Eyes down . . . Clarke targets lucky number four

Photo: Vincent Brown

NUMBERS GAME . . . Chris Clarke believes luck won’t come into it when Oldham tackle York City Knights on Sunday.

ROUGHYEDS forward Chris Clarke believes judgment will be more important than luck when it comes to gaining promotion.

York stand between Oldham and a spot in the Co-operative Championship, with the teams clashing at the Halliwell Jones Stadium in Warrington on Sunday.

A bingo caller by day, 21-year-old Clarke is bidding to complete a personal full house.

Since breaking into the first team at the start of the season, the hard-grafting utility forward hasn’t looked back to become an integral part of a squad which has defeated every Championship One side away from the Whitebank Stadium this term.

There is only one number left to find to make it a winning ticket — and Clarke

reckons concentration is key if Roughyeds are to see off the Knights and claim the big prize.

“We know plenty about each other,” said Clarke, a former Oldham St Anne’s player who was picked up for the club’s re-established reserves squad three seasons ago.

“The prize of playing higher-level rugby is one we all want,” he said.

“It would be really good for the town and hopefully will attract more fans to come and watch us.”

Lees-born Clarke — who attended Hey with Zion Primary School along with team-mate Danny Whitmore — didn’t dream of a run of 21 appearances in the team this term.

Highly rated by coach Tony Benson, he has managed to turn out in 17 of the final 18 matches of the season, missing only the away win at Blackpool due to injury.

This will be Clarke’s first appearance in front of the television cameras.

But despite Oldham having reached play-off finals in 2007, 2008 and 2009, he admits that even among the players getting to this stage in 2010 was a hope rather than a belief.

“This season has been more than even we expected,” he added.

“Everyone wrote us off at the start of the season and said we would be happy just to get a play-off place.

“We have had our ups and downs — we were spanked by Hunslet at home, for example — but the team spirit is so good here that it has seen us through a lot of games.”

Clarke is one of the ‘new breed’ of Oldham players to have come through the re-established reserve team.

Along with fellow graduate Ben Heaton, his future in the game certainly appears to be bright.

“The academy uses all the same moves as the first team which makes the transition easier,” Clarke said.

“John Hough (head coach of the reserves) does a great job with the lads and there are some quality players in that side.”

As for the day job, Clarke should have a few older fans cheering him on come Sunday afternoon.

“I have been doing the bingo calling for two years now and I enjoy it,” he said. “It is pretty funny at times, with the old dears who come down!

“Some of them do know I play rugby so hopefully they will be watching this weekend.”