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Steve Deakin, the
Oldham boss, said his "busted" squad was "down to the bare bones"
after playing three physically-demanding games against Rochdale
Hornets (twice) and the British Army in the space of ten days,
writes ROGER HALSTEAD. After the 56-10 Carnegie Challenge Cup third-round win against the Army at Aldershot on Sunday, Deaks revealed he travelled south with only the minimum 17 players because Alex Wilkinson had been forced to withdraw due to police duties; Said Tamghart was still suspended; and Gareth Langley was working away. The other six squad members were either injured or on long-term rehab. Two or three players turned out at Aldershot carrying knocks and there were new injuries in the game picked up by Paul O'Connor, Marcus St Hilaire and Tommy Grundy, among others. "Having said all that," went on Deaks, "I don't think we've anything that is going to seriously impact on the squad. I mean I wouldn't say we've anybody who is definitely going to be out for two or three weeks or anything like that. "We've suffered with a lot of football in a short time and the knocks have just accumulated. We are busted and down to the bare bones and this has impaired our ability to train properly and to prepare as efficiently as we might for games. But we've got to make the most of a full week before the next game and its going to be a busy week for the medical staff. "As for the Army game, we started off quickly. There was never any need for ambitious offloading in a game like this. We just needed to be composed, keep our shape and build plenty of pressure on them. We did that early on, but then because we were scoring and getting too confident we began to get over-excited. The last pass started to go astray, or we could have had a few more tries and a lot more points on the board. "At the end of the day we got out of the match what we wanted to get out of it and considering all our knocks, coupled with three games in ten days and a long, tiring journey down here yesterday I am really happy about things. "The Army lads were committed, enthusiastic and physically fit and strong. We showed them the respect we felt they undoubtedly deserved, and anything they got out of the game they fully deserved, too. No doubt about that. "A bit of spark crept into the game in the last ten minutes or so. The standard of rugby league in the Army is definitely making forward strides. They are moving forward. Good luck to them. And if we have helped them to raise their profile within the sport that's great. "As for us, we are currently battling against sore bodies, but thsoe are the cards we have been dealt and those are the cards we have to play to the best of our ability." |
