Doncaster Rovers captain Tom Anderson signs new contract with the club

Anderson’s contract had been due to expire at the end of the season but he will now stay with Doncaster through to the summer 2025, when he will have represented them for eight seasons.

It is understood the centre-back had rejected advances from the club over a new deal last summer.

He said: “It’s been on-going for the last couple of months so I’m happy to get it over the line.

“It’s a big relief. I’ve had a difficult year with the injuries and you’re always wondering what is going to happen - if you’re going to stay or go somewhere else.

“Now I can just focus on the future over the next two-and-a-half years and try to take the club where it belongs.”

Anderson, now 29, is Rovers’ longest-serving player not to have emerged through the academy.

He has clocked up more than 170 appearances since initially joining on loan from Burnley in January 2018 and was a key member of the side who made the League One play-offs in 2018/19.

The arrival of Danny Schofield as head coach in October helped Anderson change his mind over staying in South Yorkshire.

He said: “It’s played a massive part, the manager coming in. He’s a good guy and he wants to play football in the right way.

"You’ve seen in some performances that we’ve implemented the things that he wants us to do. I just think that now it’s about us doing it on a more consistent basis.

“We’ve got 14 games left of this season and we’re still in and around it. If we can get more consistency in performances and keep building on it, then I think we have a chance.”

Schofield added: “We want players who want to be at the club, who feel they can progress their careers here, both individually and as a club.

“We want people who will drive the club to where it wants to be, and Tom certainly does that.

“We’ve sat down and spoken a number of times about him going forward and him wanting to be at the club and finally we’ve got a contract sorted that all parties are happy with. It’s good news.”