Former Doncaster Rovers chairman John Ryan attacks his successor David Blunt in explosive interview

Doncaster spent five years in what is now the National League between 1998 and 2003 after being relegated from the old Division Three under the ruinous ownership of Ken Richardson, who was later sentenced to four years in jail for his part in a bungled plot to burn down the club’s former Belle Vue ground.

Rovers have dropped to sixteenth in League Two amid a nine-game winless run and are set for their lowest league finish since returning to the Football League this season.

In a wide-ranging interview with Doncaster vlogger Daniel Pearson covering his 15 years as chairman from 1998 to 2013, Ryan also attacked the contribution of current chairman David Blunt, who has come under increased fire in recent weeks amid Doncaster’s continued decline on the pitch.

The club has promised a ‘major injection of funds’ into next season's playing budget, which will come courtesy of Blunt’s fellow major shareholder Terry Bramall.

Ryan told the Rambling Rovers podcast: “It took us five years to get us out of the Conference, which is a very tough league. If we go back down there again it might take us 10 years to get out. Look at the teams down there. It's a tough league to get out of, very tough.

“We should never have gone down from League One. I contacted Terry, who is a good man and has put a lot of money into the club. But he will never take my advice. That's the problem, he listens to that chairman (David Blunt) who hasn't got a clue.

“I said 'get Neil Warnock in, he will come back and keep us up'. If he'd have done that we'd have stayed in League One. Look what he did at Huddersfield just recently.

“He would have come to Doncaster, Neil, he's a good friend of mine. But maybe they didn't want to pay him a reasonable wage, I don't know.”

Current head coach Danny Schofield has also faced heavy criticism from supporters after overseeing a run of 10 defeats in 14 matches amid a string of injuries.

In a club statement issued earlier this month, Blunt said Schofield ‘has dealt with challenges that perhaps his predecessors have not shared’ and will be given another opportunity to prove himself next season.

On Schofield, Ryan said: “I feel sorry for Danny Schofield because he's not really equipped to do the job. League Two is a tough league, you are coming up against people like that guy at Stevenage (Steve Evans). They are tough operators.

“I think Danny Schofield might one day be a good coach. But he needed a quality person who had the experience of League Two. We needed a big man up front.

“We have got to stop f*nnying around playing out from the back. Look at Arsenal, they messed up, Man City's messed up, Man United's messed up and they've got quality players. So are we surprised that we mess up?

“You have got to play to your strengths. You can't play Championship football in League Two, you need a Leo Fortune-West up front, big guy. There's so many obvious mistakes being made.

“The only good news is Gary McSheffrey got us a few lucky points early in the season to keep us out of the relegation [sic] because we would have gone down otherwise.”

Schofield has tweaked Doncaster’s playing style somewhat in recent weeks in a bid to reverse their fortunes, although the team’s poor run of form has continued.

“It needs a complete restructure from the start,” said Ryan.

“It's the chairman that sets the agenda. Talk about missing in action, do you ever hear from him? When I was chairman I was there pushing for more.

“You always look to the chairman to set the agenda. If the agenda is 'we don't give a stuff' then that's what you get - relegation.

“I bled red and white.”

Speaking at a supporters’ Q&A event in February, Blunt said: “We (the club’s major shareholders) may not appear in the press like some other owners do but I can assure you our commitment and enthusiasm is no less than anybody else’s.”

Ryan continued: “They have sold young players off to Man United, Leeds United. For God's sake, you are selling the family silver. There's only one way you're going if you're doing that, that's down.”

Ryan is thought to have been referring to the departure of four academy players last year.

Doncaster received compensation worth six figures for Zac Watson, Jariyah Shah and Neithan Barbosa, who joined Manchester United, with Leeds United also paying six figures for Logan White.

Rovers said they will "benefit financially to a significant extent should those players sold progress in the game as we hope they will.”

Ryan’s attack on Blunt continued throughout the 35-minute interview.

He said: “When I left the club in 2013 I wanted to get into the Premier League and I had it all organised.

"There was one man who stopped me and it wasn't Terry and he's still at the club. I won't mention his name but there's no doubt it was him. That forced me to resign.

“They wouldn't go with me so I left. If I'd have been as wealthy as Terry Bramall, Doncaster Rovers would have played in the Premier League, without doubt.

“I'd have been a lot poorer, admittedly. But I'd have been rich in terms of memories.”

Ryan continued: “When I left in November 2013 [...] we were mid-table in the Championship. A few years later we're thinking we could be back in non-league if nothing happens.

“I think Terry has done the right thing. He's decided to put some money in, which I think is great. Good on him.

“Terry is relying on the chairman. I don't know what he does, quite frankly. Having done that job for 15 years I know it's a full-time, tough job. I used to go to every game, home and away.

“There seems to be a malaise now, no-one really cares.

“It's the worst viewing since the horrible season under Ken Richardson. I know Terry will put his money in, I just hope it's used wisely. It's very easy to waste money in football.

“It gives me some hope that Copps (James Coppinger) is there because he bleeds red and white as well.

"Danny Schofield has got to learn from his mistakes. If you don't learn, he won't last very long.

“It's very sad to see where we have got to.”

As chairman, Ryan oversaw a golden period in Doncaster’s history.

The club went from the Conference to the Championship in the five years from 2003 to 2008 and lifted their first major trophy in 2007 when they won the Johnstone's Paint Trophy.

They returned to the second tier for the first time in 50 years in 2008 and spent four seasons in the Championship before being relegated in 2012 after the failed ‘experiment’ with ex-football agent Willie McKay.

Doncaster were promoted back to the second tier at the first time of asking the following season.

Reflecting on his time in charge, Ryan said: “There's always things you could have done differently but I would say I got 90 per cent of the things right. I have been criticised for the experiment but I actually don't think I got that wrong. We were going to go down anyway. What would we give for El Hadji Diouf now?

“We need some changes. You can't have this malaise going on for much longer otherwise we'll end up in the National League.”

A spokesperson for Doncaster Rovers declined to comment on Ryan’s interview.