MATCH PREVIEW: OLDHAM RLFC (H) - Midlands Hurricanes RLFC

BETFRED CHAMPIONSHIP (ROUND FIVE)
Midlands Hurricanes v Oldham RLFC
Sunday 1 March 2026 – 2:30pm KO
£15 Adults (£17 on the day) | £12 Young Adult/Concession (£14 on the day) | £7 Student (£9 on the day) | £1 U16s (£2 on the day)
Tickets: BUY HERE

The Canes go into tomorrow’s clash with Oldham in good form following three consecutive league wins over Doncaster (26-24), Goole (14-28) and Batley Bulldogs (30-12). Despite suffering from a number of injuries, Midlands have persevered by making a number of shrewd switches and relying on a number of players who can be utilised in different positions. That said, the Canes are under no misapprehension that their opponents represent their toughest test in the Championship to date and they will be up against a side keen to turn their campaign around in the early stages.

Due to the new format of the Championship and other scheduling pressures, tomorrow’s clash currently represents the Canes last home game until Sunday 7 June 2026 when they welcome Whitehaven RLFC to Avery Fields. Whilst the club is taking steps to see if one of its away fixtures in May can be swapped, fans should assume that the only way to watch the club will be on the road for the rest of March, as well as the whole of April and May!

Looking to our opponents, Oldham and the Canes are no strangers to each other as Oldham have regularly featured in League One alongside the Canes (including their time as Coventry Bears) following relegations from the Championship in 2017 and again in 2021 (with a playoff promotion from League One occurring in-between in 2019). The Canes have only defeated the Roughyeds once, in the last round of the 2023 regular season during Head Coach Mark Dunning’s first season in charge of the club, in what was widely considered an upset victory at the time.

The Canes have previously come close to beating Oldham before, losing 36-41 at home in 2022 and running the Roughyeds close in 2024 at home before a Matty Welham red card in the first half allowed Oldham to establish a comfortable win in the second. Both clubs have recruited well since the last time the two sides met in the summer of 2024, and so the historic head-to-head records between the two clubs may be something to be taken with a pinch of salt.

Much like last week’s opponents, Oldham are a club steeped in history. First formed in 1876, Oldham (like Batley) are one of the founding clubs that met at the George Hotel in 1895 to form the Northern Rugby Football Union that gave birth to what we now call rugby league. The Roughyeds were multiple-time winners of the RFL First Division and the Challenge Cup in the early 20th century. They were also multiple time winners of the Lancashire League and Lancashire Cup at various points during the 19th and 20th centuries.

After drifting between the second and third tiers during the 2010s and early 2020s, the club have invested heavily in their squad and have made no secret of their ambition to get into Super League as soon as possible. Their 2024 League One campaign saw them comfortably win automatic promotion into the Championship, and whilst most clubs would plan for at least an initial year of consolidation on going up a league the Roughyeds opted to charge full steam ahead and recruit a star-studded team that earned them a 4th place finish and a spot in the 2025 Championship playoffs (where they would be knocked out in the Eliminators by Halifax Panthers). Their investment was also coupled with a return to their natural home of Boundary Park in Oldham, with attendances increasing as a result.

Turning to team selection, Mark Dunning has made three changes to the squad that was named for the Batley Bulldogs clash last week. Kieran Moran, who is unavailable due to being on international duty, along with Zach Jebson and Louis Beattie, have been replaced by new signings Aidan McGowan and Morgan Punchard, as well as Sam Bowring who returns from his loan at fellow Championship club Salford RLFC.

There are three players within the Canes squad who have had previous experience at Oldham. Second rower Oliver Roberts spent a number of months on loan at Oldham back in 2015, whereas Owen Restall played for the Roughyeds in 2022 where he was a prolific try-scorer, nailing 21 tries in just 22 appearances in all competitions. Half-back Danny Craven also spent approximately 18 months with Oldham between 2024 and 2025 before joining Sheffield Eagles for the remainder of last season.

Your www.enjoytravel.com 21-man squad: