Studying Goulding was far more entertaining than
watching the scrappy early-season action, as he
regularly exploded from his arms-crossed pose to
gesticulate, more often than not, at the referee
Ian Smith, who awarded a series of penalties
against the Hornets.

After one crucial decision, which led directly to
Hunslet's second try, Goulding's disgust sent his
pen flying across the athletics track separating
the dugouts from the pitch. He had already
chewed through his teamsheet.

Yet Goulding's post-match reaction was
impressive in its maturity and thoughtfulness,
suggesting one of the game's most notoriously
tempestuous figures may have a brighter
coaching future than his critics have predicted.

He did not mention the referee and also refused
to use Rochdale's off-field chaos as an excuse. "If
I start doing that now, bloody hell, wait until a
quarter of the way through the season," he said
with a grin.

"I don't want to harp on about us not having had
much time. We just played badly - it was one of
those days from the off, nothing went right. There
were too many knock-ons, our kicking game
wasn't good and, fair play to Hunslet, it's a good
win for them.

"We've got to have a good, long look at ourselves
and get ready for Moscow next week."

Yes, Moscow. Goulding's second match as coach
will be against a team of part-timers from the
Russian capital in the Powergen Challenge Cup
next Sunday for a place among the Super League
big guns in the fourth round.

After his itinerant career, there is a fair chance of
Goulding coming up against one of his former
employers - Wigan, Leeds, Widnes, St Helens,
Wakefield, Huddersfield or Salford - which might
tempt him into an early comeback, although he
joked to a fund-raising Rochdale supporters group
last week that he would wait until the semi-final.

Goulding's appointment has already served a
useful purpose for the Hornets, with his reputation
and enthusiasm generating a revival of interest at
a time when the club's future remains a source of
worry.