Latics to sell cup-tie tickets

Challenge Cup

ATHLETIC have extended the arm of friendship to their sporting neighbours, Oldham RLFC, by selling cup-tie tickets for Roughyeds from the ticket office at SportsDirect.com Park.

Discounted tickets for Oldham's fifth-round Ladbrokes Challenge Cup tie at Featherstone Rovers on Sunday, April 23 (3pm) will go on sale at Latics at 9am tomorrow and thereafter from Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.

Roughyeds are unable to sell from Whitebank because of the development work currently going on at the Limehurst venue.

Oldham RL chairman Chris Hamilton said: "We are very grateful to Athletic, and to chief executive Mark Moisley, for offering us this facility, while work continues at Whitebank.

"It will help us enormously because the Latics ticket office is easily accessible and is open each day during the week."

Sales will be cash only.

Hamilton went on: "These are early-bird tickets with huge discounts and we want to take a big following to Featherstone, where we have given two very good performances since winning promotion to the Kingstone Press Championship.

"We aim to give a good account of ourselves in the cup and hopefully get through to round six like we did last year.

"It's a shared gate so that's another incentive for fans to get behind us in our sport's biggest and most historical knock-out competition."

The discounts. saving adults £6 and concessions £4, are on offer to April 19.

Prices (before April 19): adults £12, concessions £8, juniors £5.

After April 19 (and on match day): adults £18, concessions £12, juniors £5.

Phil Bentham, rugby league's most experienced full-time referee, will handle Oldham's Championship match against Toulouse Olympique in the Stade Ernest Argeles, Blagnac on Saturday.

The match kicks off at 6pm Central European Time, which is 5pm here.

Bentham (45) has refereed numerous international matches as well as two Super League grand finals and three Challenge Cup finals.

The Oldham team will fly from Manchester tomorrow and arrive back on Sunday, ready to start preparations for the Good Friday derby clash with Swinton Lions at Bower Fold, kicking off at 3pm.