Swinton pip Oldham in stunner
Swinton Lions have produced a stunning second-half comeback to beat the Oldham Roughyeds by a single point on day two of the Summer Bash.
The Lions found themselves 20-0 down but scored 24 unanswered points in the second half to set the mark for a famous but controversial win.
Oldham took the lead after nine minutes when Kenny Hughes got the ball out of dummy half before being met by three Oldham defenders, but he still managed to force his way over the line.
Lewis Palfrey made the conversion for a six-point lead. They got a second just three minutes later through Danny Langtree, after he got the ball from first receiver and the defender took the dummy and left the gap for him to go over.
Palfrey got his second conversion of the afternoon for a 12 point lead. Palfrey then made it a 14-point lead as Connor Dwyer of Swinton was penalised for interference just past the 40 metre line.
A 14-point lead then became a 20-point lead, after Langtree was held up just short, Adam Files then forced his way over through a small gap in the Lions defence and Palfrey kept up his 100% record with the boot.
Swinton needed a fast start to the second half and that is what they got, as Oldham couldn’t find touch with a penalty, they came down the other end and neat hands from the Lions found the ball in the path of Macaulay Hallett.
He made no mistake in crashing over and Chris Atkin nailed the conversion to reduce the deficit to 14.
Atkin then made it two tries in two minutes for the Lions, as a great dummy and then great determination to get through two tackles to crash over. He then converted his own try to make it an 20-12.
It was then a two-point game with just over 15 minutes to go when Rhodri Lloyd managed to score as a gap opened up in the Oldham defence, the try was given after the video referee ruled there was no obstruction.
The comeback for Swinton complete when a kick from Matty Beharrell bounced wickedly and it was missed by two Oldham defenders, the scrum-half was able to collect the ball and ground it and Atkin was able to kick from right in front of the posts to give the Lions a four-point lead.
In a game-changing twist, Oldham scored again when winger Adam Clay was able to cut inside and ground the ball leaving Palfrey with a kick to win it.
But despite replays suggesting otherwise it was not given, leaving the game level at 24-24.
And then even more to the Oldham coach’s annoyance, Swinton went down the other end and kicked a drop goal through Beharrell to win the game.
Swinton have now gone above Sheffield Eagles in the Championship table into 7th while Oldham remain in 11th position, but are only two points adrift of Whitehaven, Dewsbury Rams and Sheffield.