We need to cope with bad luck better

IN the first half against York, though we were up in terms of points, they were making it difficult for us.

Looking back, we started the second half well but the referee started to make a series of decisions which really affected us.

Despite them having all of the ball as a result of that, it took York up to the 55th minute to register their second try and that was despite us really being under the pump during that period.

From then on, we were again found wanting for mental toughness, which has been a major problem for us throughout this year.

The game is played under immense pressure and it is down to how the teams handle that pressure which dictates whether they will win or lose games.

We are getting better in that respect — as we showed at Blackpool — but it is in the small details of the game where we came up short and they compound and make such a difference.

Things like not being as tight as we should be around the ruck and not coming up off our own try line quickly.

A number of second-half calls hurt us — including the disallowed Paul O’Connor try — but it is also fair to say that in general, we have to be able to handle the adversity better.

We now need Swinton to win at York and considering that they have got, on paper, one of the best squads in the division we hope that they will click over there a week on Saturday.

We will certainly be going out to win our own game against Hunslet whatever the result there.

I believe that we can beat all the sides around us. We haven’t done so, but the games have all been very close and we are getting better and more structured in the way we play. There is certainly no lack of effort or commitment.

We are feeling a lot of frustration at the moment but there is also a lot of enthusiasm too. We can’t afford to deal in ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ and we still have a very good chance. What is needed now is to put in the work that is necessary, in order for us to get where we want to be.

Then, as long as we do our best, we can’t complain.

tonybenson@oldham-chronicle.co.uk