Murtza joins Roughyeds

SAQIB MURTZA

SAQIB MURTZA has become the first ever player from the Asian community to sign for Oldham Roughyeds.

The 24-year-old prop or second row forward lives in Stockport but has Oldham connections and recently started a new job locally, working for Remploy.

And the club have high hopes for a player schooled in Academy rugby at Bradford and Salford City Reds, who has also played at first-team level for Batley Bulldogs and Sheffield Eagles.

“We break new ground with the signing of Saqib, which is another first for the club,” said Roughyeds chairman Chris Hamilton.

“He was living and working in Sheffield, but he wanted to get back near his family in Stockport and he was looking for a club in this area.

“He is a player who should flourish under Tony Benson’s coaching.”

Injuries have disrupted Murtza’s career up to this point.

He picked up a torn thigh muscle and a ruptured cartilage in a shoulder during recent stays with Batley and Sheffield.

The latest problem came when playing for the Eagles in a Co-operative Championship game at Toulouse Olympique in March, a game won 18-12 by the Eagles, when he suffered the shoulder problem that required surgery, effectively ending his season.

However, Murtza now says he is “as fit as a fiddle” and raring to go.

“Saqib has driven from Sheffield to attend every training session since we resumed,” said Roughyeds coach Tony Benson. “That is credit to his commitment and his desire.

“He is strong, fit and skilful with ball in hand. He’s aggressive too, and he likes to mix it a bit.

“He’s a good bloke with a great sense of humour — as I know only too well because he’s always in my ear when I’m refereeing.”

A sporting all-rounder who was a schoolboy goalkeeper for Leeds City Boys and has played basketball for Leeds Tigers, Murtza’s father was born in this country while his mother came here from Pakistan when she was 17 years old.

“My injuries were not career-threatening, but the sort anybody can get in a collision sport if they are unlucky,” he said. “I reckon the time has come for my luck to change. I always keep myself fit — I’ve been doing a lot of boxing and other gym work in Sheffield for the past two months — and the pre-season work at Oldham has gone really well.

“There are not a lot of Asian lads in rugby league, but there a few at amateur level and in the Academies. “Cricket and boxing are the most popular sports in the Asian community, but I’ve tried a few and I like rugby the best. It’s aggressive and you have to be committed, but I like that.”

LONDON Skolars have signed Scotland winger Dave Arnot for the 2010 season.

The Kirkcaldy–born Arnot, who made his international debut in the 2009 European Cup, played reserve–team football for Harlequins this year.