Cup of cheer at Rangers

IKRAM Butt, a former England rugby league international and founder of the British Asian Rugby Association, paid a visit to Breeze Hill School as part of a Skill Force session. The programme uses the skills of serving and retired armed forces staff to encourage youngsters to improve in self-confidence, team work and responsibility. Butt, formerly a winger at Leeds and Featherstone and a Pakistan rugby union international, is shown throwing the ball to Tanveer Hussain (far left).

amateur rugby round up

THE MAGIC of the Carnegie Challenge Cup will be in the air at Saddleworth Rangers come Saturday afternoon.

The famous trophy is to be brought to the club's Shaw Hall Bank Road home by RFL bosses ahead of Rangers' second round home tie in the competition against Castleford Lock Lane (2pm kick off).

It means that rugby league fans attending the game can take advantage of a superb photo opportunity both before the game, from 1pm onwards, and afterwards.

"Hopefully plenty of people will come down, take a look at the trophy and then enjoy a good game in what is a very prestigious competition," said Saddleworth chairman Terry Flanagan, whose club have recently signed an affiliation agreement with the RFL which opens up a number of cost-saving avenues.

"There is always plenty of interest in the Challenge Cup and I hope we can use it as a springboard not only for ourselves but also to help build up interest in the Roughyeds' efforts in the competition."

Saddleworth are up against a Lock Lane side which accounted for Waterhead in the last round, edging past the Peach Road outfit by way of a

16-14 scoreline in a very tight game.

Rangers last reached the third round stage — at which clubs from the Co-operative Championship join the draw — two years ago, when they went on to lose 48-6 against Rochdale at Spotland.

The season previous to that, Rangers played at nearby Oldham and lost 32-10 on a wintery day at Boundary Park, at a time when current coach Keith Brennan was on the Roughyeds coaching staff.


Summer rugby poser

THE MANAGEMENT committee of the Fraser Eagle National Conference League has given clubs to the end of the month to declare an interest in a pilot summer competition.
There are as yet no exact details forthcoming and won't be until the response has been digested, but bosses are believed to be looking at up to 16 clubs taking part in June and July, with a Grand Final to be fought out on Saturday, July 25.

In a letter sent to clubs, league administrator David Lowe said: "The aim of this exercise is to test the water with regards to summer rugby and, where possible, generate a revenue stream into the clubs."

Waterhead and Oldham St Anne's aren't believed to be interested, but Saddleworth Rangers are said to be giving it seriously consideration.


THE NATIONAL Cup third round tie which pits Siddal against Oldham St Anne's has been rearranged to take place on Saturday, February 21.

On the same afternoon, Saddleworth Rangers are away to NCL division two side Ovenden in round four.Robust Higginshaw eke out another win

A STRONG backs-to-the-wall defensive effort from Higginshaw swung a tight game their way, coming away 12-8 winners from their division four game at a Bamber Bridge side.

The forward pack, led by prop Dane Armstrong and ably supported by man-of-the-match Sean Stubbs, Gary Walsh, Mathew Corbally and Kris Richards, bossed the game despite being up against very physical opposition.

Outstanding backs Carl Field and Paul Turner pulled off some crucial tackles, while David Sweeney was again at the hub of everything, pinning the opposition back with his kicks and encouraging his young side at every turn.

After falling behind on the quarter-hour, Scott Foote almost got on the end of an Armstrong break for Higginshaw.

Then, after keeping the home side out for consecutive sets, Adam Horabin scooted in with Sweeney converting to tie the game up at 6-6 three minutes before the break.

From the resulting kick-off, Paul Turner collected the ball and broke the first line of defence to make a 60-yard run. An inside ball then led to Armstrong scoring under the posts — suffering a broken nose for his efforts in the process — with Sweeney adding the extras.

After the break, Bamber Bridge stepped up a gear to hit Higgy with all guns blazing and cut the lead by two with a penalty goal on the hour.

Higginshaw's defence then saw them home, shutting out everything that was thrown at them. The final result could have been more emphatic, but for Stubbs being stopped just short.

There were no other games of local interest in the North-West Counties League due to the frost which put paid to so much of the weekend's sporting programme.




Oldham St Anne's 'A' away at Haydock in division one, Saddleworth Rangers 'A' against Heysham Atoms in division three and Waterhead away at Woolston Rovers were all postponed, as was Hollinwood's home fixture against Stainland Stags in Pennine League division four.