Sundays local derby against Championship 1 rivals Oldham cant come soon enough for the players. Training has gone well over the last 8 weeks and with new structures and philosophies in place, the game will give the coaching staff an ideal opportunity to assess both individuals, and the team. Elements of frustration have certainly crept into the last few sessions, as the lads are now ready for some competative action. There is only so much time you can spend on the training field, and the systems that we have worked on are now ready to be put into practice.
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We are fully aware of the challenges that lie ahead for the club this coming season, and as Head Coach, I know that Sundays game is just a small snapshot of the big picture. It is however, a very important game in terms of tradition, and we will approach the fixture in the correct manner and give it the respect that it deserves. Recent weather has restricted certain aspects of our training sessions, but we feel, as a group of coaching staff, that we have covered enough in order to compete with Oldham.
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From my point of view, the result, although important, isn’t the priority. I will be looking to see how individuals shape up and which players put their hand up for a starting spot ready for our first NRC fixture. I will be also looking at different combinations and teams within the team, in order to assess where our strengths and weaknesses lie. I do believe that we have a talented squad of players and that once I can get a settled side in my mind, then we will produce some performances of a standard that the fans will be happy to watch.
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Sundays game is likely to see regular interchanges. The matchday squad will consist of 24 players, and I want to see enough of each player in order to make an assessment of where they will fit into the side. There will also be some absentees from the squad for one reason or another, and I hope to be able to have a look at these players in our friendly fixture against Hunslet on the 17th January.
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Squad for Friendly vs Oldham
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Backs
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1.    Craig Johnson
19.  Ryan McPaul
7.    Ste Roper
2.    Andy Saywell
5.    Bolu Fagborun
6.    Dale Bloomfield
26.  Andy Taylor
21.  Jay Duffy
29.  Ryan Powell
4.   Adam Bowman
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Forwards
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12.  Danny Smith
9.    Phil Wood
27.  Craig Tunstead
10.  Gaz Hayes
28.  Chris Hough
20.  Semisi Cocker
15.  Dayne Donoghue
30.  Dean Hatton
14.  Liam Bostock
8.    Paul Raftery
18.  John Cookson
16.  Danny Samuel
17.  Mike Ostick
13.  Craig Ashall
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Absentees;
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3.    Dean Gorton (recovering from shoulder surgery)
11.   Mark Hobson (Australia)
22.   Adam Butterworth (work commitments)
23.   Gareth Pemberton (amateur commitments)
24.   Luke Bradburn (unavailable)
25.   Andy Hore (unavailable)
       Netani Suka (unavailable)
       Adam Wayne (unavailable)
       Liam Grundy (unavailable)

John Stankevitch

Head Coach

Rochdale Hornets Rugby Football League Club Society Limited