Oldham sign Bradford trialist Jamie Pye

Oldham have announced the signing of former St Helens forward Jamie Pye for the 2022 season.

Pye was initially having a trial at Championship side Bradford, but decided it was not for him, two weeks into a three-month trial period.

The 19-year-old will now follow in his father’s footsteps. His dad David played for Oldham’s A team back in the 1980s.

Whilst he was at Saints, he was part of the side that made the Academy Grand Final in 2019. He was also named in the England squad that was due to tour Australia in 2020, but it was cancelled due to the pandemic. The touring party included the likes of Lewis Dodd, Ben McNamara and Umyla Hanley.

Speaking to the club website, Pye said:“Bradford was a bit too far for me from St Helens and I’ve been very impressed with Stuart (Littler), whose enthusiasm is infectious.

“I enjoyed my time at Saints, the club I’ve supported since I was a boy. But the time has arrived to move on and to test myself against men in a different environment.

“I’d love to get into the Oldham side on a regular basis, but I know there will be a lot of competition for places and we’ll all have a lot to do to get hold of a jersey.

“Back in the day my Dad was happy at Oldham and that also had a bearing on my decision.”

Littler impressed with Pye’s promise

Oldham Head Coach Littler added:“Jamie is a big lad with loads of promise. He’s been involved in top systems at Saints for several years and he won England honours.

Sadly, the proposed tour of Australia and New Zealand was postponed because of Covid. He missed out through no fault of his own. There is no doubt that Covid has had a negative effect on his career so far.

“We faced a lot of competition to get him, but he chose to come to us. He’s been training at Bradford, but he’s seen what’s going on at Oldham. Perhaps we are a different proposition than we were two months ago and Jamie wants to be part of it.

“Jamie is a big, big lad, who will add size to our forwards and the competition will be good for him, for the squad and for the club. With players in possession of the jerseys knowing they have squad colleagues breathing down their necks.”

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