Terry Flanagan next speaker

First it was George Ford, then Paul Sculthorpe, next Terry Flanagan.

Now aged 63 and a hugely successful business man, but fondly remembered as a clever and creative Oldham loose-forward in the 1980s, our club’s youngest-ever captain at the age of 19, Terry Flanagan MBE will talk to the Roughyeds’ business networking group on Monday about his career in business, life lessons picked up in sport and the mutual benefits to be derived from ’networking'.

“Things are going well at Oldham," said Terry, a spectator at the Cornwall game. “I’m delighted to be involved again, but as I’ve told Mike (Ford) I can’t get too connected because of other commitments. I’ll be chuffed to help out a bit though as and when I can.”

Ford said:

“The ’networking’ is going exceptionally well and we are delighted Terry has accepted our invitation. Young Kieran runs it for us and he is absolutely brimming over with youth, enthusiasm — and new ideas.

“We plan to invite someone who is well-known each month — ideally someone local, a him or her with rugby connections who has done well in their chosen business and who knows what it’s all about."

Terry played 281 games for Oldham and toured ‘Down Under’ with four Watersheddings colleagues — Ray Ashton, Des Foy, Andy Goodway and Mick Worrall — in 1984.

He got heavily involved in youth and rugby league charities when his playing days were over, setting up and establishing RL Cares, becoming its first chairman, and also becoming chairman of Mahdlo, the Oldham Youth Zone, for whom he is still heavily connected as a trustee.

Until a few days ago, when he stood down at the club’s annual meeting, he had also been a long-serving president of Saddleworth Rangers, where he played all his youth rugby before turning pro for his home-town club, Oldham.

In 2014 he was awarded the Mike Gregory ‘Spirit of Rugby League’ Trophy in recognition of his charity work.