Appetite for battle pleases Hamilton

WATCH THIS SPACE: Chris Hamilton hopes Oldham can clock up another win at York.

PROUD Roughyeds chief executive Chris Hamilton paid tribute to the way in which Oldham shrugged off adversity to pound Hunslet into submission at the weekend.

The 54-30 play-off win at Boundary Park would have been far more emphatic had it not been for three tries in the final 11 minutes giving a gloss to the scoreline on a still-disappointing afternoon for Hawks player-coach Paul March, who was sent to the sin bin late on for dissent.

From an Oldham perspective, the period just after half-time proved crucial in propelling the club to within two wins of promotion back to the professional game's second tier.

Quick-fire tries from the visitors had pulled the score back to a dangerous 28-16, but substitute Matty Ashe — out of position at centre — produced a superb individual effort five minutes after the break to turn the tide back in favour of coach Tony Benson’s charges.

It was the start of a superb spell of attacking rugby that brought with it four tries in just over 15 minutes to completely kill off any remaining Hawks hopes of a comeback despite those late consolation efforts.

“It was a fantastic effort from us,” said a delighted Mr Hamilton.

“Hunslet scored just before half-time and then just after, but the way we responded was first-class.

“We got one back through Matty and from then on had the momentum behind us. It was a really good performance, some sparkling rugby was played and I have nothing but admiration for the commitment, determination and character that we showed.

“A few of our players wouldn’t, in normal circumstances, have been out there due to carrying injuries. With that in mind, it was an even better effort than many would have realised.”

The performance — arguably the best achieved since Widnes were beaten 22-20 on their own ground in the first competitive match of 2009 — puts Oldham only two wins away from a third play-off final appearance in consecutive seasons.

To get to face Keighley in the Warrington showpiece on Sunday, October 4, the Roughyeds will have to first fight their way past York.

While injury-hit Oldham are concentrating on physical recovery ahead of the Huntington Stadium knock-out clash, the home team have troubles of their own to contend with.

A number of players are struggling fitness wise after a bruising 32-18 defeat at Keighley and inspirational loose forward David March, twin brother of Hunslet’s Paul, is definitely out suspended.

On the back of an extremely trying season for the Oldham chief executive — the ownership saga has dragged on for months with little sign of a resolution — Mr Hamilton stresses that the campaign doesn’t have to end here.

“Nobody is resting on their laurels,” he added. “It is about what we do now and if we can maintain the form we showed at Hunslet then we can certainly win at York.”