Huddersfield swap Colton Roche for Bradford star Olly Wilson

Drew Darbyshire

Huddersfield have signed Olly Wilson from Bradford for an undisclosed fee, with Colton Roche going the other way.

The 19-year-old England Academy international has committed his long-term future to the Giants, signing a full-time five-year deal with the Super League club.

Wilson will take the number 36 shirt at Huddersfield and as part of the agreement, Roche will move across to Odsal.

Giants manager director Richard Thewlis commented: “I asked our academy staff to identify the best players in the positions that we as a club were looking to strengthen and Oliver was their stand out pick.

“Andy Kelly has consistently spoken very highly of him and we have monitored his progress now for a considerable period to the point where we felt the  time was now right to make the investment in his development as a homegrown English player who we hope to ultimately become both a Giants regular and full international.

“His name we are aware was at the forefront of a number of leading clubs in the UK and overseas so the timing of this move was critical and we are happy to back the judgement made to bring him in now rather than wait later.

“Oliver knows his path to the top is a tough one but as we’ve shown as a club we are putting faith in the younger side of our squad and whilst he will certainly bolster our academy side this year, he should also have the goal of a Super league debut to strive for.“