Roughyeds slide to third league defeat

Date published: 09 April 2018


On a bitterly-disappointing afternoon at the Vestacare Stadium, Oldham led 16-6 midway through the second half before allowing Hunslet to score 18 unanswered points in quarter-of-an-hour.

The side from south Leeds won 24-16 to inflict the Roughyeds' third defeat in five Betfred League 1 outings - not the record of a side with promotion aspirations.

Dave Hewitt scored the only try of the first half shortly before half-time and Paul Crook's conversion gave the home side a 6-0 interval lead.

Early in the second half Danny Langtree scored again when following Paul Crook's chip to the line, and Crook's easy conversion made it 12-0.

Left-wing Niall Walker kept Hunslet in the game with a try in the corner, which Joe Sanderson converted off the touchline.

When Hewitt got his second and Oldham went 16-6 up it would have taken a brave man to back against the home side.

They should have scored again when Craig Briscoe lost the ball crossing under the sticks.

And Hunslet then responded with tries by Duane Straugher, Walker and Jack Blagbrough, all converted by Sanderson, between minutes 62 and 77.

Meanwhile, Oldham have announced that their fifth-round Ladbrokes Challenge Cup tie against Hull KR will take place at Bower Fold, Stalybridge, on Sunday, April 22, with a 3pm kick-off.

Said club chairman Chris Hamilton: "A big thank-you goes to Rob Gorski, chairman of Stalybridge Celtic, for accommodating us at Bower Fold, which we know so well and where we have always felt at home.

"We like playing there and we are looking forward to going back and putting on a good show.

"Hopefully, the people of Oldham will get behind the lads in numbers after our great fourth-round win at Halifax and  help us to turn the Hull KR tie into a groundhog day."

That's a reference to the day two years ago when Roughyeds went to Hull KR in the same competition and won to pull off one of the biggest Challenge Cup upsets of all time.

Admission prices at Bower Fold will be as follows: 

STANDING: Adults £14, concessions £12, Juniors (under-16s) £2.

SITTING: Adults £16, concessions £14, juniors (under-16s) £5.

Hospitality is available at £35 a head and advance match tickets will be on sale early next week, full details to follow.

Junior season-ticket holders will get in free, but they will need to obtain a ticket in advance from the Oldham RLFC office at the Vestacare Stadium - times etc to be announced this week.

Roughyeds, then in the Championship, played all their home games at Bower Fold in 2016 and 2017, but since their relegation to Betfred League 1 they have returned to the Vestacare Stadium, which does not meet the RFL's minimum standards for a game of this stature.