OLDHAM coach Alan Kilshaw believes his side’s eye-catching 34-24 home win over London Broncos has added a fresh dimension to the fight for Championship honours.
The Roughyeds became the first side to beat the star-studded full-time capital outfit in the league this season.
While London had won 21 out of 21 previously, Oldham boasted 19 victories in the same number of outings.
That tally gave Kilshaw, who signed a contract extension for next year during the build-up to the big match, the confidence that London could be toppled.
He knows Jason Demetriou’s leaders remain the favourites for Grand Final glory, but insisted: “We showed we have what it takes to win this competition.
“London are a really good side, but we’ve put a few doubts in a few minds. We know, and they know, that if we nail our gameplan, we can beat them.”
Kilshaw praised right-hand man Simon Finnigan, the ex-Newcastle and Widnes coach who arrived in mid-February after Kilshaw moved up from assistant following the departure of previous team chief Mike Ford in the wake of the 25-8 loss at London in game two of the league campaign.
“Simon worked really hard on tweaking a few defensive things, and that played a big part,” continued the boss.
“I know that when we attack the way we can, we will score points, so if we can get our defence right, we are capable of winning any match.
“We asked the players what they were prepared to do when things got tough, because against a team of London’s quality, we knew they would do, and they showed us.
“They also showed great connection, which has come both through facing some adversity (the financial uncertainty of earlier in the season), and from simply training and playing matches.”