Doncaster Rovers: Gavin Baldwin reveals timeline for appointment of new manager

The Rovers board this week drew up a shortlist after a week-long period for applications and have since been garnering opinions and references on the prospective candidates.

Interviews have been arranged for Monday and Tuesday next week at a venue outside of the borough.

And by Tuesday afternoon, Baldwin - who is currently with the Rovers squad at La Manga Club in Spain for the pre-season training camp - hopes to be in a position to make the job offer to the chosen candidate.

"We have a shortlist and we expect to interview on Monday and maybe Tuesday," Baldwin told the club's Inside Rovers Youtube programme.

"And we hope to be in a position to offer on Tuesday afternoon.

"Being out in La Manga, selfishly, it's taken me away from the Keepmoat, it's enabled me to spend my time on the phone and ensure the process of the recruitment of the new manager is hopefully streamlined but hopefully allows us to have the strongest candidates possible in front of us on Monday.

"We believe we have achieved that."

As well as focusing on the recruitment of the manager, Baldwin says getting away from the day to day business of the club has allowed him to continue conversations with 'exciting' prospective new signings which had been lined up before Grant McCann’s departure to Hull City.

The club will look to confirm deals soon after the new manager is in place.

The shortlisted managers have been asked for their opinions on the signings that have been lined up by the club with the chosen candidate set to give the go-ahead on some once appointed.

“Being in La Manga has enabled me to live on the phones and keep conversations going with prospective players that we had lined up to come in,” Baldwin said.

"At this stage the players want to assure themselves that we appoint the right manager and obviously we want to give our new manager the courtesy of running the players past them.

"But we have signing ready to go upon the appointment of the manager.

"We as a club believe those signings are extremely exciting and as part of the process of the recruitment of the new manager, we've been talking about them with the candidates and they share our enthusiasm and our delight that should these players come in we believe the fans will see we are determined to make next year as exciting as last.”

The chief executive also believes his presence in Spain has allowed players and coaching staff to focus simply on training.

"I wanted to be there for John Schofield and the staff and all the players, to provide confidence and continuity and also to enable them to just focus on football," he said.

"The priority has to be pre-season training at the moment.

"Seeing what has been achieved so far by John, the players and all the coaching staff, it's been a really worthwhile exercise coming out here so far."