Oldham 1st XV v Aspull 1st XV

Oldham welcomed back former first team regulars Joe "Vunipola” Hesse and Jordan Green after a 3 year absence for their first round Lancashire Cup tie against Aspull.

Both sides were not at full-strength with injuries, holidays and work commitments taking their toll, but they produced a lively game, splendidly refereed, with the final result, 32 - 27 in favour of Oldham, in doubt until the final whistle.

Oldham took an early lead through a Callum Megram penalty and never lost it, but still never looked fully comfortable as Aspull always threatened, with their dangerous outside backs outstanding and Oldham were forced to defend resolutely for long periods.
Oldham’s tries came from Megram, John Souter 2 and player coach Chris Roddy whilst Megram added 12 points with the boot.

Phil Graham, Rob Somerwill and Nick Hackman gave stand out performances, but all the team put in a powerful defensive stint, especially when Oldham were reduced to 14 men for the final 10 minutes.

Final Score: Oldham 1st xv 32 v Aspull 1st xv 27

Injuries to 3 key players - prop Tom Hannon, full back Tom Davies and captain Gaz Barber sadly took the gloss off the victory and the club will wait anxiously to find out just how serious they are with the next fixture, a difficult game away against Liverpool Collegiate on Sept 14th.

ORUFC