Doncaster Rovers F.C. Academy

Doncaster Rovers Academy is the youth team run by Doncaster Rovers to encourage and develop young footballers in South Yorkshire.

Doncaster Rovers Academy
Full nameDoncaster Rovers Football Club Academy
Nickname(s)The Rovers
Donny
The Vikings
GroundCantley Park
ChairmanDavid Blunt
ManagerTony Cook
League EFL Youth Alliance North East Conference

The youth team runs 9 teams and has over 100 players from the ages of 8 to 17. Tony Cook is the current academy manager and was promoted to this position in January 2019 after initially joined the club as head of academy coaching in September 2017. The academy team plays in the Football League Youth Alliance, North East Conference and is only for players below the age of 18. Home games are played at the club's training ground at Cantley Park.

The role of the Doncaster Rovers Academy is to develop players and their abilities to their full potential for the club's first team. Rovers youth team were runners-up of the FA Youth Cup in 1988[1] and the winners of the Youth Alliance Cup in 2012.[2] The youth system currently has Category 3 status but with future plans to achieve Category 2 status Academy in the Elite Player Performance Plan which would make Doncaster one of the few teams outside the Premier League with Category 2 status.[3]

Current squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— GK  SCO Kian Johnson
— GK  ENG Ben Bottomley
— DF  ENG Martin Smith
— DF  ENG Ben Blythe
— DF  AUS Nathan Dimou
— DF  ENG Elliott Walker
— DF  ENG Max Jemson
— DF  ENG Lewis Cunningham
— MF  ENG Lirak Hasani
No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF  GAM Ethan Bojang
— MF  ENG Will McGowan
— MF  ENG Josh Clemitson
— MF  ENG Charlie Bell
— MF  ENG Liam Ravenhill
— FW  NOR Marius Skar-Conradi
— FW  ENG Jack Watson
— FW  ENG Luca Nelson
— FW  ENG Owan Derrett

Players listed in bold have signed a professional deal with Doncaster Rovers but are still eligible to play for the U18's.

[4]

Staff
Role Name
Academy Manager Tony Cook
Academy SecretaryCalum Oakenfold
U23s ManagerJohn Schofield
Pro Development Lead Coach - 16 - 18Paul Stancliffe
Assistant Pro Development Lead Coach - 16 - 18Gary McSheffrey
Lead Youth Development Coach - 13 – 16Tony Mee
Foundation Lead Coach - 7 -12Michael Pedley
Head of GoalkeepingSteve Hernandez
Head PhysiotherapistAndrew Henson
Head of Academy FitnessDaniel Solts
Head of Academy AnalysisMatthew Saunders
MediaDaniel Breslin

[5]

Age Groups

There are currently 9 squads at the Academy.

  • Under 18
  • Under 16
  • Under 15
  • Under 14
  • Under 13
  • Under 12
  • Under 11
  • Under 10
  • Under 9

Notable Academy Graduates

The following are players from Doncaster's academy team past or present who have gone on to play in the top 2 tiers of the Football League, or the top tier in another country with prominent national leagues.

References
  1. "FA Yout Cup Past Winners". Archived from the original on 3 April 2015.
  2. "ITV/FA Youth Final".
  3. "Special report: All systems go with Rovers' youth remit - Ben Mawson".
  4. "Academy Profiles" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 October 2014.
  5. "Doncaster Rovers Academy Staff" (PDF).
  6. "Doncaster Rovers/Darius Henderson". YouTube. 27 July 2008. Retrieved 13 August 2012.

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