Doncaster RLFC eye automatic promotion next season after more play-off heartache against Swinton Lions

That’s the promise of the club’s CEO Carl Hall after they were edged out 16-10 in the League One Grand Final against Swinton Lions on Sunday.

Despite being comfortably beaten 32-12 by Swinton just two weeks earlier, Dons made it a far more competitive contest this time round and led the scoreboard until the final 15 minutes.

A ‘gutted’ Hall said: “The boys put a real big effort in, I wanted them to do it for themselves, they have been great all year.

"It’s a tough one for all of us to take but the planning for 2023 starts now.

"League One doesn’t get any easier but if we can retain the majority of our squad it gives us a good start.

"We don’t want to be playing play-offs next year, we are going to go out and try and win it."

Doncaster were forced to rebuild their squad following last season’s Grand Final defeat to Workington, a fate Hall would like to avoid a repeat of.

He said: “We don’t think what happened last year will happen to us, we’re quietly confident of retaining a good percentage of them.

"We will lose one or two, it’s inevitable and that always happens, but this group has got the bit between their teeth and I think they want to do something good together.”

Dons did receive some good news on Sunday when stand off Watson Boas revealed he had been called up to the Papua New Guinea squad the Rugby League World Cup.

The competition starts on Saturday 15 October when England host Samoa – who will be based in Doncaster thoughout the tournament – at St James’s Park in Newcastle.

Hall said: “It was a real emotional one. After the game he came on the bus when we were all a bit down and told me.

"We just started crying.”

Hall is under instruction to provide tickets for Boas’s teammates to come and watch him at the World Cup when Papua New Guinea take on Wales at the Eco-Power Stadium on 31 October.

He said: "It’s massive news for our club.

"Watson will certainly do us proud, he will show the world what he can do.”