry Davey,Jordan Olowofela, Telusa Veainu, Josh Williams.
Tickets for this game are still available, grab yours now to support the Knight. GET TICKETS.
Alex Dolly previews the final group stage of the Premiership Cup as Doncaster Knights host Caldy at Castle Park.
The Knights are heading into the weekend off the back of a historic win against Premiership Team, Sale Sharks. Dolly began by explaining how that has impacted the squad:
“It was massive. Obviously we spoke all last week about creating history and trying to beat a Premiership team. We went there and I think, in certain parts we weren’t at our best but it was the scramble and the fight we showed, even at the end to get the job done on the 80th minute, where we’ve been this year. A couple of those games have gone the other way where we’ve actually been on the other end.”
So I think it was really important it brings loads of confidence in, camp is obviously much happier. So hopefully we can bring the same intensity this weekend.”
Doncaster Knights have beaten Caldy twice this season already, once in the Championship and once in the Premiership Cup. Dolly said: “Yeah we’ve played them twice already and obviously reviewed their stuff. They’ve got a really good set piece maul, I think they scored a couple up in Newcastle last week and they’ve threatened us before with that, so we’re fully aware of what we need to do there to stop that.”
They can move the ball as well, as they’ve proven against Nottingham, so we’ve got to be on it and disciplines gonna be a massive thing. That’s something we’ve gone after this week.”
The scrum half explained the key takeaways from the Sale game, and how they plan to implement them against Caldy:
“It was a scramble, not everything was perfect but we had the fight. Like when Jonsey [Joe Jones] was yellow carded early doors and we didn’t concede. Things like that, and just actually turning pressure into points, it’s something we haven’t done since Hartpury so it was really pleasing on that side of things.”
The Knights could still move on to the quarter finals, depending on the result in both out game, and Newcastle v Sale. But Dolly said “we are not really thinking about it. The mathematical equation will sort itself out so we need to go out there and put our best performance in. We’re trying to back up what we did last week and show that consistency so for us it’s just about going out there and putting the best performance in. Let the result take care of itself and then from there we just deal with what we get.”
He talked about how it is important to end the cup block on a positive note before turning our attention back to the championship. “It’s massive, winning is a habit so if we can take this win on the weekend or we can put a performance in that gets us a win, we’ve then got that three, four week block where camps in a good place, morale is high and we go flying into Ealing when we return.”
With the Knights returning to Castle Park this week, Dolly explained the importance of the home crowd: “It’s just hugely important, just hearing them chanting and doing what they do. Especially in the good moments but also the moments where we’re under pressure and we need that little extra lift to get us through something and turn that momentum in a game so they are massively important for us and we do appreciate when we can hear them.”
Travel back in time to 1875 for an evening full of exciting guest speakers, cow pie andnon-stop entertainment!
Friday 25th April – 6pm arrival for a 6:30pm start.
Join us at Castle Park for Doncaster Rugby Club’s Anniversary Dinner to celebrate this historic milestone of our beloved club. We are very excited to share that we will be joined by World Cup winner, Will Greenwood MBE and former referee Nigel Owens MBE.
Nigel Owens is a former Welsh international rugby union referee, who retired in 2020, after a 17-year career. He previously held the world record for the most test matches refereed and is widely considered to be one of the greatest rugby referees of all time.
Will Greenwood is a former English Rugby Union player who played for Leicester Tigers and Harlequins, as well as a member of England’s 2003 World Cup-winning team. He also represented the 1997 British and Irish Lions.
As well as talks from our guest speakers, the evening will be jam-packed with entertainment that will take you on a journey through time from 1875 to the present day! We are working closely with our friends at The Angels Events, to ensure the evening will not be one to miss!
We can’t wait to welcome you for an evening of unique entertainment while celebrating the rich heritage of Doncaster Rugby & much, much more!
The available packages to attend the event are listed below:
Doncaster Knights are currently looking for a full-time Hospitality Manager to join our team.
An enthusiastic team player, we are seeking an experienced, self-motivated and highly customer focussed Hospitality Manager with extensive knowledge of food and beverage sales and delivery, employment law and legislation to lead our enthusiastic catering, bar and front of house team and take us to the level required to operate in rugby’s Premier League and to deliver excellent events and conferencing at Castle Park. You will manage the delivery of events and conferencing across Castle Park including the management of bar and catering staff. You will also be responsible for the financial management to ensure the most efficient and cost-effective distribution of our resources and maximising income. You will be required to develop and implement customer facing systems that will provide an excellent experience to all our clients.
The Hospitality manager will work closely with the events team to deliver excellent service to all our customers and will also assist in the generation of revenue and sales.
The successful candidate will ideally possess the following:
Appropriate academic and or professional qualifications in a financial area;
Proven track record in Hospitality;
Proven leadership experience;
Experience in managing casual and contracted staff;
Excellent communication skills;
Strong time management skills;
Ability to work on your own initiative;
Experience of a similar role in professional sport would be useful.
Doncaster Knights claim huge Premiership Cup win away to Sale at the Salford Community Stadium.
Superb Doncaster defence kept the Knights in the game during the first half, before they snatched the victory in the second.
It was the hosts who scored the first points of the game just minutes in. With a scrum on the 5m line, they moved the ball out to Rekeiti Ma’asi-White who ran hard over the line. They added the extras to take a 7-0 lead.
Sale had almost all of the possession for the first half, but Doncaster managed to hold out the Sharks countless times. The Knights continued to show resilience, even when they were down to 14 men, as Joe Jones received a yellow.
Doncaster applied pressure brilliantly when defending the try line to force knock-ons multiple times. The forwards displayed great skill as multiple scrum penalties and line out turnovers contributed to keeping the Sharks at bay.
In the first half, when the Knights did get ball in hand, there were some quality individual performances. A huge carry from Morgan Strong allowed the Knights into their attacking half for the first time in the game.
Our new loan player from Lymm RFC, Sam Wadsworth, came on the pitch early due to an injury replacement. Wadsworth showed great talent as he also made a crucial break to bring us into the 22.
On one of the Knights only first half visits into the 22, Alex Dolly slotted a penalty to close the scores. 7-3.
Sale came fighting back at the next kick off and worked their way up to the line, but after attempting to ground the ball multiple times, the Knights held them out. Eventually, Donny won a penalty to exit.
It was heartbreak on the 40th minute as a Doncaster try was disallowed. Rhys Tait made the break to bring us close, before Veainu put in a cross field kick to Zach Kerr. It’s just a little too high for Kerr, whose fingertips brushed the ball. Adam Hopkinson gathered the ball and dove it over the line, but the TMO called it forward off Kerr. Half time score 7-3.
Doncaster started the second half brilliantly with a fantastic shift from the forwards. Sale attempted to drive the ball over from a rolling maul but Doncaster held it still. With the maul going nowhere, Sale shipped the ball out to the backs, where they knocked the ball on. The Knights then proceeded to win a scrum penalty, meaning we could exit the 22 and attack.
After working our way down to the other end of the pitch, Sale had possession again. But not for long, as George Roberts ripped the ball and Doncaster moved it quickly to the opposite wing. Maliq Holden carried us up to the 5m line, before popping the ball back inside to Veainu, who grounded the ball over the line. 7-8.
Dolly extended the lead with the conversion. 7-10
The hosts stole one back almost immediately as Obi Ene stormed over the line. Tom Curtis added the extras. 14-10.
Semesa Rokoduguni puts Donny back in front with an absolutely outstanding intercept try. He snatched the ball and went the length before grounding under the posts. Dolly added the extras. 14-17.
Shortly after, Dolly secured another three points for the Knights. 14-20.
Tensions remained high as Sale claimed another score. The Knights defended the forwards well as they tried to drive over, but eventually the Sharks distributed the ball out wide and they went over in the corner. However, the conversion was missed. 19-20.
For the final two minutes, the forwards made countless carries to keep possession, before the clock went red and Bunting kicked the ball into touch.
