Championship Talk: Everything on the line

fevnut's blog is absolutely delighted to have received permission to bring you a regular column from Gareth Walker.

Gareth is a top rugby league journalist who has one very exceptional distinction. He chooses to write about matters pertaining to the Championship and League One.

Although this blog is devoted to Featherstone Rovers it is always good to read opinions about matters relevant to us, but not specifically about us. We hope you enjoy reading Gareth's column each week.

Everything on the line

 

IT’S not quite the Million Pound Game, but there is certainly much at stake in Oldham and Swinton’s relegation shoot-out this weekend.

          The north west rivals currently sit level on 14 points at the bottom end of the Championship Shield table, with the Roughyeds occupying the second relegation spot alongside already doomed Bradford on points difference.

          On Sunday they face each other at Swinton’s Heywood Road base, with the loser almost certain to be relegated to League One.

          But what implications does that have for either club?

          Well the most obvious is the drop in central funding, which goes from a minimum of £150,000 in the Championship to a flat £75,000 in the third tier.

          But then you have to factor in the expected lower crowds and increased difficulty in securing sponsorship at the lower level, meaning that this weekend’s game is worth a clear six-figure difference between winning and losing.

          That is plenty of pressure on the players and coaches involved and should make for a dramatic afternoon.

          Swinton have come straight out of a similar clash, having lost to another local rival Rochdale on Sunday, 16-8.

          That result has all but secured Hornets’ safety (only a mathematical miracle including a draw between Oldham and the Lions could relegate them) but plunges Stuart Littler’s side straight back into the mix.

          Scott Naylor’s Roughyeds meanwhile were putting up another gutsy display in defeat against full-time Toulouse, 18-24, having drawn at Batley and beaten Rochdale the previous two weekends to throw themselves a lifeline.

          In the league meetings between these two clubs this season it’s one-apeice, with Oldham edging a nervy affair at home 22-18 before Swinton gained revenge with a 26-4 triumph in June.

          Neither will count for anything this weekend though - this is a straight showdown between two sides desperate to preserve their hard-earned Championship status.

          There is a chance that the Lions could lose and still stay up - their points difference is over 100 better than the Roughyeds, and a final day win in Toulouse coupled with an Oldham defeat to Dewsbury would still save them.

          But Littler and his squad won’t want to be relying on a trip across the Channel for anything - and they know that victory against their neighbours will be good enough to stay up.

          It promises to be a fascinating - and nail-biting - afternoon for both clubs.