THE FANS
Events
Links
Message Forum
Roughyeds Kids
Competition

COMMUNITY
Development

BRITISH ARMY 10 OLDHAM 56

by ROGER HALSTEAD
 
ON and off the field the trip south to the garrison town of Aldershot proved a great day out for everyone associated with the Roughyeds --- fans, players and club officials alike.
 
There were around 500 spectators in the Aldershot Rugby Stadium for this third-round Carnegie Challenge Cup tie and a large percentage of those were from Oldham, many of whom gave the Roughyeds outstanding vocal support before, during and after the game.
 
The fans clearly enjoyed the match and the experience as well as the friendly hospitality extended by Army personnel.
 
As for the players they were delighted with the dressing-room facilities and the large, flat, well cared for pitch and they duly went out and did what was expected of them in winning reasonably comfortably against a physically strong, fit and enthusiastic Army team, which took something of a caning from the referee in the first half.
 
The first eight penalties of the game went to Oldham, mainly for technical offences like slowing down the play-the-ball, interfering with hands-in at the play-the-ball or ball stealing. To be fair, they got a bit of a hammering by the man in the middle, but do you know what: perhaps as you would expect from a disciplined group of men representing the British Army there was not the slightest hint of disappointment or dissent.
 
Roughyeds capitalised with three tries in the first 12 minutes to make their intentions known and then continued to score at regular intervals, James Coyle finishing with a hat-trick and others coming from Marcus St Hilaire, Paul O'Connor, Phil Joseph, Jason Boults, Neil Roden, Mick Nanyn and Craig Littler. Nanyn also kicked eight goals.
 
Immediately after the game players of both sides mixed and mingled in midfield for Army photographs and then each team applauded the other off the pitch at the end of a cup tie which was a triumph for the sport of rugby league and for the British Army's involvement in it.
 
Said Roughyeds coach Steve Deakin: "If we have helped to lift the profile of the Army's role in rugby league that's great. It's fantastic that the Army, and the other Armed Forces, are very much a part of the sport now."
 
And Chris Hamilton, the club's chief executive, added: "It was a fantastic day, truly enjoyable. We were welcomed with open arms, the hospitality was first class and we were hosted by extremely nice people."
 
I don't intend to do a usual match report on this occasion, but merely to pick out one or two main features as follows:
 
1 -- Roughyeds, fielding a side carrying lots of bumps and bruises, missed nearly as many try chances as tries scored, with Neil Roden, Tommy Goulden (twice) and Tommy Grundy all choosing wrong options with men queuing up in support, while Danny Halliwell missed a certain touchdown in the corner by failing to go low as the cover closed in.
 
2 -- Coyle was the midfield maestro, not only scoring three times himself, but also making the break or sending out the final pass for tries by St Hilaire, Boults and Roden.
 
3 -- Left-wing Ben Seru (Royal Engineers) was the Army's star man. He scored both their tries, one in which he showed exciting pace to go the length of the field, and was denied a hat-trick on the intervention of a touch-judge when the Army were dragged back the full length of the pitch for an offside infringment. He also pulled off a stunning, try-saving tackle to bundle Halliwell into touch at the corner.
 
4 -- Seru had everyone excited --- no doubt the Oldham party as well as an interested spectator in the shape of Super League club Harlequins boss Brian McDermott.
 
5 -- Oldham picked up lots of knocks during the game, including those to St Hilaire, O'Connor, Warren Stevens, Richard Mervill and Grundy, who was knocked out in a late tackle. With four forwards on the bench (including Matty Brooks as replacement hooker), the side had to be rejigged when St Hilaire went off with a calf injury after half an hour. O'Connor went to full-back, Littler to left wing and Grundy off the bench to centre. Other forced changes meant that at one stage in the second half, Grundy was on the wing with Adam Robinson was in the centre.
 
6 -- Adam Robinson was sin-binned near the end for dissent.
 
7 -- The Army had to make late changes -- a couple of hours before the game -- when two of their players were called up for Operations in Iraq . . and we were disappointed because Alex Wilkinson couldn't play due to police duties. As Nigel Marland pointed out on the message board, that does put things into perspective.
 
 
Scorers: Oldham - goals, Nanyn (8); tries, St Hilaire, Coyle (3), O'Connor, Joseph, Boults, Roden, Nanyn, Littler; British Army -- goal, Innes; tries, Seru (2).
 
Oldham: St Hilaire; O'Connor, Littler, Nanyn, Halliwell; Roden, Coyle; Stevens, Joseph, Boults, Robinson, Roberts, Goulden. Subs: Mervill, Baines, Grundy, Brooks.
 
The Army: Viljoen; Innes, Fanning, Riley, Seru; Fox, Greenwood; Silvester, Smart, Donnelly, Lodge, Taylor, Cowburn; Subs: Francis, Veresa, Smithy, Cataki.
 
Referee: Mr B Robinson; Att: 500.