Season 2001

Early season 34-4 thrashing of a big spending Doncaster side.

“Its been a year of reasonable achievement, we paid small wages in comparison to most of our competitors.  Results have, apart from one or two instances, been good and team/club spirit amongst the ranks has been excellent.  We are the highest placed Yorkshire club in the division.”  This was how coach Peter Roe summed up the league campaign which ended in a 5^th placed finish for the third year in succession.  Once again in the play-offs Rovers got to the semi-final before being defeated 26-10 by Leigh Centurions at Hilton Park.  The two wingers Jamie Stokes and Matt Bramald helped themselves to 21 tries apiece reflecting a side that had plenty of attacking flair spearheaded by the Rooney/Bastow/Chapman axis.  The pack with Craig Booth, Gavin Morgan, Gary Lord, Stuart Dickens, Danny Evans and Paul Darley had some good honest grafters with Steve Dooler and Neil Lowe adding the flair. The team was good but just not strong enough to force its way through the play offs and finances did not permit any expensive team strengthening.

Off the field the politics surrounding league structures, promotion/relegation and potentially moving back to a winter season continued apace.  This was the last year clubs outside the Super League would receive central Sky TV monies which added to the antagonistic environment around the game.