Former Dons star Stewart Piper will make his international debut for England Masters in games against Wales and Ireland in Belfast next month.

Stewart, who recently attended a squad training camp at Leicester Tigers’ ground, said he was delighted to called up into the squad.

“It is definitely the highlight of my career,” said the 76 year-old.

“What a contrast from the days of Another Bloody Sunday,” – a term he used in the dressing room after another depressing defeat playing for the Dons in the 1979-80 season.

What was a throw away comment was used by the producers of the highly-acclaimed Yorkshire TV documentary on the club during the season where they looked all set to lose every game until winning their last fixture.

Stewart who has turned out on a regular basis for the Doncaster Toll Bar Masters side coached by former Wheatley Hills RUFC, Dons and Hull FC star Neil Turner, since being introduced to the sport by former Dons legend David Noble three years ago, has stepped up his training regime since being notified of his selection early last month.

“I’ve added another weekly 10k run and I’ve also been doing more speed work and exercises,” he told me. “I’ve still got a bit of pace and can still get through a gap but these days I can’t keep it going for long.”

Although Stewart is not expected to get physically involved, he still can’t help ‘getting stuck in’ on occasions as he did during his days with the Dons when he often proved a feisty opponent.

Despite being the oldest member of the England squad in a sport where players can range from 35 year old to 80 and above, Stewart is hoping to play in both games (played in four 15-minute periods) which will be staged on the same day.

Stewart intends to continue to play on in 2025 but doubts he’ll still be involved when he is 80 at which age he’d be wearing blue shorts which signifies the oldest players in the sport.

“Which is a pity because blue is my favourite colour,” he said.

*Doncaster Rovers’ supporters will remember the recent defeat against Chesterfield that cost them a new club record of successive home wins.

But how many can recall the day Rovers avoided equalling the club record of games without a win?

It was just over 13 years ago when midfielder John Oster scored the only goal of the game against Championship rivals Crystal Palace at the Keepmoat Stadium.

It was the club’s first win in six months – a sequence of results which led to the departure of manager Sean O’Driscoll, who had suffered wretched luck with injuries during the opening weeks of the campaign – after the board had lost faith in his ability to turn things around.

With his successor Dean Saunders having just 48 hours to prepare for his first game in charge and having to lean heavily on Director of Football, Mickey Walker, it was perhaps no surprise to the 9,000 fans at the game that nothing much had changed in the first half and Rovers came in at the break level at 0-0 having created little in the way of chances.

“We had a chat at half-time and I told the players to relax more and get the ball down and pass it to each other and we did,” said Saunders. “We passed it a lot better in the second half – especially when big striker Jon Parkin came off.

“I just felt that we were hitting too many long balls and sometimes that happens when you’ve got a big striker.

“I’m pleased for all of the supporters because the result means more to them than me because they’ve been here when we hadn’t won for 19 games and that must have been agony for them. The most pleasing thing for me apart from the three points is that people are leaving the stadium today smiling.”

An interesting fact is that Billy Sharp came off the bench in both games.

*It is not often the case that a referee gets a guard of honour by both teams as he walks on to the pitch at the start of a match let alone a standing ovation by both sets of fans.

Yet, that is what happened when top referee Ben Thaler, who was officiating in his 700th and final league match, took to the pitch at the DIY Kitchens Stadium to take charge of the Wakefield Trinity-Dons Betfred Championship

The goodwill from the terraces didn’t last long, however, and sections of the home crowd soon let Mr Thaler know of their feelings whenever they felt he got a decision wrong even though the result was rarely in doubt.

*Congratulations to Doncaster boxer Terri Harper on recently claiming her third world title at different weights. I’m not a fan of women’s boxing, not least because of the dangers involved in the sport, but she has done herself and trainer Stefy Bull proud.