Death of 'young Tony'

TONY BARROW JNR . . . six appearances for Oldham

FORMER Oldham RL loose forward, second row or prop Tony Barrow jnr has died at the age of 45 after battling a long illness.

Tony made his first-team debut for the 'old club' at Watersheddings in 1990 in a 28-22 home victory over Castleford.

He went on to make half a dozen appearances for Oldham, including one as a substitute, during a spell when his dad, Tony snr, was head coach.

Team-mates at the time included pack man John Cogger, Paul Round and Richard Russell, while in the forwards were the likes of Tommy Martyn, Paul Lord and Mike Ford.

A popular figure, he regularly featured in the 'A' team, before joining Swinton, where he played in 243 first-team games between 1992 and 2001.

'Young Tony', as everyone in Oldham knew him, had been battling against a brain tumour since last year and his passing was confirmed by a support group who had been raising funds and awareness of glioblastoma multiforme, the disease from which Tony suffered.

He lived in the Thatto Heath district of St Helens with his wife Ann-Marie and two children.

Tony was a great supporter of the Steve Prescott Foundation throughout his illness and, with Ann-Marie by his side, he even ran the St Helens 10K.

An Oldham club spokesperson said: "The condolences of everyone at the Oldham club, chairman Chris Hamilton, coach Scott Naylor, staff, players and supporters are sent to Tony's family at this very sad time."