In 2019, Doncaster Rovers were just one penalty shootout away from a shot at the Championship when they faced Charlton Athletic
After a breathless 4-4 draw across two legs, an eventual painful loss in the shootout denied Donny the chance of a Wembley date, but the side that got Rovers this far is still looked back on fondly, so how have the players of this side fared since that night against Charlton?
The Slovenian shot stopper made his 95th and what proved to be final appearance for Doncaster in the game at the Valley, and has been well travelled since.
A subsequent move to then League One side Coventry followed, and after earning promotion to the Championship due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he played 21 games in the second tier for the Sky Blues.
He then became a mainstay at Shrewsbury, playing 147 games across three seasons, before having recent spells with Port Vale and Cambridge and he currently plays for League Two strugglers Tranmere Rovers.
The fullback scored Doncaster’s only goal in the home leg in the 1-2 loss, to keep them in the tie.
The pacy fullback would make another 14 appearances in the 2019/20 season for Rovers, to take his total to 162, before moving on to Cheltenham Town for 96 games, before retiring in 2022.
The centre half joined Donny on loan from Championship side Blackburn for the second half of the season, and made 22 appearances in all competitions.
He earned a permanent move to Portsmouth the following year, but struggled for game time, playing just 27 games across three seasons on the south coast.
After a loan move to League Two Rochdale in 2022, where he made 10 appearances, he then took the step down to non league for Hereford and Kidderminster Harriers, and now aged 34, has just finished a season playing for seventh tier Worcester City.
The Doncaster born defender made over 200 appearances for his home town, and scored the equaliser to send the game to extra time in Charlton.
Following this game, he would rejoin Scunthorpe United in the 2019/20 season, playing 21 games in all competitions.
Butler then rejoined Donny for the 2020/21 season, and even saw the campaign out as player manager following the departure of Darren Moore to Sheffield Wednesday, making 23 appearances.
After a season out, he would play one final season before retiring at National League North Farsley Celtic, scoring three goals in 44 games.
A short but impactful spell in South Yorkshire, the fullback did play for Rovers in the previous season, but only made 4 league appearances due to injury.
The following season, he made 56 appearances in all competitions, scoring five goals and getting two assists.
However, following this season, he would move to the west coast and play 177 games for Fleetwood until 2023, before making 87 appearances for Cambridge United in League One.
Andrew remains a League One player to this day, having made 7 appearances for Stockport County at the start of the 2025/26 season, but being ultimately relegated with Exeter City, making 21 league appearances for the Grecians.
One of the standout performers for this side, Whiteman joined Doncaster Rovers following an initial impressive loan spell from Sheffield United in 2017/18, which included a 10 minute hat trick vs Southend United.
Whiteman would eventually become Rovers captain and make 129 appearances, scoring 25 goals and registering 12 assists.
The midfielder eventually moved on to Championship side Preston in January 2021, where he remains, and has made 225 appearances across five and a half seasons and been named club captain.
In his first taste of professional football, Kane made 49 appearances across the season for Donny, scoring seven goals and earning nine assists, after joining on loan from Liverpool.
He would reunite with Grant McCann for part of the 2019/20 season at Hull City in the Championship, playing just seven games and scoring twice.
123 appearances for Yorkshire rivals Barnsley followed for Kane, with a loan at Oxford United sandwiched in between.
The midfielder has since stayed in Yorkshire and is under contract at Huddersfield Town, where he has 41 appearances, but spent the second half of the 2025/26 season at Plymouth Argyle, scoring his only goal for the club against Doncaster in a 2-1 win.
A Doncaster Rovers great.
Joining in 2004, Coppinger would make over 600 appearances for Donny up until 2021.
Playing all 3 levels of the EFL for Doncaster, Coppinger made his final appearance at the end of the 2020/21 season vs Peterborough United, bringing the curtain down on his incredible time at Rovers, which saw him win two promotions to the Championship as well as a promotion from League Two.
Today, Coppinger is still involved with Doncaster as he is part of Grant McCann’s backroom staff.
A man who is well travelled across Yorkshire, Wilks joined on loan from Leeds United and was a huge success in Donny, scoring 16 times and registering nine assists in 55 games.
Wilks remained in Yorkshire for much of his career after, with a loan at Barnsley, before making 91 appearances for Hull, some also coming under Grant McCann.
He moved to Sheffield Wednesday in 2022 and made 42 appearances for the Owls before moving across to Rotherham for the 2024/25 season, scoring 10 in 45 games.
At age 27, Wilks now plays his football in Turkey’s second division for Pendikspor, where he has notched 10 goals and five assists in 38 games, and plays alongside former Rovers forward Jonson Clarke-Harris.
Scoring Donny’s first goal on the night, Tommy Rowe is a name remembered very fondly by Rovers fans across his seven seasons in total for the club.
Rowe would make the step up to the Championship for the next two seasons, playing for Bristol City 67 times across two seasons.
Like Butler, Rowe also returned to Doncaster in 2021, and made a further 123 appearances for the Rovers before retiring in 2024, and now coaches the Manchester United Under 21 team as a player coach.
One of Doncaster Rovers’ best forwards in recent times.
Marquis scored in the 100th minute of the game to give Doncaster the lead in the tie for the first time.
Scoring 67 goals across 153 games, this game would be his last for Doncaster, as he earned a move to Portsmouth.
After not hitting the heights he did at Donny, scoring 36 goals in 121 games, he joined Lincoln City for the second half of the 2020/21 season, scoring five goals in 20 games.
After a couple of seasons at Bristol Rovers, Marquis has just finished his second season at League Two Shrewsbury Town, where he only scored three times in 36 games.
Rovers current boss guided Donny to the playoffs at the first attempt in 2018/19.
After the loss to Charlton, McCann jumped ship to Hull City, where his side were ultimately relegated from the Championship, but he would bounce them straight back to the second tier, winning League One in 2020/21.
After being dismissed by Hull following a takeover in January 2022, McCann returned to Peterborough in February the same year.
After being sacked in January 2023, McCann returned to now League Two Doncaster Rovers for the 2023/24 season.
He masterminded a huge turnaround in the second half of the season, seeing his side win 10 games in a row to finish in 5th place, but would ultimately lose out in the playoffs to Crewe.
McCann’s Rovers bounced back for the 24/25 season however, and won the fourth tier title and sealed a return to the third tier, where they have just finished 14th in their first season back.
