Naylor’s new-look Oldham

LUKE STENCHION . . . signed for York City Knights.

THE squad Scott Naylor is assembling at Whitebank for a promotion push in 2013 will be unrecognisable from Tony Benson’s Oldham, which finished sixth out of 10 last season with only seven wins from 18 games.

Naylor has brought in 10 players from other clubs — double the number from the 2012 squad, re-signed on new contracts.

Neil Roden is half way through a two-year deal, but the only other regular members of last season’s first team to figure in Naylor’s plans so far are Jamie Dallimore, Liam Gilchrist, Jason Boults, Michael Ward and David Cookson.

His 10 new boys are Josh Crowley and Liam Thompson from Widnes, Dale Bloomfield and Mark Hobson from Rochdale, Chris Tyrer from North Wales Crusaders, Sam Gee from Whitehaven, Mo Agoro from Leeds Rhinos, Lewis Palfrey from Batley, Callum Marriott and Adam Files from Salford, the latter on a season-long loan.

His other five contracted players — Danny Langtree, Phil Joy, Chris Murphy, Kenny Hughes and Steven Nield — played mainly in the reserves last season and had little input to the Championship One campaign.

As new players have arrived, the old guard have departed. The latest to go are Luke Stenchion to York City Knights and Valu Bentley and David Ellison, who have followed their former Oldham boss Benson to new club Oxford.

Unlucky Stenchion, restricted by injury to 20 games in two seasons at Oldham, will be coached at York by former boss Gary Thornton, who first signed him for Batley in 2005. He has moved to the Championship club on a pay-per game arrangement.