Oldham directors on sponsored walk

You’ve got to hand it to the Oldham directors. They didn’t merely pay lip service to the fans’ sponsored walk to Rochdale for MND . . . they joined it.

Although chairman Bill Quinn lives near Chorley and Roughyeds faced a massive derby clash at the Crown Oil Arena later in the day, he, managing director Mike Ford and director Jim Minton all joined the walk at Boundary Park shortly after 9am.

An estimated 200 Oldham fans, most of them wearing special MND tee shirts, walked the eight miles or so to the Rochdale ground, calling off at several hostelries en route. Our eldest son, Craig, drove up from Bangor the day before so he could take part and my wife, Val, and I talked briefly with the walkers when they called in at the Summit Inn at Thornham on the Rochdale-Oldham border.

Bill Quinn, Mike Ford and a slightly out-of-breath Jim Minton were there and among other well-known club names I spotted were Nicola Robinson of St Helens, who first came to the club on behalf of sponsors Amari (she manages the Manchester branch in Middleton), but is now a heavily-committed fan in her own right.

One of her employees at Amari is our club’s official photographer, David Murgatroyd, who was also in attendance, together with Chris and Michelle from the Fox and Pine in Oldham, well-known local hostelry which has become a much-loved town-centre base for Oldham Rugby and Latics fans alike.

Chris and Michelle are fans and sponsors of both clubs so it was no surprise when fans hastened to the Fox and Pine after the narrow win at Rochdale where they continued to raise money for MND via an auction of sporting merchandise conducted by Braddy.

“In total, that’s from individual sponsorship, bucket collections en route and the Fox and Pine auction I think our total figure was approaching £20,000,” said Nicola.

Full marks to YEDS, the Roughyeds’ Supporters Group, who organised it so brilliantly and who wished to thank everyone who sponsored, everyone who walked and everyone who helped in any way, including the town-centre Flying Horse in Rochdale, who went out of their way, in their last stop, to make the walk of Oldham supporters such an undoubted success.

The derby win clinched an exciting day. Hornets were fierce and hugely competitive opponents, but what a fantastic try by our boys to win it. Take a bow Riley Dean, Bailey Aldridge and PLT. Great stuff.