oldhamer

With a pathway cited for sports, the professional club would have formed part of the grant application. If the professional club had nothing to do with it, why were they part of the initial launch ? As Darren Royale said at the launch : Darren Royle, Chief Executive of Oldham Athletic AFC, added:

Latics have a history of using the rugby to leverage deals to suit themselves. Lets look at history.... 2001 The council spend money on a new pitch for the football, with the caveat that the rugby must have a 10 year lease on playing at BP. A few years later, the club increased the rent to a level it was impossible for the rugby to survive playing at BP. The rugby then start their nomadic existence. 2023 The council gift Latics a new pitch again, on the premise that it would be used for Oldham rugby and the greater community. A lot of local resistance to this gift, as many thought Latics as a business should fund this themselves and therefore should not come out of an already over strained council budget. 2025 The rugby had to be a part of Sportstown to ensure the funding was available which would benefit Football, Rugby, Cricket and Netball. The council have received this funding, where are the rugby in this project now? With the current setup as it is, it will never work with the characters that are involved on both the rugby and football sides at board level. Both parties need to be accountable, not blaming each other. Without accountability the business performance will suffer, and fans will become disengaged. For Oldham rugby to reach the heights it can needs to be in Oldham, not in Tameside. The trouble with rugby league is that too many clubs and also at governing body level are run by people who do not understand the sport. They think throwing money after money into a black hole works, it isn't the answer it just puts the plaster over the wound. Clubs need structure, due process and diligence. Halifax, Salford and Featherstone are prime examples of this. And the way this is going at Oldham at present, it won't before long they are added to that list. Rugby league has a problem in that the costs are hemorrhaging most professional clubs. It needs a club to be brave, get closer to the talent pool that is available in the town and coach them to be the players the club needs. The clue is in the answer there, 'coach', and unfortunately there isn't many rugby coaches out their who can 'coach'.

Having someone invest money into a club does not automatically give them the knowledge, experience, or capability required to run a rugby league organisation. Nor does it entitle them to speak to or treat people as if they lack understanding. Oldham previously had someone like Fordy involved—someone who genuinely knew the game, understood the dynamics of the sport, and was widely respected across rugby league circles. He also recognised that playing outside Oldham was not the right long‑term option for the club, both on and off the field. The fact that one individual has a banning order from Boundary Park should not dictate where the club plays its home games. Receiving a banning order is far more than simply having a disagreement, yet somehow this situation has influenced major decisions. It feels very much like a case of ego first, club second. When you look at the issues around the dance festival, the Benidorm Bash (where, although the club wasn’t directly at fault, proper due diligence on the event organisers should still have been carried out), and now the Boundary Park situation, there seems to be a consistent pattern: whenever something goes wrong, the blame is placed elsewhere. At some point, it becomes difficult not to notice the recurring theme of deflection and blame-shifting.

Congratulations to Saddleworth Rangers in gaining promotion to NCL 2 after a 14 to 10 win against Milford on Saturday. With former Roughyed, Miles Greenwood as head coach in his first season at Shaw Hall Bank, its a fantastic achievement for both club, players and club.

Rugby League at grassroots level needs to change, more so at Open Age rugby. Players today have so many commitments throughout the year, and more so at weekends when they need to work, spend time with their partners/family, holidays etc. Times have changed so much for the working person, however, the game and it's organization hasn't. In addition, costs are increasing for all clubs, so a different approach is also needed at club level. Rugby league may not be enough for some clubs to survive. My thoughts would be the following : Regionalize the NCL to the following areas : 1) Cumbria, Greater Manchester (may have 2 divisions), Merseyside / Cheshire, North/Central Yorkshire & South Yorkshire. Invite clubs outside the NCL to join to ensure that there is around 10/12 teams per division. 2) The above structure will allow games to be scheduled Friday/Weekday nights in the summer allowing players to have a few weekends free. In addition, coach travel costs would be greatly reduced. 3) At the end of the season, the top two teams of each division with the winners of the other leagues i.e. Midland, London etc, play for a National Cup with the prestige it used to have. Raise the profile, increase the sponsorship. Places 3 & 4 plus the runners up in the other leagues like Midland, London etc play for the Trophy. Places 5 & 6 plus the 3/4 placed teams in the other leagues like Midland, London etc, play for the Plate. All the finals are played on one day at one venue.

I totally agree PIgeon Lofter. What is really interesting is that pre season the players had a session with a NCL referee, who showed video evidence of what is now good practice, and what is now deemed not acceptable. In all the games I have seen, and including a performance by that referee, that those rules have not been applied or acted upon. This has led to much confusion over the season. In the defence of the officials, the game is getting more physical, and faster each year, and for the official to work on their own, without linesman in 90% of games, is putting the official in a situation where they are struggling at times to implement the rules and maintain a safe game. Where there has been linesman, it has been more effective

At my local club we have around 8 first team regulars out with long term injuries. One injury that is becoming quite common is spinal and neck injuries from crusher tackles that are not being addressed on the field.