Double signings tonic for Oldham

Marcus St Hilaire: Set for a third season with the Roughyeds.

OLDHAM Roughyeds have been handed a boost with the twin signing of Marcus St Hilaire and Lucas Onyango for the 2010 season.

The popular duo will be back in the red-and-white colours for a third and fourth season, respectively, after penning new one-year deals, a result which delighted Roughyeds chairman Chris Hamilton.

“Marcus is a player with a wealth of experience and he brings a lot of qualities to us,” said Hamilton of a 32-year-old centre with 201 Super League appearances to his name.

“He is classy and consistent in his work and very well respected. He always has time for the younger players.

“He commands respect, not only at the club but throughout the game, and although a number of other clubs were after him, he showed his commitment to us by staying for a third season.

“As for Lucas, he is a real crowd-pleaser and someone who has the ability to go the length of the field and transform a game in a matter of a few seconds. He had a very strong finish to last season and possesses that ingredient that is so difficult to track down — pure pace.”

The double capture takes the number of players contracted to the club for 2010 to 13, including St Hilaire’s recently-signed former club-mate at Huddersfield Paul Reilly as player-coach.

The fixtures for next season are expected to be released by the RFL soon after a delay caused them to be held back.

The first competitive match is due to take place on Sunday, January 31, in the Northern Rail Cup pool stage.