Oldham RLFC plans under way for next season

Oldham Roughyeds

Chris Hamilton, the Oldham RLFCchairman, is keen to let supporters know that following relegation preparations for life in Kingstone Press League One next year are already under way.

He said that, potentially, there could be “major changes” because of the return to tier three after two seasons in the Kingstone Press Championship.

In his message to fans, he said: “We are already planning for next season, but we are still waiting for information from the RFL about the structure of League One in 2018.

“The League One Cup has already gone. In their wisdom, clubs have decided to do away with that, which is a shame given that it provided an opportunity for third-tier clubs to win silverware.

“I think it is important to let supporters know that getting ready for next season in League One will involve even more planning than if we were still in the Championship because of what will potentially be a major upheaval of everything that has been in place for the past two years.

“Key factors such as coaching staff, the signing of players, the recruitment of support staff and a home venue have all to be addressed.

“We know that fans are naturally keen to be informed of what is happening and that they are seeking answers to questions.

“They can rest assured that as soon as we are in a position to release any definitive information whatsoever we will do so, but as stated earlier preparations are under way and we have a lot of things to finalise over the course of the next few weeks.”

In his programme notes for the last game of the season against Dewsbury, the Roughyeds chief revealed that relegation would cost the club £100,000 in central distributions, plus lower revenues from attendances and commercial income.

Thanking fans for their support throughout last season, he said: “We invested more money into the squad this year thinking we would be further up the division, but it did not work out.

“We tried so hard to give those of you who have stuck with us this season the rewards you deserve, but we came up short.

“Home and away the support was nothing short of outstanding and had we matched that consistency [of the fans’ vocal backing] on the field it would be a very different story. For that, I again thank you all so much.”