FEATHERSTONE ROVERS loan recruit Tom Lineham is ready for the challenge of bolstering his new team’s promotion bid.
Should Brian McDermott’s side succeed in their Super League mission, they could swap places with the winger’s parent club Wakefield, who are fighting against the drop from the top flight.
A prolific try-scorer with his first club York, then Hull and Warrington, the 30-year-old England Knights international has been less effective at Trinity, for whom he signed on a three-year deal ahead of this season.
Hampered by a knee injury, Lineham has been limited to seven appearances, the last in the 74-10 hammering at Salford last month, with one try.
Now he is with Featherstone for the remainder of a season which the club hope will end in Million Pound Game success.
McDermott’s side are second to Leigh, whom they face for the third time this season on Summer Bash Saturday (July 30) at Headingley (it’s 1-1 so far).
Before that, they meet York at their Millennium Stadium base on Sunday.
“I’d like to say thank you to Wakefield for accepting my request and allowing me to take up this special opportunity,” said Leeds-born Lineham, whose chances of featuring for Wakefield were lessened by the recent signing of Manly Sea Eagles winger Jorge Taufua.
“Featherstone play a fantastic and exciting brand of rugby. They have clearly shown their ambitions by recruiting a very strong playing group, consisting of both exciting youth and a wealth of experienced players.
“Brian McDermott has had an illustrious coaching career and I am looking forward to working alongside him and the playing group.
“I feel extremely privileged and fortunate to be part of this exciting project and hopefully helping Featherstone Rovers achieve their Super League ambitions.”
The arrival of Lineham boosted Rovers after the loss of star France international fullback Mark Kheirallah to a knee injury.
Second row Ben Hellewell has been loaned to Salford.
HALIFAX PANTHERS will continue their play-off push without prop Titus Gwaze – who has been hit with an eight-match ban – but boosted by fullback James Woodburn-Hall’s decision to sign a contract extension through to 2024.
Former Wakefield and London Broncos player Gwaze, 23, was suspended and fined £250 after being found guilty of a Grade F charge of other contrary behaviour – lifting an injured player – in the 43-18 win at Barrow on June 27, when both he and centre Greg Worthington (punching) were sent off.
Worthington was handed a three-match ban which ends after Sunday’s visit to London Broncos, while Gwaze is out until the penultimate round of the regular season, when Halifax visit Widnes for a Premier Sports-televised match on Monday, September 5.
Like Worthington, he sat out the Premier-screened home clash with York, when Simon Grix’s side sealed a 36-10 win – their fourth in succession and twelfth in 13 ahead of their round-19 meeting with Workington at The Shay.
Jamaica international Woodburn-Hall has followed in the footsteps of winger Lachlan Walmsley and halfback Louis Jouffret by penning a two-year contract extension.
The 27-year-old, who has been at the club since 2016 having previously played for London Broncos, Hemel Stags and London Skolars said: “I’ll make no secret about it, I love playing here.
“I’m starting to see some of my better rugby in the last couple of years playing fullback, so I’m very happy and very content.”
Grix said: “We’re really happy that Woody is staying with us.
“It was a very quick and easy discussion. He’s come on in leaps and bounds and he’s found his home at fullback after years in a utility role.”
Centre or backrow Ed Barber will retire from Rugby League at the end of this season. The 32-year-old has agreed a deal to play rugby union for Huddersfield.
YORK CITY KNIGHTS coach James Ford says his side must find more of a cutting edge as they approach the final nine games of the regular season.
The play-off chasers go into their round-19 home game at Batley in front of the Premier Sports television cameras tonight (Monday, July 18) on the back of defeats by two other top-six rivals.
A 24-16 home loss to Barrow was followed by a 36-10 setback at Halifax in last Monday’s Premier showdown.
Those two results represent a blip after 13 wins in 16 – their previous defeats, all at home, being by top two Featherstone and Leigh, then in their first fixture against Halifax in May.
Trailing 18-0 after 23 minutes at The Shay, York piled on the pressure for the remainder of the first half and the early stages of the second, but had only a Chris Clarkson try to show for it.
“I thought Halifax’s defence was outstanding,” said Ford. “They worked incredibly hard for one another and when we did break them, they found ways to get back and save tries.
“But I don’t think we executed our attacking plan as well as we are capable of.
“We lacked depth when going to the edges. Our pass accuracy was slightly off, which killed a bit of momentum in terms of structured play.
“We created chances but Halifax pulled off some outstanding defence. To get back and tackle Joe Brown (after 38 minutes) was a real key moment in the game.
“We know where we need to get better and it’s just about putting in the hard work now. We just need to improve our execution.
“We need to keep tidying up and there’s a lot more improvement in us.”
After their meeting with Batley, beaten 10-4 away in round three back in February, York head to Featherstone on Sunday before a Headingley clash with Newcastle on Summer Bash Sunday.
NEWCASTLE THUNDER interim coach Denis Betts says his side’s eye-catching win over Bradford had the work of former coach Eamon O’Carroll stamped all over it.
O’Carroll last month resigned after a year-and-a-half at the helm during which he helped consolidate Newcastle’s Championship place after their elevation from League One through a bidding process and oversaw the transition to full-time status.
Thunder director of rugby Betts coached former Ireland prop O’Carroll when he was in charge of Widnes.
He also gave him his first coaching role there, and brought him to Newcastle following the departure of Simon Finnigan in November 2020.
Thunder beat Bradford 53-10, and Betts, in charge for the third time, reflected: “It wasn’t just about the last few weeks, but also all the work Eamon put in. He’s a big part of what we’ve done here.
“It was probably our best performance of the season, but it was coming, and it was a case of being able to get the right people on the field, because we’d had problems with injuries.
“We’re trying to set our own standards, and we know (forwards) Ollie Roberts and Ukuma Ta’ai are going to get better as they play more matches.
“And we’ve got Ted Chapelhow to come back from injury and fight for a place alongside his brother (twin Jay), and that’s a competition and a half!
“We need to keep working on getting better, and try to go on a consistent run and get some more wins.”
Newcastle had seven from 18 league matches going into their game at Widnes, where Betts was at the helm for seven-and-a-half years. They host Dewsbury on Saturday.
Backrow Alex Foster faces a ban of at least eight games after appearing to push the referee during the Bradford game. He has been called to disciplinary tribunal by the Rugby Football League panel.
BRADFORD BULLS chairman Nigel Wood has hit back at claims he “disrespected” supporters after the 53-10 defeat at Newcastle.
The club’s second successive defeat, after losing 56-6 at home to leaders Leigh, came a day after the appointment of Mark Dunning as coach on a contract until 2023 after five wins in eight games as caretaker following the departure of John Kear.
After the final hooter, a group of travelling fans went into the stands to confront Wood.
He responded: “I have been made aware of significant allegations made against me, namely that I disrespected Bulls supporters. This is a complete and utter fabrication.
“While the club ordinarily doesn’t respond or react to the numerous inaccuracies frequently peddled, this is a serious untruth that cannot be allowed to stand uncorrected.
“For the avoidance of doubt, after the game I remained in the room from where I’d watched the match, in conversation with club partners, volunteers and Newcastle and RFL officials.
“I had no interactions with any Bulls supporters outside the immediate group, at any time. Yet people I have never met are promulgating blatant lies to the contrary.
“They are simply peddling malice and mischief. This, regrettably, is not an unusual phenomenon among some.”
Former RFL and International Rugby League chief executive Wood, Bradford chairman since March 2021, added: “As a matter of principle, I resist talking about performance issues immediately after any match, when emotions can simply be too high, whether this be with coaches, players, officials or fellow supporters.
“However, for the record, the performance by our team, whether they wear playing kits, tracksuits, blazers or ties, ranks among the worst experiences in my 50 years within our sport.
“Anyone associated with it should reflect on their performances and I apologise on behalf of the whole club to the many supporters who continue to support the Bulls in pursuit of our long-term objective, to make the club a sustainable proposition in Bradford.”
WIDNES VIKINGS coach John Kear was delighted to go into the home round-19 clash with Newcastle seeking a third win from three since taking the reins.
But the former Bradford team chief, now preparing for a meeting with another of his ex-clubs Batley on Sunday, won’t be getting carried away as he tries to solve the puzzle of Widnes’ inconsistency over recent campaigns.
The 20-16 home victory over Dewsbury followed a 38-0 win at Workington, and Kear, who bossed Batley between 2011-16 and had current Bulldogs coach Craig Lingard as his assistant, said: “It was very satisfying how we overcame some adversity to win (Dewsbury were leading 12-6 at half-time, then 16-10 after 52 minutes).
“But what was less satisfying was that the adversity was of our own making.
“We opened brightly and took a lead, but weren’t showing enough composure, and were always trying to push the final pass.
“That meant we let them off the hook time and time again, and invited them into the game.
“Dewsbury’s completion rate was very good, they have a very good kicker in Paul Sykes, and they caused us problems.
“Fair play to my lads, because they flipped it eventually, and I was pleased with the character shown and a lot of our defensive work, but there is a lot to work on.
“Two of their three tries were from kick contests, and while both Paul and Bayley Gill are good in that area, and were put to good use by Dewsbury, it’s a flaw in our game which needs to be eliminated.”
Kear hailed Leigh loan duo Kieran Dixon, who scored the second of his side’s four tries, and Luis Roberts, explaining: “They made great contributions.”
And he again praised loose-forward Liam Bent, adding: “I take my hat off to him, because on a really hot day, he produced 80 minutes of high-quality, high-quantity work.”
WHITEHAVEN loanee Dan Coates is playing the waiting game as his temporary team try to put distance between themselves and the drop zone.
Injury-hit Haven took the halfback from Newcastle for a month after Catalans Dragons recalled France international Cesar Rouge from a spell in Cumbria.
Coates, 22, who started the season at London Broncos after a switch from Coventry (now Midlands Hurricanes).
But he re-joined his first club Newcastle in March, and played alongside Kiwi Nikau Williams in Haven’s 40-6 defeat at Barrow, allowing Karl Dixon to switch to the centres, where coach Jonty Gorley has been light on numbers (he has since brought in Hull teenager Marcus Walker for the remainder of this season, with the Super League club retaining a recall option).
However Coates started a two-match ban picked up while playing for Newcastle Reserves as Gorley’s side hosted Featherstone, and will also be ineligible for Sunday’s visit of league leaders Leigh to the LEL Arena.
Coates, a Newcastle development product, could return when Haven taken on neighbours Workington at Headingley on Summer Bash Sunday, July 31.
As well as Coates and Walker, 19, who had previously made six loan appearances for Haven this season, Gorley has brought in Workington hooker Curtis Davies for a month.
Nine has been a problem position all season, with James Newton, Alex Bishop and Callum Phillips all sidelined.
Wales international Davies, 25, joined Workington along with his twin brother Connor in April after the former Halifax pair had both spent time with French side Villeneuve.
“It’s good to get Curtis in for a month because at this moment we haven’t got a specialist nine available,” explained Gorley. “He comes with a good pedigree and has experience at international level.
“He will be the eighth hooker I’ve used this year and I put a little bit of how we are playing this season down to not having a settled spine to the team.”
LEIGH CENTURIONS are keeping hold of two more of their bright stars after agreeing two-year contract extensions with backs Keanan Brand and Ed Chamberlain.
Brand, 23, signed from Warrington on a permanent deal after a loan stint with Leigh in Super League last year and had scored twelve tries in 20 appearances this season going into the round-19 clash at Dewsbury.
Brand, who began his career at Widnes, said: “I’ve loved my time here so far and this year especially, as it’s brought back my enjoyment for the game.
“It’s a very tight group and I think we are building something special.”
Adrian Lam’s leaders head to Whitehaven on Sunday and Brand added: “I have learned a lot from Lammy, both on and off the field.
“I think the lads really respect him and I think the club needed both him and (head of rugby) Chris Chester to build in the right way for the future.”
Chamberlain, 26 joined from Salford during the close-season after playing for London Broncos on loan last season.
BATLEY BULLDOGS coach Craig Lingard has told his milestone man Dane Manning: “You’ll look back on your achievements with real pride.”
The pack star racked up his 150th game for the club in the tight 20-18 win at Sheffield – just weeks after reaching 300 career appearances.
The first milestone came as play-off chasers Batley won 30-18 at Newcastle last month, with the 33-year-old scoring a try in his 147th Bulldogs game (over two spells).
Manning started out at Leeds, who signed him from his hometown amateur team Dewsbury Celtic midway through 2008 and played him from the bench in the 24-14 Super League win over Hull KR at Headingley in July 2009.
He was then loaned to Featherstone the following season, playing 23 times, before he joined Batley for the 2011 campaign.
Manning was with Halifax from 2012 until 2016 (129 appearances), then returned to the Fox’s Biscuits Stadium.
“We’ve had quite a few lads reach milestones this year,” said Lingard, who is Batley’s all-time top try-scorer with 142 in 205 games between 1998 and 2008.
“They can pretty much pass you by when you’re in the cycle of training and playing games, but when you finally hang up the boots, it’s great to be able to look back and think about what you’ve done.”
Batley, who are unbeaten in seven matches, head to York for a Premier Sports-televised clash tonight (Monday, July 18).
WORKINGTON TOWN hope forward David Weetman will return from a loan spell in League One sharpened up after a shoulder problem and ready to add his weight to an increasingly desperate survival mission.
The 22-year-old former Newcastle player is with Midlands Hurricanes, and played in the 46-16 home defeat by North Wales Crusaders.
Workington were beaten 66-0 at home to Championship leaders Leigh the day after and were bottom of the table with just one win from 18, and five points behind the safety zone, going into their round-19 game at Halifax.
Town, promoted from League One last season, go to Sheffield this Sunday, then have a Summer Bash derby with Whitehaven at Headingley seven days later.
Weetman joined Workington in August of last year after a spell in France with St Gaudens, but in his third game, away to London Skolars, suffered a broken and dislocated ankle.
That didn’t stop the club handing him a two-year contract extension in December.
“The club have been great with me in every aspect since I arrived so I couldn’t wait to re-sign,” explained the Cramlington Rockets product.
“They have supported every part of my recovery ever since the day the injury occurred and have assisted me in recovering in Newcastle with additional physiotherapy.”
BARROW RAIDERS prop Anton Iaria says competing for a play-off place is providing plenty of motivation.
The Cumbrians, who have agreed a one-year contract extension with ex-Wakefield hooker Josh Wood, went into their game at Sheffield occupying the sixth and final berth with a three-point advantage over nearest rivals Bradford.
Barrow host Bradford in round 20 of 27 on Sunday, and Italy international Iaria, a close-season signing from Penrith Panthers, said: “With our one to 17, and even the guys that aren’t playing week in, week out, we’re really strong across the board.
“Not a lot of people tipped us to win at York, but we’re always confident that we can do a job. Hopefully we can keep building until the end of the season and see how far we can get.”
SHEFFIELD EAGLES director of rugby Mark Aston says Batley have supplied the template he wants his players to follow.
The South Yorkshire side pushed the play-off chasers close before going down 20-18 at their Olympic Legacy Park base in round 18.
Sheffield and Batley will squeeze in another meeting, a rearranged round-four contest, at the Fox’s Biscuits Stadium a fortnight on Wednesday, August 4.
Before that, the Eagles take on Workington at home on Sunday before a Summer Bash clash with London Broncos at Headingley on Saturday week, July 30.
“We’re putting spells together, sometimes 40 minutes, sometimes 60, but we need to extend them,” said Aston.
“It’s down to being disciplined and managing ourselves better, and it’s something teams like Batley do really well.
“We want to develop that culture within the club and the kind of resilience sides like Batley have.”
LONDON BRONCOS interim coach Mike Eccles hailed the “huge effort” his makeshift side produced against Featherstone.
Dalton Grant (2) and former Rovers duo Dean Parata and Alex Walker scored tries as the capital side, who are battling to pull away from the danger zone, lost 42-22 in the second of their matches moved to Ebbsfleet United Football Club because of pitch maintenance work at the Cherry Red Records Stadium in Wimbledon.
The absence of Jude Ferreira, Lewis Bienek, Brock Pelligra, Jordan Williams and Brad Foster meant Eccles had to play some players out of their usual positions.
“I was gutted for the lads, they were brilliant,” said Eccles, for whom it was a sixth game in charge after the departure of Jermaine Coleman.
“We’ve got bits to fix up as always, but it was a huge effort. It just wasn’t quite enough. We’ll address what we need to and be better for it.”
Having visited Bradford, the Broncos return to Wimbledon to host Halifax on Sunday.
DEWSBURY RAMS have released halfback Alex Smith and loaned prop Ross Peltier to Hunslet for the remainder of the season as coach Liam Finn continues to reshape the squad following his appointment as coach.
Finn had previously loaned halfback Matty Beharrell to Hunslet, playing veteran Paul Sykes and Featherstone loanee Bayley Gill as pivots in the narrow 20-16 defeat at Widnes, his third match in charge of the relegation-threatened Yorkshire club.
Smith, 24, was signed in March 2021 after previously playing for Salford Reserves and England Universities and has featured 15 times, with seven of those appearances coming this season, scoring two tries, both last year, when four wins in the final six games staved off relegation.
Finn is preparing for Saturday’s trip to Newcastle, where he had a short three-match (one try) stint at the start of 2019 before signing for Dewsbury as a player.
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