Bury St Edmunds make it three wins on the bounce after they defeated Worthing Raiders 32-29 on Saturday.
The team consisted of three Doncaster Knights loanees, Will Metcalfe, who started on the wing and moved to scrum half during the second half. Second row, James Harrison and prop, Calvin Mitchell.
Metcalfe who has now scored 6 tries in 7 games, claimed another for Bury. Metcalfe’s try followed a series of back and forth kicks before he scored off a counter attack.
James Harrison
Head Coach, Jacob Ford, spoke about the relationship between Bury St Edmunds and Doncaster Knights in a recent episode of ‘The National League Rugby Show’.
Ford said: “The Donny lads have been brilliant, they’re very humble they are keen to get better. They fit into the group massively in terms of the cultural side of it and the off field stuff too. The travel just shows their commitment to it, and that they want to see Bury succeed and do the best for the club.”
“But also, on the field they are 100% committed, when you get a 100% committed player they’re the ones you want to work with.”
“They’ve added a different dynamic to the group that we have probably not had before which is great because we can start to develop our game and do things a little bit differently. But ultimately, they’re a high standard of player, they’re hungry and they want to get better.”
Bury St Edmunds have shot up to 6th in the National League Two East table and face second in the league, Guernsey on Saturday 26th Oct.
Doncaster Knights are pleased to announce the addition of a new sponsorship with Fenwood Estates.
Fenwood Estates Limited is an established development company based in Doncaster, founded in 1977 as a Sole Trader under the name of ‘Fennell Builders’, the company has grown from strength to strength and matured from a small building contractor to a successful land and development company. As an LABC award-winning land and development company, Fenwood understand the things that are important to our local community, such as reducing our environmental impact and making a positive social difference in the areas where they operate. Fenwood Estates main committment to the Knights this season was a spot on the 150th Anniversary kit, appearing on the side of the shorts.
Fenwood Estates Managing Director, Melissa Kroger together with Teresa Allison, Commercial Manager, visited Castle Park and Melissa shared her enthusiasm in the partnership saying: “To be showcasing the Fenwood Estates branding to local fans, supporters and the business community is perfect for Fenwood Estates and at the forefront of our ethos of being an important part of the local community. Together with the sponsorship of the Doncaster Knights recyclable cups we feel the partnership with them in their 150th Anniversary Year is absolutely perfect and will build success both on and off the pitch and we will be right behind the team for the season and beyond with the hope of branching out to fans and local businesses.”
Tracey Owen, Sales Executive at Doncaster Knights, stated her delight in the partnership saying “it has been a pleasure working with Melissa and the rest of the team at Fenwood Estates. As a club, we value the support of local businesses for sponsorship and are delighted to welcome Fenwood as sponsors and for hospitality throughout the season. We hope that this relationship will grow and be a long term partnership”
Both parties are very much looking forward to the season ahead, both in a business and sporting sense. Whether you are looking for a house move, new house or your first house, Fenwood Estates are there to help. To learn more about what Fenwood Estates has to offer, see more on their website.
To learn more about the sponsorship opportunities at Doncaster Knights, contact Tracey Owen via email: towen@castle-park.co.uk; or via telephone 01302 831388.
The Knights were unable to silence a lively Goldington Road, despite Morgan Strong scoring twice for the visitors.
Doncaster began the game with some good phases of attack, as Thom Smith and Archie Smeaton made notably strong carries. However, Doncaster’s scrum meant that Bedford regained possession in the form of a penalty and worked their way to the try line.
The Blues scored the first try of the game as they shipped the ball out the scrum and moved it well between the back-line. Winger, Archie Garside carried it over the line and the conversion was also successful.
At the restart, the Knights applied good pressure in defence, forcing a knock-on, but another scrum penalty goes Bedford’s way and they gained momentum to score another.
Their second try was a well placed grubber kick up the wing, which was chased well and grounded over the line. The conversion was missed, meaning the hosts had a 12-0 lead.
Bedford overthrew a line out and Jasper McGuire reacted well to catch the ball and carry it a handful of metres. The Knights continued to build but fell victim to the famous downhill at Goldington Road when a cross field kick rolled past the dead ball line.
Doncaster’s scrum improved at a crucial moment when a scrum penalty on the 5m line allowed them to exit the 22 and attack again.
They keep the momentum, and eventually Morgan Strong displayed brilliant determination to shake off a Bedford player and carry the ball under the posts. Russell Bennett added the extras.
Morgan Strong
The hosts answered back quickly, however some good phases of Doncaster defending meant they only took three points when they struggled to get over the line.
Russell Bennett then slotted a penalty to close the scores and keep Doncaster in the game heading into half time.
Half time score 15-10.
At the start of the second half, Bennett kept the points ticking over with another penalty. The Knights maintained most of the possession for the first 10 minutes of the second half. Bennett, Zach Kerr and Telusa Veainu moved the ball between them really well to gain a lot of ground up the wing. But shorty after, we are penalised for crossing.
More positives came from Doncaster as Morgan Strong turned the ball over at the breakdown. However, the turning point of the game followed shortly. Matt Worley was quick off the line to intercept a Donny pass and score for Bedford, killing the momentum the Knights had built. They added the extra two for the conversion.
Bedford claimed another as a cross field kick bounces nicely into the arms of the winger, and another conversion extended their lead.
Ben Murphy applied good pressure as he charged down Bedford’s attempt to exit the 5m line. When Doncaster regained possession, Veainu threw a sly offload, mid tackle, to Strong. Strong then worked his magic again, bumping off a Bedford player and diving over the whitewash. Alex Dolly narrowly missed the touchline conversion.
The Knights kept fighting, but after holding out a Bedford maul once, they manage to ground the ball in the second attempt and claim one final try.
Full Time score, 34-18.
The Knights will now turn their focus to the Premiership Cup when they host Sale Sharks on the opening night. You can buy tickets for this fixture now!
Telusa Veainu set to make first appearance for Doncaster Knights amongst a changed squad to last week.
With Veainu available and Russell Bennett returning from injury, the back line varies from the London Scottish fixture. Ollie Fox and Russell Bennett are the starting half backs with Alex Dolly and Morgan Bunting as their replacements.
Zach Kerr moves back into the centres to join Connor Edwards. Veainu starts at full back, and two-time hat-trick scorer Jordan Olowofela is still in the team, but on the wing. Harry Davey earns his first start as the other winger.
Will Parry, a centre who is on loan to us from bath, is set to make his debut off the bench.
Jasper McGuire and Joe Jones are the duo of props, with Fred Davies in the middle as the hooker. Thom Smith moves back to the second row to join Captain Ben Murphy. Archie Smeaton moves back into the starting back row, with Rhys Tait and Morgan Strong, who have kept their starting shirt all season.
The replacement front row consists of Andrew Turner and Lewis Thiede, with George Roberts the spare hooker. Josh Williams and Arthur Green are the remaining forwards on the bench.
Starting XV | 15, Telusa Veainu. 14, Harry Davey. 13, Zach Kerr. 12, Connor Edwards. 11, Jordan Olowofela. 10, Russell Bennett. 9, Ollie Fox. 1, Jasper McGuire. 2, Fred Davies. 3, Joe Jones. 4, Ben Murphy (C). 5, Thom Smith. 6, Archie Smeaton. 7, Rhys Tait. 8, Morgan Strong.
Replacements | 16, George Roberts. 17, Andrew Turner. 18, Lewis Thiede. 19, Josh Williams 20, Arthur Green. 21, Alex Dolly. 22, Morgan Bunting 23, Will Parry.
Unavailable for selection due to injury: Semesa Rokoduguni, Cory Teague, Logovi’i Mulipola, Adam Hopkinson, Conor Davidson, George Wacokecoke.
New Knight this season, Zach Kerr discusses how the team have been preparing for Bedford Away off the back of a home defeat.
Kerr has joined Doncaster Knights from Premiership club Newcastle Falcons. Kerr explained how he is finding his time at Doncaster so far:
“As an environment, it’s been brilliant. From day one of pre season, the coaches, Fordy, Daz, Geech and Tys have laid down what we want to try to achieve and the way we want to play. And that’s been a pretty consistent theme throughout all of pre-season and the first three games as well.”
Doncaster’s other new centre, George Wacokecoke, has also moved to the club from Newcastle Falcons. Kerr said, “It’s been pretty good to have another familiar face at the club. On my first day, it was also his first day as well so that was good. I get to play a few games with him too so that’s been great.”
The centre reflected on the team’s disappointing home defeat at the weekend:
“If we are being honest, it was a pretty unacceptable performance from ourselves, especially after the week before against Ealing.”
“in terms of what went wrong, we never really fired a shot attacking wise. We got in good positions, but we never really, capitalised. We got into their 22, 11 times and didn’t get any points.”
Kerr explained that there were some positive take-aways from the game, “on a positive note, the defence was pretty good throughout. I know we conceded two tries, but as a general theme it was pretty good.”
The Knights travel down to Bedford Blues this weekend in the hopes they will continue to be unbeaten when on the road.
Kerr said: “We have had a couple of tough sessions on Tuesday and today to get ready. Tuesday was particularly tough, you know, we spoke about things that have gone wrong and we try to implement them in training. So yeah, we have been working really hard.
Despite Bedford being a difficult place to go and win at, Kerr suggested “We are pretty optimistic. You know, we’ve watched a couple of Bedford’s, games. We know the way they play and we think we can implement our game plan on them pretty well.”
The Knights game against Bedford will kick off at 3pm and you can follow along on X for live updates. CLICK HERE TO FOLLOW
Doncaster are then back in town on Friday November 1st to face premiership club Sale Sharks in the Premiership Rugby Cup. You can secure tickets here!
Doncaster Knights are hosting a Jason Robinson Foundation Rugby Camp at Castle Park from the 30th of October to the 1st of November.
30th October – 1st November
9:30am – 2:30pm
Castle Park
Boys and Girls age 7-15 welcome!
£30 per day or £75 for 3 days.
JFR foundation aim to open the field of opportunity to children and young people so they can realise their full potential.
It is a non-profit organisation that connects children and young people with opportunities to transform their lives by providing training, events, life skills and mentors.
Book your child on to experience quality coaching, rugby games and advanced skill development!
A strong London Scottish team, fed by eight Harlequin’s academy and three Harlequin’s loanees, secure a win over the Knights at Castle Park.
The visitors looked dangerous from the start as they made their way down to the 5m line almost immediately and carried with intent. Jordan Olowofela was quick off the line to intercept a Scottish pass, which gave Doncaster some go-forward.
The Knights continued to work as they won a penalty at the first scrum; Morgan Bunting then placed a nice kick to touch allowing the Knights to attack within 5m. But, Scottish defended well and turned the ball over at the breakdown.
Archie Smeaton
This then gave the visitors momentum to work their way down to the other end of the pitch. They spent many phases fighting to get over the line and eventually Sam Riley found a gap to dive over. The conversion was missed.
The Knights showed some fight to keep the visitors out as Scottish dominated possession for the remainder of the first half but took no more points. A brilliant jackal from Rhys Tait contributed to holding Scottish out. However, errors in attack meant Doncaster were unable to create any home points.
Half time score 0-5.
London Scottish came out firing during the second half as they scored in the 41st minute. They moved the ball quickly down the line to exploit a gap out on the wing as their outside centre, Sean Kerr received the ball back inside to carry it over.
Ex-Doncaster Knights player Alec Lloyd-Seed scored the conversion to add the extra two points.
For the remainder of the second half, Doncaster defended well to restrict Scottish from gaining any more points. However, handling errors and discipline prevented them from utilising any attack they managed to build.
Ollie Fox moved to scrum half at the start of the second half. Fox was awarded Doncaster Knight’s player of the match because he provided quick ball and energy to the Knights.
There were a handful of other notable individual performances, Thom Smith made a great turnover and carried hard. Connor Edwards gained a lot of ground with dominant carries and George Wacokecoke made countless impressive tackles when defending.
Connor Edwards
The Knights spent the majority of the second half in attack and had roughly eight chances where they came close to the line, but errors meant they weren’t converted into points.
London Scottish defended brilliantly, turning the ball over when defending their try line, three times.
Doncaster Knights return to Castle Park after a successful away trip to Ealing in round three. The Yorkshire club host London Scottish with a handful of changes to the starting line up.
Conor Davidson is the only member of the front row who was in the starting XV against Ealing. His tight head partner will be Joe Jones, joined by Fred Davies, earning his first start at Hooker.
Josh Williams will be joining Ben Murphy in the second row, as Cory Teague picked up a shoulder injury during his start last week. The back row remains the same, Thom Smith, Rhys Tait and Morgan Strong.
The Knights stick with the same half-back pairing of Alex Dolly and Morgan Bunting. However, there are changes in the centre. Zach Kerr pushes out to the wing to make way for George Wacokecoke in the centre. Wacokecoke will join usual starter, Connor Edwards.
Maliq Holden and Jordan Olowofela make up the rest of the back three.
On the bench, Hooker, Ben Chapman is set to make his debut off the bench. Chapman has joined Doncaster Knights this season from Ampthill. Usual hooker, George Roberts, moves to back row replacement. Jasper McGuire and Lewis Thiede are the substitute props. With Taniela Ramasibana and Archie Smeaton making up the second/back row reserves.
Ollie Fox is set to replace Alex Dolly at scrum half, and Harry Davey is the remaining back on the bench.
Starting XV | 15, Jordan Olowofela. 14, Zach Kerr. 13, George Wacokecoke. 12, Connor Edwards. 11, Maliq Holden. 10, Morgan Bunting. 9, Alex Dolly. 1, Conor Davidson. 2, Fred Davies. 3, Joe Jones. 4, Ben Murphy (C). 5, Josh Williams. 6, Thom Smith. 7, Rhys Tait. 8, Morgan Strong.
Replacements | 16, Ben Chapman. 17, Jasper McGuire. 18, Lewis Thiede. 19, Taniela Ramasibana 20, George Roberts. 21, Archie Smeaton. 22, Ollie Fox. 23, Harry Davey.
Injury news:
Semesa Rokoduguni is resting a sore hamstring.
Cory Teague picked up a shoulder injury during the Ealing fixture.
Russell Bennett is still recovering from a calf injury.
Doncaster Knights defeated reigning champions Ealing Trailfinders last weekend, in an exciting away fixture down in West London.
Holden explained how this has given the Knights a boost after a disappointing game the week before: “It was really good for us to respond after a disappointing loss against Nottingham.”
“I think, in many ways, it was the perfect game to play after. It was backs against the wall, and with them being Champions of last year.”
“I think we went out there and we probably weren’t where we wanted to be rugby wise, with the ceiling that we’ve got, but I just thought we fronted up and the no talent stuff we were absolutely brilliant at.”
“During pre-season, we’ d always came on the positive side and won. We’d had like a real nice pre-season if that makes sense. We hadn’t been in those moments like we were against Nottingham. So it was good for us to reset to, to properly show where we were as a team. We probably thought we were a bit further ahead, but we weren’t, and so it was the perfect challenge and I think we did really well in it.”
Holden hopes that the team will be able to put things right at home during this weekends game.
“It’s probably a bigger challenge than Ealing, in many ways. We were the underdogs going against Ealing we’re probably favourites now. And were aware that we probably are.
“We didn’t give the best account of ourselves against, Nottingham. I don’t want to say we let the fans down because we never go out intentionally trying to lose a game, and we give everything that we can. But, I think there’s definitely a responsibility to now put out a performance, that the fans would be proud of, and that they’ll be happy and not be disappointed with.”
Holden has 69 caps for Doncaster Knights, and is one of a small group in the team that have been around for a while. He explained what it’s been like adjusting to the new group: “It’s been amazing and really seamless.”
“I think that’s why losing to Nottingham was such a good thing for us. We became so close straight away, and we really enjoyed being with each other. We got on so well and the connection was seamless. Maybe that was the reason that, when we found ourselves under a bit of pressure against Nottingham, we maybe struggled a bit more than we expected.”
Maliq Holden (right)
“But again, part of being part of this family is that you’re going to go through tough times. It’s how you respond from it. I think we responded really well against Ealing. And now, we have the test of our environment, the test of our team and who we want to be this year. We need to back it up at home, so I’m super excited.”
London Scottish will be coming off the back of a positive result, having beaten Cornish Pirates. Holden said: “They are a good squad, like a real good side.”
“A few of us went and watched the game last Friday because we were in London. They did really well against a tough Pirates team. Pirates lost on the last play to Ealing the week before, and I think Scottish were were miles better on the day. So, we have loads of respect for them.
“They’re never an easy team to play against so, we’re excited by it. They’ve got a big Quinn’s influence as well, but we’re just excited about going and putting our game on them. So we’ll give them the respect they deserve and hopefully come away with five points.”
