Head of football operations James Coppinger revealed he earmarked Danny Schofield as a future Rovers head coach earlier this year.
Coppinger spent time at Huddersfield Town as he prepared for his own role and was impressed with Schofield’s work, then in leading the Terriers’ B team.
Schofield was named head coach at senior level for Huddersfield in the summer, with Coppinger believing the opportunity had gone for him to work at Rovers.
So he was keen to speak with the 42-year-old as he was available at the same time the vacancy opened up at the Eco-Power Stadium.
“He was not someone we just stumbled upon,” Coppinger said.
“I’ve spoken to quite a lot of people about him. I went into Huddersfield about eight months ago when he was the B team manager and there was a lot of good things said about him at the time.
“You look and think he would be fantastic for us if the opportunity came to take on this squad and this club. Then he got offered the role at Huddersfield.
“They missed out in the play-off final to get to the Premier League and he worked with arguably one of the best head coaches in the country last season [Carlos Corberan].
“For him to get the opportunity as Huddersfield’s head coach, I thought that had passed for us. It didn’t work out for him there but straight away I thought it was a situation that could benefit us.
“He didn't have a long spell at Huddersfield but I think it’s one we can benefit from.”
Coppinger admitted his excitement about the appointment and is convinced Schofield is the man to implement his vision for the club.
“He’s ambitious,” Coppinger said. “He wants to learn and develop. No one at this club is the finished article by any stretch of the imagination. We know that. That’s where we find ourselves in League Two.
“I believe we’ve got somebody who can lead the way, who can develop a methodology and way of playing that everyone can be proud of but also everybody can get on board with.
“We’ve got some really strong staff, some new staff and I think we have a huge value match across the board.
“It’s really exciting. For the first time in a long time I’m really excited for what is to come.”
Born and raised in Doncaster, Schofield has a good grasp of what Rovers are all about and what the supporters crave, according to Coppinger.
“Although that wasn’t the reason for appointing him, it’s a big, big plus for us,” he said.
“Having someone that understands the area, is from the area, is massive.
“The club is a sustainable club and I’ve learned over the last four or five months that every member of staff as well as the football staff is working tirelessly for the club. It’s a massive positive in my eyes.
“He’ll definitely buy into it, as the players have this season.”