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Fight on to the end

Carl Marsden
27/ 8/2004

OLDHAM player-coach Steve Molloy wants his players to fight for a top-three National League One finish starting with Sunday's tie with league leaders Whitehaven.

After that the Roughyeds have only a trip to Featherstone Rovers and then a home game against Doncaster to complete their campaign.

Molloy said: "It's pleasing to now be in the top three but the acid test is staying there."

"I'd like to think it's a true reflection of what we have achieved but there's still an awful lot of hard work ahead. I've told the players we have to be on our mettle every week now because our run-in is as tough as anybody else's."

The Roughyeds did just enough to beat Keighley Cougars 31-20 on Sunday, but Molloy said there was plenty of room for improvement.

"Keighley had a real dig but our first-half performance was not adequate", he said.

"We said at half-time that it was 16-all and effectively it had become a 40-minute game. We picked the tempo up a little in the second half but certainly need to tighten up our fringe defence.

"However, I always felt we had too much for Keighley and Jon Goddard did well again. He is a great broken-field runner and sniffs tries out for us."

Keith Brennan will return on Sunday after being rested but Jon Roper and David Gibbons are facing a race against time.

Paul Southern should be okay to play but Iain Marsh is out for at least the next three weeks with a dislocated ankle.