Doncaster Knights are delighted to extend their current contract with Pinders, keeping them as official printing partner.

Pinders are a print, display and signage company who provide companies with signs, boards, posters, retail graphics and much more. Pinders and the Knights have worked together for a few season now, and everyone is delighted for the contract extension. As the Knights’ official print and signage partner, they supply us with all our pitch-side and driveway boards, and all other signage around Castle Park as we showcase all our other supporters in business.

Head of Sales at Pinders, Jeff Owen, came across to Castle Park to resign the deal saying “we are delighted to extend our successful partnership as print and signage suppliers to Doncaster Knights and Castle Park until the end of the 2027 season and then hopefully beyond. We have enjoyed an excellent relationship since 2019 and look forward to many more years of continued success and we eagerly anticipate the remainder of what is sure to be a successful Championship campaign.”

Tom Foy, Head of Commercial at Doncaster Knights, reflected on the deal saying “as the official Print & Signage partner for Doncaster Knights, Pinders plays an integral role in providing high-quality printed materials and signage that enhance the club’s professional image. This partnership ensures the Knights’ branding and communications maintain a consistent, polished look, which resonates well with supporters and partners alike. The extension of our agreement with Pinders allows the club to meet all our signage needs efficiently, supporting everything from game-day visuals to broader marketing efforts.”

This deal is proof of a great business and personal relationship between Pinders and the club, and one that has proven to stand the test of time, and everyone involved hopes that this will continue for many more years to come. To learn more about all offerings Pinders have, you can read more on their website.

If you are interested about the sponsorship opportunities at Doncaster Knights, contact Tracey Owen via email: towen@castle-park.co.uk; or via telephone 01302 831388.

Be part of our history and have a personalised brick on our 150th Anniversary wall

As we proudly celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Doncaster Knights, we’re excited to launch a unique opportunity for fans and supporters to become part of our club’s history. To mark this milestone, Castle Park will erecting an ‘Anniversary Wall,’ where fans can purchase customisable granite plaques that will be placed permanently on display. Each plaque will not only pay tribute to our incredible history but also celebrate the loyal community that has supported the Knights throughout the years.

This ‘Anniversary Wall’ offers our fans a special chance to secure their place in the club’s legacy. Starting at just £60, you can personalise a brick with your name, a special message, or even a tribute to a loved one who share your passion for Doncaster Knights. The plaques provide the perfect opportunity to mark special occasions such as birthdays, marriages, and anniversaries, or any other special occasions, allowing you to leave a lasting symbol of pride and connection to the club.

A portion of the funds raised through this initiative will be directly reinvested into the club, supporting upgrades to various areas of Castle Park. In this way, each plaque represents a shared commitment to both the legacy and the future of Doncaster Knights. Our ‘Anniversary Wall’ will be a place for fans to gather and reflect, honouring both the past heroes and present supporters who have played a part in our journey.

This wall will serve as a lasting tribute to the Knights Family, from our founding days to today’s loyal fanbase. Whether you’re a lifelong supporter or a new addition to the Knights Family, this is your chance to leave a mark on our home, Castle Park, and become part of a historic milestone as we celebrate a century and a half of passion, pride, and community.

For more information on how to order and personalise your brick and create a lasting legacy, just in time for Christmas, please click this link, or contact Tom Foy: tomfoy@castle-park.co.uk. Let’s build a future as bright as our past, one brick at a time!

Doncaster Knights are looking for bar and hospitality staff with previous experience. 

Hours

• Flexible
• Varied based on events
• Weekends/evenings and some weekdays
• Match days

Responsibilities

• Prepare alcohol or non-alcohol beverages for bar
• Interact with customers, take orders and serve snacks and drinks
• Assess customers’ needs and preferences and make recommendations
• Plan and present bar
• Check customers’ identification and confirm it meets legal drinking age
• Restock and replenish bar inventory and supplies
• Stay customer focused and nurture an excellent guest experience
• Comply with all food and beverage regulations

Requirements and skills

• Have experience as a Bartender
• Excellent knowledge the different types of drinks
• Positive attitude and excellent communication skills
• Ability to keep the bar organised, stocked and clean
• Previous experience using tills

How to apply:

If you are interested in the role, please email your CV to rhill@castle-park.co.uk

Simon Gillham has been appointed Chair of the newly established Tier 2 Board, taking up his role with immediate effect. 

Comprising senior representatives from both the RFU and the Tier 2 clubs, this new Board is the body responsible for driving the growth of the second tier of the men’s game in England, working in partnership to ensure the optimal running and commercialisation of the league.

As part of the transformation of the men’s professional game the RFU, Championship Club Committee and Premiership Rugby have been working to develop a reimagined Tier 2. The objective is to create a second tier that supports the English system by developing young English talent, whilst supporting the clubs to become financially sustainable by growing local audiences and increasing the value in the league.

Simon has spent over 20 years in French professional rugby, while involved with CA Brive, becoming the first non-French President in the Top 14 and Pro D2. During his time at the club, he has been a shareholder, administrator and President and he has sat on various committees and working groups for professional European rugby.  In June 2024, Simon stepped down from his role as President of Brive and is currently Vice President.

Alongside, a career spent in professional rugby, Simon has worked in global corporations. He was previously on the Vivendi Management Board, Chairman of Vivendi Village and EVP of Communications for Vivendi. In these roles he oversaw the activities of Vivendi Ticketing (See Tickets), Olympia Production and U-Live (production of shows, festivals and concerts), as well as the legendary Paris theatre, l’Olympia.

He has also been involved in many sponsorship deals including Vivendi with the Rugby World Cup 2023 and with major international brands for Brive. Simon has also been involved in all the Canal+ and LNR TV agreements for the last 15 years.

Commenting on this appointment Simon Gillham stated: “I am delighted to have been appointed as Chair of the Tier 2 Board. During discussions and observations of recent weeks I have been very impressed by the standards of Championship Rugby both on and off the rugby field. We must now build on the existing positives and work with the RFU, Premiership Rugby, the RPA and all the English rugby clubs to raise the standards further. This will involve talent and infrastructure development, strict financial discipline, a vibrant promotion/relegation system and raised visibility through media and sponsorship agreements. I can’t wait to get going.” 

Conor O’Shea, RFU Executive Director of Performance Rugby and Tier 2 Board member said: “We’re really pleased that Simon will be Chairing the Tier 2 Board and helping to drive our plans for developing English rugby’s second tier.  His commercial experience as well as that from his involvement in French rugby, particularly in Pro D2, widely considered one of the most successful second tier leagues globally, will be invaluable.”

Nick Johnston, Coventry Rugby CEO, and Tier 2 Board member said: “Simon will bring huge value to the Board and the league more widely: we’re delighted by his appointment.  Over the course of his 20-year involvement in French rugby he has seen Pro D2 develop substantially and has first-hand experience of the keys to that success will be of huge benefit to us.  We look forward to him joining us as we gear up to a launch of the league for the 2025-26 season.”

Simon is joined on the Board by RFU Executive Director of Performance Rugby, Conor O’Shea, RFU Commercial Director, Stuart Ramsey, RFU Council Member, Terry Burwell, Coventry Rugby CEO, Nick Johnston, former Nottingham CEO, Simon Beatham, and Simon Cohen, former Leicester Tigers CEO and current Championship representative on RFU Council. 

After a slow start meant the half time score was 28-0, Doncaster Knights came fighting back by scoring four tries and preventing the falcons from getting over the line again.

Doncaster spent the first 15 minutes with most of the possession but Newcastle were clinical in defence and Doncaster struggled to break through.

It wasn’t until the 17^th minute that Newcastle scored their first try, they shipped the ball out of a maul to Alex Hearle, who made a break under the posts. They added the extras.

Ollie Fletcher scored the second of Newcastle’s tries shortly after as he dove over the line out the back of the driving maul.

A third try followed for the hosts as they found space out wide and dished the ball between them allowing Ethan Grayson to score in the corner. Both tries were converted.

Doncaster showed glimpses of what they are capable of. Josh Williams made a notable defensive effort as he tackled Alex Hearle into touch after Hearle caught a high ball.

Russell Bennett showed the strength of his boot on multiple occasions to gain territory for the Knights. And Morgan Strong made a handful of excellent carries, palming off Newcastle defenders while doing so.

However, Newcastle continued to defend exceptionally, and a few errors here and there meant the Knights couldn’t covert to points.

The Falcons claimed one more just before half time as Freddie Lockwood ran a hard line to crack the Knight’s defence. They added the extras again.

Half time score 28-0.

Doncaster started the second half with serious determination, winning a scrum penalty to give them the chance to work their way up the pitch.

Morgan Strong made a break to eat up meters before offloading to Euan McVie. McVie carried with pace and strength to find his way over the line. Bennett added the extras.

The Knights continued to make positive impact as Lewis Thiede turned the ball over at the breakdown.

Strong carried to create a gap into open play and ran the Knights back into the 22. They continued to work, with the forwards carrying at the line and Tom Currie finally managed to squeeze his way over the line. Claiming his second try in two games. Bennett successfully converted again.

Doncaster continued to attack but Newcastle beat the Knights to the breakdown and earned a penalty. They extended their lead by three points.

However, Donny continued to dominate possession and a fantastic hard line from Connor Edwards allowed him to fly through the Falcons and dive under the posts. Bennett slotted the conversion. 

The Knights were determined to keep possession and began fighting for another after the restart.

A penalty allowed Bennett to kick us to the 5m line, and Doncaster shipped the ball out the maul to the back line. Veainu danced around Falcons defence before darting over the line.

Bennett made it 100% kicking accuracy with his final conversion of the game.

With just three points in it and the clock in the red, Doncaster worked their way to the try line. From minute 81 to 85, the Knights were carrying hard, but Newcastle’s defence was rock solid, and they eventually turned the ball over.

Full time score Falcons 31- 28 Knights.

“They’re going to be confrontational, they’ll make it tough, and we are excited for that”: Ex-Falcon and Knights forwards coach, Darren Fearn previews Newcastle Away. 

Fearn has spent a lot of his rugby career in and around the Newcastle rugby scene. Living in the city, being part of Newcastle Falcons during his playing career and currently DOR at Newcastle University. 

The ex-front row is part way through his first season as a coach at Doncaster Knights. He said: “yeah I’m loving it, it’s a really good group. Good group of players, really good group of staff.”

It’s a good environment to work in, there’s a there’s a clear vision and plan with what we’re going after, and naturally, these things take time. We’re seeing strides each week, moving forward and yeah, I’m really enjoying being here.” 

As he looked ahead to this weekends clash with his former club and city of residence, he explained: “So Newcastle itself, I moved there. I’m Yorkshire born and bread and very proud of that but I moved to the North East when I was 17, 18.”

And apart from when I’ve signed for clubs elsewhere, I’ve always lived up there. My two girls were born there, so it’s got a special place in my heart. And then as a club, I loved my time there. There’s some really good people still involved, I’ve coached a lot of the lads who are playing for them in some capacity in the past. I’m looking forward to it.” 

Fearn explained how he feels about facing the Newcastle squad: “I think they’re very open around what you expect when you go to Kingston Park. It’s very vocal, they’ll want to make it an awkward place to go.”

They like that underdog mentality, obviously that’ll be flipped this week, with them probably being the bookies favourites. They’re going to be confrontational, but they’ll make it tough and we are excited for that.”

And from what I understand that they’re going to be going strong this week, which is brilliant. It’s brilliant for northern rugby as well, it’ll be a good derby.”

After a narrow defeat to Sale Sharks in the cup last week, Fearn shared where he thinks the team are at: “As I alluded to before, it’s a new group and you start to see different people take the field.”

It’s obviously not hidden that there’s been a pretty hefty injury list, which has been great on the one front, because people who maybe thought they wouldn’t get as many minutes early doors have, and they’re clearly making progressions each week, and that’s really exciting. And we saw a glimpse of that on Friday evening.”

It was it was a great night at Castle Park, like the support was brilliant. It was a really good atmosphere, and there was definitely some stuff to to take forward into this week. There’s some stuff that we’re going to go after, and we’ve done that this week so we’ll see how we go on Sunday.” 

Falcons v Knights kicks off at 3pm on Sunday the 10th of November. You can follow live updates on X. Follow us on X here! 

Newcastle Falcons will then return to us during the second block of the Premiership cup (February). You can secure your ticket for this NOW! And, you can get both of our remaining cup home games for just £20! GET TICKETS.

Doncaster Knights face their first away fixture of their Premiership Cup Campaign on Sunday. The team travel up to Newcastle Falcons for a 3pm kick off. Joe Ford and Sir Ian McGeechan have named a slightly changed squad to face the Falcons.

Zach Kerr comes back into the squad and takes the 14 shirt, to join Jordan Olowofela and Telusa Veainu in the back three. The rest of the back line remains the same with Ollie Fox and Russell Bennett as the half backs and the Connor Edwards, George Wacokecoke duo in the centres.

Alex Dolly and Morgan Bunting are the half back reserves while Maliq Holden joins them as the other back replacement.

Andrew Turner and Joe Jones keep their starting shirt, but Fred Davies and George Roberts swap, with Davies starting and Roberts on the bench. Taniela Ramasibana returns from injury to join Josh Williams in the second row, meaning Thom Smith can return to the back row.

Tom Currie keeps his spot in the back row after scoring on debut last weekend. And Captain, Morgan Strong retains the 8 shirt for his eight consecutive game.

Jasper McGuire and Lewis Thiede are the replacement front row. Euan McVie and Rhys Tait make up the other forwards amongst the replacements.

Starting XV | 15, Telusa Veainu. 14, Zach Kerr. 13, George Wacokecoke. 12, Connor Edwards. 11, Jordan Olowofela. 10, Russell Bennett. 9, Ollie Fox. 1, Andrew Turner. 2, Fred Davies. 3, Joe Jones. 4, Josh Williams. 5, Taniela Ramasibana. 6, Thom Smith. 7, Tom Currie. 8, Morgan Strong (C).

Replacements | 16, George Roberts. 17, Jasper McGuire. 18, Lewis Thiede. 19, Euan McVie. 20, Rhys Tait. 21, Alex Dolly. 22, Morgan Bunting 23, Maliq Holden.

Unavailable for selection due to injury: Semesa Rokoduguni, Cory Teague, Logovi’i Mulipola, Adam Hopkinson, Conor Davidson.

The Knights kick off at Kingston Park 3PM on SUNDAY.

 

Future Ticketing and Doncaster Knights Rugby Football Club are celebrating the club’s 150th anniversary with a new multi-year contract extension.

Future Ticketing said the renewed partnership with Doncaster Knights is further proof of the leading ticketing software provider’s strengthening presence in the English rugby union market.

Future Ticketing’s leading high-performance software and API (Application Programming Interface) empowers venues and events to sell tickets, manage business and build partner integrations. Future Ticketing’s next-generation API-first infrastructure for the ticketing world enables multiple partner integrations including payment processing, accountancy and finance, access control, CRM, data analytics, revenue optimisation and social platforms to speak to one another.

Established in Ireland in 2015, Future Ticketing partners with clients globally, selling tickets in over 170 countries across multiple venues and events including rugby union and rugby league, horse racing, football, basketball, cricket and other sports, outdoor shows, music festivals, and visitor attractions.

Castle Park, a multi-million pound development with a conference and function centre, is home to the historic Yorkshire-based club which currently plays in the RFU Championship.

Castle Park has also hosted England Under 20s and England Women’s Six Nations home fixtures, with the Knights using Future Ticketing’s leading high-performance software and API to manage ticketing and access control. 

The Knights sell season tickets, match day tickets, hospitality tickets and gift vouchers which are redeemable online and allow the Knights’ customers to treat friends, family or corporate guests to an exclusive experience at Castle Park.

The Knights have also used Future Ticketing’s flexible solution to sell tickets for events, awards evenings and concerts at their prestigious venue.

Tom Foy, Commercial Manager, Doncaster Knights, said he is excited to be continuing the partnership with Future Ticketing: “We believe this will have a positive impact on fan experience and operational efficiency here at Doncaster Knights. This partnership reflects the club’s ongoing commitment to improving ticketing processes for supporters, enhancing digital engagement, and simplifying the purchasing experience.

“In partnership with Future Ticketing, we will be bringing a streamlined ticketing process, making it easier for fans to purchase tickets online, manage their bookings, and access the stadium. The partnership also supports the club’s goals of enhancing the matchday experience, improving fan engagement through data-driven insights, and creating a more seamless and efficient system for the club’s operations.”

“Extending our partnership means our systems will continue to evolve with additional features and innovations, aiming to keep Doncaster Knights at the forefront of digital transformation in rugby ticketing. By leveraging Future Ticketing’s technology, the club ensures its ticketing system remains flexible and responsive to changing fan needs, especially in the growing era of mobile and online transactions.”

Paul Leavy, Client Success Manager, Future Ticketing, said: “As part of the contract extension, Doncaster Knights RFC will continue to benefit from Future Ticketing’s API first approach, with an API access control integration and the installation of new turnstiles. 

“Future Ticketing’s leading high-performance API will also allow the Knights to build further partner integrations and sell tickets through a new fan engagement club app.

“Future Ticketing is excited to continue to partner with the Knights to ensure they integrate their preferred partners, access more data opportunities and build an even deeper relationship with their loyal customers and fans.”

The first episode of our new podcast is out NOW!

This series gives you an insight into life at Doncaster Knights, a professional rugby team in the second tier of English rugby. With discussion topics such as past and upcoming games; behind the scenes insights from the players; and just some general rugby chit-chat. 

Many thanks to the players who appeared on this episode, Thom Smith, Andrew Turner, and Fred Davies for making this first episode such a great experience, and our host, Dominic Leach. Thank you very much to Agustín Defelitto of ArgonMediaUK for producing, editing and shooting the podcast, we look forward to working together again in the future.

If you haven’t watched it yet, you can catch it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or YouTube. All links for these can be found below. We hope you enjoy!

Apple Podcasts– https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/doncast/id1777576357

YouTube– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsW_ITZ2cnw

Spotify– https://open.spotify.com/episode/05mkHCyHg6grQUhHDvMNu6?si=5900f347b6a04d8c