Fine turnaround sees Oldham leave it late

DETERMINATION...Oldham's Gareth Blomeley charges towards the Trafford MV line

Oldham 1sts 17, Trafford MV 1sts 12

SOLID in defence and playing some good stuff at times in attack, Oldham Rugby Union Club firsts completed the double over Trafford MV in the North Lancashire and Cheshire League.

However, they had to come back from a 12-6 deficit with a quarter of the game to go to avoid a third straight defeat at their Manor Park base.

For Oldham, a slimmer Jack Sayle and Cameron Wood joined the 18, as John O'Grady's men took the match to the visitors in the early stages.

Ball retention was good and the backs looked inventive and adventurous. Oldham made some great breaks, with notable efforts by Gareth Barber, John Souter, Charlie Roscoe and Ryan North, but they couldn't make the final pass count.

Trafford are a team that is full of energy and commitment and defended well, but they were penalised for holding on and Callum Megram grabbed the chance to put Oldham ahead. He quickly added another three-pointer to double the home side's lead.

On any other day, Oldham would have been well clear with the chances they had created, but a Pat Eccles penalty just before half-time meant the lead was only three.

Jordan McEwan produced his usual influential game for Oldham, giving no ground in the set piece, taking the ball down the channel and using his excellent distribution skills.

The scrum was solid, but the soft ground meant Oldham struggled to get on top in that area, but the line-out was a vast improvement with hooker Jack Taylor regularly hitting the target man.

It was all Trafford for the opening 20 minutes of the second half but, with Gareth Blomeley and Nick Hackman working overtime in the loose, they were unable to force their way through.

Eccles, though, showed good composure to land three more penalties to give Trafford a six-point advantage.

Oldham finally woke up and started to play controlled rugby, with the backs and forwards combining well.

Will Mellor put up an excellent box kick which bounced up beautifully for him and with the defence flat-footed, he looked to have a clear run to the line.

Eyeing glory, he knocked on and a great chance went begging.

Loose head Bobby Cullen tried a spectacular leap over the top, but only succeeded in knocking on. However, he made amends at the subsequent scrum as Oldham pressure saw the ball squirt out at the back. Pat Eccles could not control it and Luke Roscoe was first to the ball to score a try. The conversion was missed.

Moments later, Oldham were awarded a penalty in the Trafford 22. It was a difficult kick in a boggy part of the pitch, but Megram struck it well and Oldham were back in front with about 10 minutes to go.

O'Grady's men retained their composure and extended the lead when Megram slotted another difficult penalty from the 'wrong' side for a match-winning 17-12 lead.