Doncaster Rovers: The carpool helping to get Reece James and teammates in gear

Reece James is discovering just that following his summer move from Sunderland to Doncaster Rovers.

Each day, as he heads to training, he jumps in the car with Ben Whiteman, Tom Anderson and Jon Taylor. The Lancashire/Greater Manchester contingent take turns driving across the Pennines to Cantley Park each day.

It has no doubt helped the full back settle in quickly to life at Rovers.

And he says it has benefits on the pitch as well.

“Communication is a massive thing so you’ve got to make sure you build relationships with each other off the pitch,” he said.

“Everyone is really good here. We’ve got a strong squad mentality here.

“I’ve got a car school with Tom, Ben and Jon.

“We've got a really good relationship between the four of us but it doesn't just stop there, it grows throughout the squad.

“There’s a real togetherness and everyone is involved with each other.”

What will undoubtedly have impressed James' new team mates was the resolve and determination he quickly showed to feature in the first game of the campaign despite a gruesome-sounding injury.

“I was playing with nine stitches in my ankle,” he said. “I didn't want to miss the first game so I made sure I could play through pain killers.

“I did as well as I could, which wasn’t great on my part but I feel like I’ve improved in the games since. Hopefully I can keep pushing on.

“The ankle is okay now. It was from a previous injury that opened up in the Hull friendly but it's fine now.”

Dodgy choice in music could easily tear apart positive relationships built and James is keeping things simple when behind the wheel.

“It’d definitely not me,” he said when asked who has the best music taste. “I just stick to the radio and keep it basic.

“It’s probably Ben. He has a little playlist going.”