Oldham look to bounce back

Buoyant Oldham coach Tony Benson is in high spirits as his team search for a fourth win in five Co-operative Championship One fixtures.

The Roughyeds fell to a shock defeat against London Skolars in their last game, but prior to that had beaten Whitehaven, Gateshead Thunder and South Wales Scorpions.

And with Liam Gilchrist and Marcus St Hilaire both back in contention, Benson said: “I’m full of confidence going into this game that we’ll play at our best. We’ve trained well and we’ve got some confidence about us after the last few performances.”

John Gillam (foot), Mark Brocklehurst (foot) and Martin Roden (knee) look set to miss out, but Benson is hoping that Matthew Fogarty will be available next week, while Bruce Johnson and Chris Clarke also have upcoming appointments with their specialists.

Benson expects Lucas Onyango to return in a month’s time, with Dave Ellison due back in action by late August.

Cougars are bolstered by returning pair James Haythornthwaite and Richard Jones as they bid to keep the pressure on league leaders Swinton.

Keighley coach Jason Demetriou said: “Finishing top is still out of our hands – Swinton are in control and five points clear. But if we can win our next two and then do well at Swinton, that will set up a massive finish.

“It’s all ifs and maybes though, and all we can afford to do is work one match at a time. All our focus for the last fortnight has been on Oldham. We’ve got six massive matches, but we’ll take them one at a time.”