Time waits for no man
Date published: 30 May 2011
MIND THE GAP . . . Oldham’s Shaun Robinson looks to dart between two Swinton Lions players.
Swinton 18, Oldham 16
Big Phil is the difference as Oldham’s heroes push high-flyers to the limit
UNLUCKY Oldham came within a touchline’s width of inflicting a season’s first Co-operative Championship One defeat on red-hot title favourites Swinton Lions at The Willows.
With Roughyeds in this mood, the Lions den held no fears for Tony Benson’s brave battlers who, at the very least, deserved the two points for a draw.
They looked to be heading for all three when they led 16-12 with only 11 minutes left on the big scoreboard clock — a timepiece that was to figure significantly in events that shaped the outcome of this Friday-night thriller. More of that later.
To be disappointed with one bonus point shows how close Roughyeds got to achieving a headline-hitting triumph — and everyone in the ground, with one exception, thought they had done it when teenage winger Matthew Fogarty flew over Swinton’s line in the corner with three minutes left.
Phil Joseph, surely the sport’s strongest man outside Super League, had broken Oldham hearts with a 69th-minute try, courtesy of Ian Watson’s defence-splitting pass.
Demonstrating that, when necessary, he could turn on the gas as well as throw his weight around, the bullish ex-Roughyed swept past a despairing Ben Heaton to dive in for a try, improved by Ian Mort, which restored the Lions lead at 18-16.
Could Oldham respond? Too right they could. Prop Dave Ellison, back to his last season’s best, broke clear up the middle and Neil Roden’s kick to the corner saw Fogarty giving chase up the touchline.
The youngster made a fantastic effort to get to the ball before collecting it with an outstretched right arm and diving over the line in one memorable moment.
Oldham fans rose to celebrate the match-winning try, only for ecstasy to turn to agony when the touchjudge raised his flag to indicate that Fogarty had stepped on the line.
Undeterred, the Roughyeds mounted more attacks in search of the winner, but they sadly lacked the composure to turn pressure into points when it mattered most.
Neil Roden surprisingly put boot to ball on the first tackle in Swinton’s 20-metres zone, then Heaton did the same the next time Oldham had scrum ball — puzzling tactics that let the Lions off the hook.
A disappointed Roden said later: “It was a mistake to kick, but as our forwards ran to form the scrum I glanced up at the clock, which showed 79 minutes.
“I thought we wouldn’t have time to complete the set. I didn’t know that the clock didn’t take stoppages into account.”
The Roughyeds‚ bench tried to get out the “no panic” message, but the players didn’t hear it.
Swinton thus hung on for an unconvincing victory, in which they went 12-0 up with early tries by Rob Foxen and Martin Ainscough before surrendering the initiative to an Oldham side that matched them in every aspect of the game apart from goal-kicking.
With neither Carl Forber nor Mick Diveney in the side, Roughyeds had no recognised marksman and Paul Noone could convert only two tries to Mort’s three.
That was all that separated the teams as Roughyeds produced their best all-round display of the season.
They defended and tackled like mongrels in all areas of the field, forced Lions into mistakes, and well and truly stifled the best attacking machine in the division.
Scoring 16 points without reply, they also showed they could play a bit with ball in hand.
Noone, switched from forward duties to centre early on when Ben Wood went over injured, scored the first of his sides three tries when he capitalised on a dreadful howler by Swinton’s Alex Hurst.
Four minutes later Luke Sutton off-loaded cleverly in the tackle to Luke Stenchion, who dived over the Swinton line from close range.
Noone’s conversion reduced the arrears to 12-10 at half-time.
John Clough, often a threat from dummy-half, put the Lions on the back foot again early in the second period. His scoot produced a try for Chris Clarke and 16-12 lead, which Oldham defended for 24 minutes before Joseph broke them with his killer try.
He was the one big difference between the sides.
But full marks to Oldham for a professional and fully committed performance from one to 17.
Heaton and Shaun Robinson cleared their lines superbly; Danny Whitmore worked his socks off at half-back; and up front Ellison, Andy Isherwood, Stenchion, Sutton, Valu Bentley and Clough proved that Oldham’s forwards, on this form, are a match for anyone in the division.
More of the same, please.
