Doncaster Rovers' 2026-27 season preview: Rejuvenated Rovers aim to be best of rest
IN his time at Doncaster Rovers, Grant McCann has never been afraid to shoot for the moon.
Back in the dark days of winter in early 2024, when Rovers were too close to the EFL trapdoor for comfort, his defiant talk extended to the club gatecrashing the League Two promotion race as opposed to mere survival.
It proved more than mere bravado. A magnificent final third of the regular season – including a 10-in-a-row winning sequence – saw Doncaster secure play-off participation, only to heartbreakingly lose out to Crewe Alexandra on penalties in the semi-finals.
That hurt was channelled into a title-winning campaign in 2024-25. Silverware and not merely promotion was always the aim and McCann was prepared to show the door to any doubters.
This time last year, McCann bigged up Rovers' prospects of harnessing the momentum generated following 18 stirring months. It was more motivation for his players and testament to his abhorrence for standing still.
His definition of having fun was 'targeting promotion' in the words of chief executive Gavin Baldwin. As a way of keeping everyone on their toes, it worked nicely.
This time around, the Rovers boss, when speaking to The Yorkshire Post about the club's hopes ahead of a new season, did not bang the drum quite as much.
What he said, regarding the club having 'an outside chance of pushing into the top six and beyond' was still telling and perhaps more serious in its own way.
There was less tub-thumping, maybe because the canny Northern Irishman, deep down, genuinely feels the club actually has a real opportunity if things come together.
Baldwin also spoke positively and with good sense. His belief that League One is effectively a three-tier league in terms of budgets was fair.
If Rovers, bracketed in the middle group of clubs, finish at the top of their section, it will constitute success. Do that and they won't be too far away from the play-offs either.
Their form in the second half of last season was befitting of a top-six candidate with 11 wins in 23 matches.
The fact that Rovers were in the relegation zone last Christmas made it all the more impressive and meaningful. By mid-April, they were effectively safe and McCann and co used the extra time to start planning early for 2026-27.
Recruitment is more data-driven at Rovers these days and certainly joined-up with owner Terry Bramall also fully engaged with the statistical approach.
Like all smart clubs, the bulk of business has been done early. Some head-turning deals have been sanctioned, most notably Alfie May’s return, on a season-long loan from Huddersfield Town alongside a significant outlay to land midfielder Isaac Hutchinson.
It represents the biggest sum Rovers have paid for a player since Ben Whiteman arrived for a six-figure fee in 2018 with Hutchinson choosing the club over other League One options.
In terms of every player brought in so far this summer, the club also had a range of other alternative options for each individual position.
Luke Molyneux’s decision to turn down fresh terms, with his surprise move to big-spending League Two outfit Salford City completed last night, was a potential spanner in the works, for sure.
Rovers have made contingencies by signing Cheltenham winger Jordan Thomas, a player linked with several higher-division clubs over the past season or so.
The club remain more confident in terms of getting talismanic captain Owen Bailey to sign a new deal on the back of an outstanding 16-goal season which earned him a place in League One's Team of the Year and also be nominated for the individual player accolade.
The north-easterner is a name on the radar of clubs higher up the pyramid, but with Rovers still having a year's option on his current deal which runs out next summer, they remain in the box seat regarding the 27-year-old.
New signings Tommy Simkin and Josh Clarke will battle it out in goal.
The fact that Simkin, 21 – who has arrived on a season-long loan from Championship outfit Stoke City – made 17 appearances for the Potters in the second half of 2025-26, suggests he is pretty highly regarded by those in the corridors at the bet365 Stadium.
The permanent arrival of a senior centre-half Neill Byrne, who helped get Rovers’ defence back on even keel following his loan arrival from Bradford City in late winter, was one of the easier summer decisions for McCann. Old boy James Husband also provides seniority across the backline after returning to the club for a second spell. McCann has recently talked up the credentials of new winger Leon Ayinde, who looks like being one to watch.
Another signing who will add pace to his frontline, when he is fully fit, is Frankie Okoronkwo, who has joined on a full-time basis.
With Brandon Hanlan – a player who was much improved in the second half of last season – also on deck, Rovers will be no slouches in the final third in 2026-27. And ones to watch, maybe.