Naylor’s plan to rotate squad

WITH two games in five days approaching, Oldham boss Scott Naylor plans to spread the workload and make maximum use of his squad.

A fitness roll-call at training has established that 21 of his 23 senior players are ready for games against Gateshead Thunder at Whitebank on Sunday afternoon and Hunslet Hawks at the South Leeds Stadium on Good Friday afternoon.

The unlucky two are loose-forward Liam Thompson, who will be out for a few weeks with a facial injury, and hooker Adam Files, though his damaged knee might not be as serious as first feared.

“With a little bit of luck he might not be out for as long as we first thought,” said Naylor. “We’ll be monitoring him over the next two or three weeks.”

Naylor plans to use most of his 21 available players over the two games, even if the side he picks for the first one comes out injury free. Part of his strategy is governed by the expectation that the game at Hunslet will be one of the toughest of the season.

“I’ll probably make changes for Sunday and then do some more adjustments for the Good Friday game,” he said.

“Five days between games doesn’t give us a lot of recovery time, so it makes sense to get the best I can out of the squad."

He confirmed that centre David Cookson will be back in action after six weeks out with a groin problem — probably in the under-20s side to play Halifax at Whitebank on Saturday to build match fitness.