Chief executive Carl Hall insists Doncaster are gunning for spot in the top four of the Championship in 2026.
The Dons were one of the four clubs to be overlooked for promotion to Super League by an independent panel over the off-season, ensuring they will remain in the second tier for another season at the very least.
But, the South Yorkshire club is approaching the new campaign with plenty of ambition as they bid to make their presence felt and become one of the big hitters in the second tier.
The Dons have made a handful of signings with over the off-season with Gadwin Springer, James Glover, Connor Jones, Muizz Mustapha, Cory Aston and Tom Holmes joining the club and under Richard Horne, they’ll be confident of improving on last season’s eighth placed finish.
Hall, though, insists a spot in the top four is the target and the club are heading into 2026 with belief that they can take the next step in their development, with a spot in Super League being the long-term goal.
“We’re happy with how things are going and it’s a big year for the club,” Hall said. “We’ve made no secret, we’re going for the top four and I think everyone is really looking forward to the season.
“We’ll have some bumps along the way but we need to stick together. The boys are training really hard and they’ve had to switch it up a little bit because they condensed training with the season starting so early.”
He added: “We’ve had a massive investment off the field in our new facility, the training ground. It’s all positive for the club, we’re not just investing on the field but off it as well.
“We all know that the destination for this club is Super League so we need to get things right off the field as well as on the field. With IMG we need to make sure our performances and IMG scores go together now so when we do get to where we need to get to, there’s no reason not to put us in.”
Doncaster CEO on new look Championship
Doncaster will be part of a new look Championship this year with the second and third tiers merging together to form what is currently a 21-team competition.
“I’ve always been for it. It should have happened years ago,” Hall added. “I’ve always been a bit of a voice for it because I just don’t think there’s room enough in the sport for three leagues. Those clubs that are coming up, don’t be fooled, they’ll be competitive and they’ll have a good crack, League One was a really tough league.
“It should be a good league and let’s see what it’s like in 12 months’ time when we’ve all sat down and had a look at it. We’ve had the RFL meetings where we’re trying to come up with how the draw is going to be and the structure and what it should look like in ’27 and ’28. I said in the meeting, we might sat here in 12 months’ time going ‘how good was that?’.
“Looking forward to it, there’s going to be some good games, some upsets, the Championship is a tough league but we’re looking forward to it.”
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