Under-20s spot for prop Gilchrist

Liam Gilchrist: back in play

PROP Liam Gilchrist, out for six weeks with a calf-muscle injury, is ready to start his comeback in Oldham RL Club’s under-20s side to play Halifax at Whitebank tomorrow (7.30pm).

The big front-row man began the season impressively before picking up the injury in the Northern Rail Cup win in South Wales on March 24.

He has missed four games, including the first three in Kingstone Press Championship One which have yielded five league points from a possible nine.

So long as he comes through tonight’s training session satisfactorily, Gilchrist will be named in a 20-man squad and will probably start the game at open-side prop.

With the accent again on youth, coach Phil Costin is expected to unveil two 19-year-old debutants in Reece Waring, a 6ft 2in, 16-stone prop from Saddleworth Rangers and Brad Roden, a back from Leigh East and formerly Leigh Centurions academy and another member of the well-known Roden family.

Steven Nield will switch from full-back to centre, outside a pair of teenage half-backs in Jack Morgan (17) at stand-off and Sam Singleton (19) at scrum-half.

Impressive in his first three games at Oldham, Singleton is now training with the first-team squad with a view to being given a chance to show what he can do at senior level.

Oldham, Leigh, Swinton and Rochdale are all expected to take part in Radio Manchester’s debate between 6pm and 7pm this evening on the state of the game beneath Super League.

Leigh are rumoured to have serious financial problems.