Dominant Oldham tame Lions

MAKING HIS PRESENCE FELT: Adam Clay (left) was in great form at Swinton. PICTURES by TIM BRADLEY.

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Swinton 26, Oldham 32

BRISTLING with energy, drive and self-belief, Oldham became the first side this season to tame the Lions in their own Sedgley Park den.

They did it thanks to a brilliant first 40 minutes in which the Roughyeds forwards absolutely annihilated Swinton around the rucks and up the middle to pave the way for a near-perfect, all-round team performance up to half time.

Set completion in the first 20 minutes ran at 90 per cent and it was on the back of that everything else dovetailed neatly into place.

Josh Crowley and Danny Langtree were on fire on the fringes; Lewis Palfrey and Steve Roper were cool, calm and collected at half-back; Jon Ford had the legs on Stuart Littler out in the centre; and full-back Sam Gee did a great job returning either Ben White's or Aaron Lloyd's clearing kicks from deep inside Swinton's half.

Oldham reigned supreme in a one-sided first half. Lions, at the very least, were expected to produce a few roars of defiance in defence of their unbeaten home record, but they were reduced to whimpers by the speed and ferocity of the visitors.

Tries by Langtree, George Tyson, Crowley and Adam Clay, plus two conversions and a long-range penalty from skipper Palfrey, gave Scott Naylor’s men a 22-4 interval lead.

It was fitting that Shaun Robinson replied for the home side in the run-up to half-time, given that it was the former Oldham man’s solo break up the middle which had given Swinton fans their only other moment to savour so far.

All that was to change early in the second half. Swinton increased the tempo after a few choice words from coach John Duffy and, aided by three quick penalties, nicked the crucial momentum and rattled Oldham with three tries in four minutes. Another penalty against Oliver Roberts for interference enabled Swinton to keep up the pressure with a try in the corner. The shell-shocked visitors were suddenly only two points ahead and in trouble.

But they regrouped and took advantage of Palfrey’s magnificent 40-20 touch-finding kick to regain their composure and haul themselves back into the game, before dragging to safety with another Tyson try and three more Palfrey goals for a 32-20 lead.

When Andy Thornley crossed for Swinton in the last minute it was to finish five tries apiece, but that doesn’t tell the story of a game in which Oldham was in charge for all but the first quarter-of-an-hour of the second half.

Oldham bossed most of the game, though, to prove to critics they CAN live with the best in League One despite going down to Keighley and North Wales.

Crusaders drew at Sedgley Park in the league, but in the run-up to this outstanding Oldham performance, Swinton won all their other home games, beating York, Keighley and Newcastle in League One, Rochdale in the Challenge Cup and Newcastle again in the iPro Sport Cup.

They also won at Keighley en route to the iPro Sport Cup final – an impressive list of results which truly puts this Roughyeds win into perspective.

Every man played his part in a rousing victory with major contributions from full-back Gee, skipper Palfrey, prop Neal and second-row man Langtree.

Oldham were stunned by the Lions’ second-half fightback, but they kept their nerve, steadied the rocking boat and then sailed into harbour with Tyson’s second try, a Palfrey conversion and two late Palfrey penalties.