Doncaster Rovers chairman John Ryan addressed staff and supporters of the football club at Monday evening's End of Season Gala Awards Dinner at Doncaster Racecourse.

The Rovers chairman highlighted the brilliance of the season just gone - the first in the second tier for five decades and one which saw Rovers finish a magnificent 14th in the Coca-Cola Championship.

DoncasterRoversFC.co.uk was present to re-deliver his words to the world.

"Let's get down to what this season has been all about. It's great to see everyone in their finery; all these beautiful ladies and it just shows how far this club has come since I bought it with Peter Wetzel in 1998 for the ridiculous amount of £50,000 - believe me, I was done! It was a ram shackled; well, I can't even say how low it was - it was as low as low can be in football terms. So, I can't tell you how proud I was on Sunday, where I saw the champions of The Championship, moving into the Premier League - Wolverhampton Wanderers. The only thing I didn't realise was that Wolves played in blue and white hoops! We completely outplayed them, they were rubbish! We outplayed them, just like we outplayed many teams this season. It's been a fantastic achievement to go from the Conference, only five or six years ago and now we are in mid-table in The Championship and given a molecule of luck, we could have certainly been in the Play-Offs. But, I have said to Sean (O'Driscoll) and Brian Stock the secret of becoming a Premier League team and it's very simple…all we have to do to get into the Premier League next year…is celebrate Christmas on August 7th. When we do that, believe me, there will be no stopping us. I don't know whether a lot of people realise this, but in the second half of the season I went to a magnificent game where we totally outplayed Nottingham Forest. Martin Woods scored an absolutely fantastic goal along with three others. In the second half of the season, from that day to this, in the twenty-two games we played, we achieved 40 points. Wolverhampton Wanderers only achieved 34 and they became champions, so that just gives you some idea how far this Club has progressed."

"I don't want to sound like it's Oscars night, but I would like to start by thanking a few people. Maybe some of the unsung people, like our commercial team who have worked so hard under very trying conditions at the moment. The girls who do our catering up at the training ground, Ross Burbeary, who has improved the fitness of all of our players alongside John Dickens. These people make us who we are. We are a small club, but you know what, we might be a small club in the minds of a lot of people. Not in my mind; we're a massive club in my mind. I tell you what; the days of the small club becoming massive are coming. Let me give you an example. Who were relegated from The Championship this season? Southampton, Norwich City and Charlton Athletic. Three massive clubs and yet the smaller, unfancied clubs are doing better than them. In this division, if we play our cards right, we could do something special next season. I sincerely believe that. And we have the man, the magician, who can make this happen. When I appointed him, it was - Sean who?! I tell you what, it was the greatest day of my life when Sean rang me and said that he was coming to Donny along with Richard O'Kelly. It is a duo, after all. He had been at Bournemouth for 26 years, 6 years as manager, 20 years as player, 3 years as coach, 6 years as bottle washer, he had done the lot. I even bought a player off of him in Jimmy O'Connor. Sean has done wonders for this club. Not only in terms of being a tactical genius, which he is. Some of the managers in The Championship are smart, but Sean O'Driscoll is really smart. His tactical awareness and the way that he sets his team up - he's made good players play out of their skin and I think that every player in the Doncaster Rovers squad owe Sean something. They were good players before he got hold of them, but they are a lot better players now. What a Rolls Royce of a midfield we have got? They were all good players but when they get together; they hum. Just like that Rolls Royce. He's taken young defenders like Sam Hird, Matt Mills and made them into great players. Next season, people will say 'Donny Rovers have got a hell of a chance, you could make the Play-Offs'. Play-Offs? We should go up automatic! If Birmingham City can do it, we must have a chance! They'll ask 'where are the goals going to come from?' They'll come from that brilliant header of the ball. Mr. Heffernan. He never scored a header until I told him and since then, he's scored every header he's got! James Hayter - the hero of Wembley, four goals in the last six games and we have got Steve Brooker to come and he is a hell of player. Where are the goals going to come? They'll come from them, the midfield and I'm sure we'll get plenty from the back too. I think that we have got the most exciting squad in The Championship - and do you know what we do? We play football. We play football and that's what it is all about. Of all of the teams, there is nobody who plays football like we do. And for that, great credit must be given again to Sean and Richard, not just for producing a successful team, but doing it by playing football the way that it should be played. I watched Barcelona stuff Real Madrid and I meant to ring Sean to tell him - Barcelona play like Donny Rovers! We have without a doubt got the best manager in The Championship in Sean O'Driscoll alongside Richard O'Kelly. He wants to stay off the radar, which suits me fine!"

"This has been a remarkable season and I think our time is coming. Eleven years ago, when I bought this club, I actually said that we will be in The Championship and everybody laughed at me. I genuinely feel that the last ten years have been really exciting full of success and wonderful football. The next ten years could be even more exciting. We have a tremendous squad of players, the two Pauls (Wilson and Stancliffe) who are looking after our youth team and young players in Doncaster will want to play for Doncaster Rovers in the future and that all bodes well for this football club. We're all together, we're all in it and all supportive of Sean, the team and all of the backroom people. I think that next season is going to be very exciting; we're going to play our football and pray God, we get a bit of luck because we could do something very special."

A video of Mr. Ryan's speech will appear for all to see on DoncasterRoversFC.co.uk shortly.