Oldham to face court date over winding-up petition as new head coach confirmed

Championship heavyweights Oldham have been served with a winding-up petition which will be heard in London next week – as their early-season woes appear to have deepened.

The Roughyeds have been hit with a number of off-field problems in recent weeks. Love Rugby League revealed how their owner, Bill Quinn, had been banned from Boundary Park owing to a dispute with football club Oldham Athletic. They played their recent Challenge Cup tie at Stalybridge’s Bower Fold rather than their usual home.

Then on Sunday night, just minutes after their defeat to London Broncos in the capital, director of rugby Mike Ford confirmed that he was leaving with immediate effect, having tendered his resignation to the board earlier in January, which was accepted.

But Oldham are now subject to fresh drama, Love Rugby League can reveal.

They have been hit with a winding-up order which has appeared on The Gazette, making it official and confirming that, unless the debt relating to the petition is settled before then, they will appear at the Rolls Building in London next Tuesday.

The petition has been filed by His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs. It should also be pointed out that orders like these can be settled quite easily if the debt is small or the matter is clarified quickly.

But appearing in The Gazette will be a further worry for Oldham supporters, who take on Dewsbury Rams in the Third Round of the Challenge Cup this weekend.

They are expected to be led in that game by former Keighley Cougars boss Alan Kilshaw, who is likely to step up as head coach following Ford’s departure.

Kilshaw initially joined the Roughyeds in a role billed as assistant coach but within a matter of weeks, he has now stepped up to lead the team with Ford gone, Love Rugby League can reveal.