Cookson commits to Roughyeds

DAVID COOKSON

OLDHAM RL Club have signed a third player from their talented reserves squad on professional forms.

David Cookson (22), a centre or second-row forward, has been contracted to Roughyeds until November 30, 2012, to follow the lead set by his reserve-team colleagues Jamie Dallimore and Danny Langtree.

Describing Cookson as an "exciting prospect", club chairman Chris Hamilton said: "He has played at centre, second-row and prop in our reserve team, and his strength and stature enable him to do that.

“But I would like to see him get an extended run at centre.

"The way he tackles, runs the ball and has an eye for a try make him ideally suited to play in the backs.

“It's up to him now to show the desire and put in the hard work to realise his full potential."

Said Cookson: "I'm not bothered where I play, so long as I'm on the field, but my preference would be centre or second-row.

“I've only played the odd game at prop, and I don't really think that's for me.

"I've been scoring a few tries from centre in the reserves. I scored on my Oldham debut at Leigh in May and then I got a hat-trick when we hammered Sheffield Eagles at Whitebank a few weeks later.

"Paul Ashton (Roughyeds' reserves assistant coach) had watched me playing for St Anne's and invited me to Roughyeds for trials.

“I was chuffed to be offered a contract. Now I can't wait to get the chance to show what I can do at first-team level."

From Rochdale and a product of Matt Calland's Hopwood Hall RL Academy, Cookson has played for Littleborough and Oldham Rugby Union clubs, but for the past four years he has played rugby league with Oldham St Anne's.

His list of representative honours in rugby league includes Lancashire at under-18s and open age; BARLA Great Britain

under-23s; England Students; Ireland Students; and a National Conference League select side, the Eagles.

He travelled twice to the Ukraine with BARLA, in 2009 and 2010, when the tour party was captained by his now Roughyeds team mate Dallimore.

Three years earlier, he played for England Students in France in a Euro Nations Cup alongside two more players who were later to play for Oldham — Danny Whitmore and Matty Barber.