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| Dons Ready to Take on Oldham |
Almost a month since we were at the Keepmoat Stadium and quite an eventful few weeks it has been both on and off the pitch.
On the pitch, the victory over the London Skolars in our last home game was followed by an away victory at Gateshead Thunder in almost identical fashion, the Dons having a 26-point lead in each game but running out of steam in the second half and although holding on for victory, allowing both opponents back into the game sufficient to record a bonus point. A blank weekend was then followed by a Friday evening jaunt to the Fylde coast and a fixture with in-form Blackpool who had also just dumped Whitehaven out of the Carnegie Challenge Cup.
The Dons traded toe-to-toe with the Championship One pacesetters trailing only 14-12 up to the 55-minute mark and missing a golden opportunity when Ben Collins just failed to ground the ball in the corner. The Panthers immediately went up the other end and Josh Charnley, on dual-registration from Wigan Warriors converted his own try to extend the home sides advantage to 8 points. Back came the Dons and another try-scoring opportunity went begging when the final pass drifted behind winger Ben Collins with the line open. Unfortunately, that seemed to knock the stuffing out of Tony Millers men and Blackpool seized their chance with five more tries, four of them in a blistering 12-minute spell either side of the hour mark. Charnley, on debut, recording a personal haul of 20 points from two tries and six goals.
Off the pitch there has been plenty of activity with players both arriving and departing. Rob Lunt arrived on loan from Dewsbury Rams in time to figure at Blackpool as did former Featherstone hooker Paul Hughes who also made the switch from the Tetleys Stadium on a permanent basis and marked his debut with a try. A third member of Warren Jowitt's squad, prop forward Liam Crawley also made a permanent move to the Keepmoat Stadium but was unavailable for the trip to Fylde.
As these players were arriving, Kiwi Jarryn Osbourne was being loaned to London Skolars, with work commitments in the capital cited and promising youngster Scott Howlett, regarded as one for the future by Head Coach Tony Miller, has been loaned to Hull FC to enable him to get some game-time in their Academy.
This week the activity has continued with the re-signing of Scottish International winger Dean Colton and yet another signing from Dewsbury Rams in the shape of former Featherstone Rovers and York City Knights centre Chris Spurr.
All that and next up another unbeaten Championship One opponent in Oldham Roughyeds who have put their off-field problems to one side to register six straight wins in the league, the latest being a 12-try demolition of Gateshead Thunder in their final game at temporary home Sedgley Park, before moving to new base the Whitebank Stadium, home of Oldham Town FC.
John Gillam, making a delayed debut following a shoulder injury, had a field-day running in four tries off the back of a vintage performance from Oldham favourite Neil Roden who ran the show at stand off. His partnership with Kiwi scrum half Matty Ashe could prove to be amongst the best in the division. Veteran back Marcus St Hilaire and winger Lucas Onyango are others likely to be benefactors of chances created by the Oldham half back combination, although the former is a slight doubt for this fixture.
In the forwards, the likes of one-time Wakefield Trinity Wildcat Craig Robinson, cage-fighter and former Celtic Crusader Jamie I'Anson and props Dave Ellison and Wayne Kerr will look to dominate the Dons pack to give Kiwi coach Tony Benson's selected backs the room to manoeuvre on the open spaces of the Keepmoat pitch.
For the Dons, Grant Edwards has been sidelined for the season and there are doubts over Aaron Henry, Shaun Leaf and Liam Brown but beyond that, Tony Miller has competition for places at last having strengthened the squad quite significantly in recent weeks and as there was at Blackpool, there could be a number of players on debut against Oldham.
Don't forget, for those who can't make the game, you can stay in touch with our live score service. Click Here
Visiting Supporters Should Click Here for Everything they need to know about visiting The Keepmoat
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| The Co-operative Championship One 2010 |
|
Team |
Pts |
+/- |
| 1 |
Hunslet |
55 |
505 |
| 2 |
Oldham |
52 |
256 |
| 3 |
York |
39 |
83 |
| 4 |
Blackpool |
38 |
430 |
| 5 |
Rochdale |
37 |
132 |
| 6 |
South Wales |
34 |
108 |
| 7 |
Workington |
33 |
-4 |
| 8 |
Swinton |
33 |
-11 |
| 9 |
Doncaster |
28 |
-70 |
| 10 |
London |
10 |
-456 |
| 11 |
Gateshead |
-2 |
-973 |
Full Table 
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