So much hurt

AGONY: dejected Oldham players at the end of the game

CAPTAIN Lewis Palfrey struggled to hide his devastation following Oldham’s Kingstone Press Championship One play-off Grand Final defeat to Rochdale.

The Roughyeds went down 32-18 in a promotion shoot-out against a Hornets side who had finished the season nine points behind them.

Stand-off Palfrey has been a revelation during his first campaign with Oldham, but having a super first

season since his switch from Salford proved no consolation for the 23 year old.

“It’s been the first grand final I’ve played as a professional, and this feeling is something I never, ever want to experience again. We have to remember these emotions and use them to our advantage.

“Personally, my head is in bits right now. I can’t say what exactly went wrong for us to end up losing. At stages in the game we had the momentum; we just needed to keep that going.

“Credit to Rochdale, they took advantage when we lost momentum, and now they will play at the higher level. It’s a bit more difficult with it being Rochdale, our derby rivals. It’s going to take a while for me to get this result out of my system.”

Roughyeds fans will at least be happy to hear Palfrey will probably still be at Oldham next year.

He revealed last night that he is “very close” to agreeing a new contract with the Whitebank outfit.