Rovers have announced that centre-back Paul Downing has joined Grant McCann’s Doncaster Rovers side on a loan deal, until the end of the current campaign.
The defender, who has found opportunities at Ewood Park hard to come by, following the Blues’ promotion into the Championship, has decided to swap the Lancashire Rovers, for the Yorkshire Rovers, in a bid to try and show off his talents, week in, week out.
Having joined Rovers from MK Dons temporarily, on deadline day, during the summer of 2017, the 27-year old’s string of impressive performances alongside skipper Charlie Mulgrew, in the absence of Darragh Lenihan, proved enough for Tony Mowbray to secure the defender on a permanent deal in January 2018.
Ever since Lenihan’s return to the side and the arrival of Jack Rodwell, the former West Bromwich Albion central defender – who managed 28 League 1 games for the Blue and White halves last season – has found himself on the fringes of the team with his time on the pitch limited to just 3 Championship games this season. Although Downing’s contract is set to expire at the end of this season, Rovers do have an option of extending the deal by a further 12 months, if they wish to do so.
After joining the South Yorkshire side at the Keepmoat Stadium, Downing spoke to his new clubs’ media team, after concluding the move.
“It’s fantastic to get the deal over the line as I’ve known about it for a few days, so I’m really excited to get started. It’s been a frustrating season for me, so I wanted to assess things in January and look for a club which was the right fit. I’m just delighted to have gotten everything agreed so quickly, meaning I can now focus on my football and concentrate on doing my best to help Doncaster Rovers achieve their aims for the season.”
