Opportunity to get fans back on side

SCOTT Naylor . . . lifted Oldham from mid-table in League One to the Championship

IN real terms Oldham are exactly half way through their second season of Kingstone Press Championship rugby.

They have played 15 of 23 games in the Championship and judging by what many fans are saying in social media and on rugby league forums there is a feeling on the terraces that time and games are running out for a Roughyeds outfit that is currently experiencing a poor run of form.

However, eight Championship games plus seven in the Shield, which count towards final league positions and dictate who goes down and who stays up, provide Scott Naylor's men with as many more tough challenges as they have faced already in a campaign that began on the first Sunday in February.

They're ONLY half-way there, so there's plenty of time to pull things round; no cause for panic; and a hope that supporters will take into account that Roughyeds, like a few others, are punching way above their weight in this division.

Four bad defeats in a row, including losses to derby rivals Rochdale and Swinton, have caused plenty of doom and gloom and lots of soul-searching among management, coaching staff and players.

The fact remains that Roughyeds are one point and two places better off than their half-way ratings last year when they lost seven league games on the spin before winning six of their last 12 to avoid the drop.

CRUEL

No team escapes the rigours of this cruel, uncompromising division and what Oldham need most of all now is for supporters to stick behind their team and to put their trust in Chris Hamilton and Scott Naylor.

They will be the first to admit that not all their plans for this season have gone according to plan.

All those good days seem a long way off right now - and there can be no tougher test for a struggling outfit than to face Sunday's Bower Fold visitors Hull KR, who are five points clear at the top and hell-bent on getting back into Super League first time around under the direction of former Kangaroos team boss Tim Sheens.

Oldham face an awesome task but, irrespective of the result, they have an opportunity to get their fans back onside with a performance that lacks nothing in belief, honesty and sheer effort - qualities that were once their hallmark.

Of their 10 league wins last year, nine were at Bower Fold. Of their four victories so far this season three have been there - 12 out of 14 in total.

Given that six of their remaining eight Championship matches will be at home-sweet-home, the Bower Fold dates with Hull KR, Halifax, Dewsbury Rams, Toulouse Olympique, Featherstone Rovers and Rochdale Hornets will be key to where Oldham finish.