RL rule out new Roughyeds date

CHRIS HAMILTON

THE Rugby Football League have rejected a plea from Oldham RL to postpone the club’s Northern Rail Cup home tie with Hornets RL on Sunday as efforts to secure the deal for a new home in the borough continue to drag on.

The governing body’s ruling, which arrived via a text to chairman Chris Hamilton late last night, means that the club must now scramble to find a new venue — despite Hornets having reluctantly agreed to play on a rearranged date of Wednesday, March 3.

“We will be working hard to try to find somewhere else to play this game,” said Hamilton. “We’ll let the fans know as soon as we know.

“I am absolutely devastated because we thought we had put a good case, but the RFL said it was the club’s responsibility to have a ground available on the scheduled date.

“They said our request for a postponement was not fair to Rochdale and that it impacted on the integrity of the competition.

“My reaction is: ‘Okay, so let’s play another game out of town and blow our brains out financially.’

“Is it any wonder there is no queue of people wanting to run this club.”

Roughyeds have said that the postponement they sought was due to being unable to secure their new home in time due to delays outside of their control and that a vital ingredient of the proposals is the plan to play all of the club’s home matches in the borough.

“We had hoped to be able to make a formal announcement about the ground before now but unfortunately time has beaten us,” Hamilton said.

“This is not a negative reflection on what is happening behind the scenes. The fact is that negotiations are at a very delicate and advanced stage with all the parties involved and the correct procedures have to be followed or a great opportunity for the club could be missed.”

The next scheduled home match after this Sunday is against Sheffield Eagles on Sunday, February 21, and Hamilton says the club is working “tirelessly” to be in situ at a new permanent home by then.