Naylor’s delight as Spencer stays

Lee Spencer: three more years

OLDHAM RL Club has secured the long-term future of its senior coaching team by re-signing assistant boss Lee Spencer for three more years.

He will continue to work alongside head coach Scott Naylor at least until the end of the 2017 season.

Naylor signed a new three-year deal and made it clear he wanted Spencer to stay.

“We don’t always see eye to eye,” said Naylor, of the man he picked as his nu,ber two when he landed his first head-coach job at Oldham in 2013.

“We often agree to disagree because we both have very strong opinions. That’s healthy. It makes for good debate and good decision-making. Anything we have achieved for the club so far has been achieved together. It was important he stayed with me.

“He and I have a lot of work ahead of us, but we’ve got three years in which to make some real progress and to have that amount of stability has got to be beneficial to the club,”

Spencer, who previously worked with Naylor on the Salford coaching staff, said he had no desire to break up their double-act.

He added: “Scott wanted me to stay and that meant a lot to me. There are some very positive things going on at the club, like the new links with Huddersfield Giants, and we are delighted at the way in which new boys are settling in.

“It’s also going to make a big difference to have George Tyson and Gareth Owen signed as fully-fledged Oldham players as opposed to having them on loan, as last year.

“The coming season should be a cracker. We’ve got the return of the derby games and I can’t wait for the clashes with Swinton and Rochdale.”