The Road to Wembley - Part 4

Challenge Cup Round 4

Oldham Roughyeds 40 Kells 6 – Sunday, 20 March 2016

Having known where I would be going for this fourth round match, and being pleased that it would be a closer trip than I’ve previously had to make, matchday finally arrived (a full three weeks after the last round!)  My Challenge Cup journey would continue with Kells who had been drawn away to recently promoted Championship side Oldham Roughyeds.

Interestingly both sides were coming into this game out of form.  Despite Kells’ excellent displays in the early rounds of the Challenge Cup, they had lost their first league game at home to Siddal the previous weekend, and were coming up against an Oldham side who had won just once in the Championship in their first five attempts.

This being my first visit to an Oldham game for a number of years it was nice to receive a couple of tweets and comments from some Roughyeds fans in the weeks following the draw and some invited me to join them for a pre-match drink and get to know and meet a few of them.  One of those supporters was Dave Naylor, a blogger and match reporter covering Oldham home and away and he even wrote a nice blog about my exploits in this season’s competition, https://daretobewise.uk/roughyedsfan/rugby-league-blogger-the-road-to-wembley/.  Plenty of rugby was discussed, particularly who I supported and what the heck I was doing at an Oldham game, but it was nice to hear that most of the fans were pleased and impressed with the new ground they had been allowed to share for the 2016 season.

So once I’d finished my drink I made the short journey through to the ground.  This would also be the first game of this season’s Challenge Cup where I would visit a ground that I’ve been to previously.  Bower Fold is the home of Stalybridge Celtic FC and in my days of covering non-league football I visited with AFC Fylde in August 2014.  Fylde lost that day but I’d be happy in the knowledge that I won’t be hoping that one side wins over the other this time around.

The Roughyeds had been the perennial nearly men of semi-pro rugby league for a number of years prior to last season when they finally achieved promotion back to the Championship after years of heartache.  They claimed top spot in the inaugural League 1 final table and therefore home advantage in the Grand Final where they beat Keighley to gain the first promotion place to the Championship and are playing at level two again a full 10 years since their last appearance at this level.

Kells on the other hand came to Oldham’s new home full of belief that they could match their higher level opponents and possibly cause another upset.  Despite the final score, they didn’t disgrace themselves.

I managed to track down and catch up with Russ from Kells in the clubhouse.  He shared the team news with me and we had a brief chat about Kells’ last match with Siddal and hopes for this game.  He was hoping the amateurs cold keep their cup dream alive and claim another semi professional scalp.  After a brief chat I left him to his pint and find a good spot to watch the game from.

I noticed that Oldham had try-scoring winger Adam Clay in their line-up.  Being a Barrow lad I remember him from when he finished as the leading try scorer for the Raiders in the 2013 season and signed for Oldham not long after that.  I saw him play for Oldham against Barrow up at Craven Park early last season and he showed his quality then with a couple of tries for his new club.

The visitors got the game underway but fell behind to a well-worked fifth minute try from Oldham’s winger and their bigger size saw them able to grab hold of the gamy by the scruff of their necks and eventually scored three more tries and two conversations to gain a 20-0 lead with three minutes to go before the break.

But Kells kept the game alive with a converted try of their own right on half time much the delight of their travelling fans to close the gap on the score board and effectively keeping themselves in the tie at the break.  I would like to say I saw the try being scored but, as in the last round, I missed Kell’s try due to an unplanned call of nature!

Over the interval I treated myself to a hot dog and caught up with Dave again.  We both agreed that Kells were still in this game and whoever scored the next try could be vital.  Unfortunately for the visitors it was Oldham who snatched it two minutes into the half and from that they scored a further 16 unanswered points to secure their place in the next round.

Kells were rightly applauded off the pitch at the final whistle after a valiant display.  They showed much of what had won them through to this stage of the competition and still battled right up to the full time whistle showing good pace and movement around the park but were unable to find a further score to reach double figures on the scoreboard.

The cup dream may be over for Kells but it’s has begun in earnest for Oldham as they hope to land a plum tie against a Super League side in the next round.  It turns out that I’ll be following the ‘Yeds for at least another 80 minutes.

Prior to the game the Oldham fans were debating who they could get in the net round and it works out that there is a 1 in 30 chance that they will be drawn away to Toulouse, the only French side in the competition.  Oh Joy – nothing like tempting fate!!

And I’ve got to wait another FOUR weeks until Round 5 comes around ... How will I cope?!?!

The Road to Wembley - Part 3

Challenge Cup Round 3

Kells 12 Hemel Stags 6 - Saturday, 27 February 2016

So the draw for the third round arrived and I was quietly pleased that there would be no last minute trip to France to arrange!  Kells had been handed another home draw – their third of the season.

Up next for the National Conference League Premiers was League 1 side Hemel Stags who would have to make the five hour, 300+ mile journey to West Cumbria.  Kells should be quietly confident of an upset today and it seems I’m not the only person who thinks so.  It would be Kells’ toughest challenge so far but ideal preparation for the new NCL season and they certainly stood up to that challenge!

There was one downfall to being drawn at home against higher league, semi-professional, opposition though as they weren’t allowed to play on their quirky Old Arrowthwaite pitch.  So it was down to Kells to find another pitch to play on.

In the past, Whitehaven have offered their Recreation Ground stadium to their amateur neighbours, but as their pitch was out of action due to the weather that option was a no go.

So the next best option for the home side was the Copeland Stadium, home to Cumbria Sports Academy, just a few miles down the road – a first for me as I would be able to watch a rugby game with an athletics track around the pitch.  I’ve watched football games at similar venues and wasn’t a big fan due to the distance between the pitch and the main stand but I kept an open mind.

As the game was set to kick off at 2:30pm I set off from home in plenty of time and arrived at Kells club house around 1 o’clock. This gave me ample time to drop in and have a quick pint of shandy before continuing on to the stadium.  There were a few locals in there having a pre-match drink so I settled down at a table and caught up with social media whilst watching the live football being shown on the TV screen.

Whilst in there it turned out that the Kells team had left a beat-box speaker there which was meant to go with them to the Copeland Stadium dressing room.  After being involved in football for a few years I have come to learn how important one of those things is to pre and post-match rituals and knew it would be sorely missed.  Panic over though as one of the locals agreed to transport it down to the ground for the lads (he made sure he finished his pint first though!)

After drinking up myself I made my way on to the Copeland Stadium and was quite impressed with the amount of fans already there.  After a brief look around, taking in the scenery, I was quite pleased with how close to the action I would actually sit.  As can be the norm with these types of grounds the pitch can seem miles away from the main stand.

As I walked along the only seated area I bumped into Russ who welcomed me again, took me up to the bar and treat me to a pre-match bitter.  We had a chat about the game, Kells’ prospects for the match and the season ahead.

Of the few Hemel fans I spotted in the bar it looked as though they were all officials of the club which I was disappointed to see, but then again, it is a long way to come.  I found out that the Hemel squad had travelled up the night before and stayed overnight a bit further down the M6 in order to get fully prepared for the game.

As I took my seat at the back of the stand (next to Russ who had been roped in to videoing the game and kept reminding everyone around him not to swear as the camera will pick it up) he pointed out the local priest taking his seat in the crowd.  That led to me making a quip about wondering if a miracle was about to take place!

The game got underway and, despite the visitors looking a lot bigger than their opponents, the amateurs held their nerve.  I ended up doing my usual trick of not using the facilities before I left the bar and, lo and behold, nature called so I had to rush off to the loo – and obviously whilst I was there I heard an almighty roar from above my head as Kells had taken the lead!

So I retook my seat with the home side 6-0 up, but Hemel immediately hit back to draw level (at this point I think Russ was secretly wishing I would go back inside).

But Kells continued to impress me and dominate proceedings and gained just rewards for their hard work with a second try a couple of minutes before the quarter mark of the game.  A comfortable conversion saw them double their lead to 12-6.

As the whistle went for the break I couldn’t help thinking that Hemel would come out and cruise through the second 40 and into Round 4.  But a mixture of dogged defending and sloppy mistakes saw the clock tick on with no further score and the decent home attendance were beginning to believe their side could actually win this game.

In the last few minutes Hemel were desperately trying to level the tie and broke through on the last tackle but the Kells defence stood firm and bundled the player into touch just yards from the try line.  Moments later the ref blew his whistle for full time and the crowd went wild!  They had beaten their professional opponents and were through to Round 4 for the first time.

The draw would be the following Tuesday and many of the supporters leaving the match were hoping for a tie with Whitehaven.  For me I was just happy for Kells.  They had amassed a total of 84 points in their three games and conceded only 12.  No matter how they fare in Round 4 they have certainly convinced me of their potential and I’ll be looking out for their results with keen interest throughout the season.