
ZACH Eckersley experienced something new as he showed what he can do on a rugby league pitch in his hometown – people wearing Oldham shirts.
And to the Wigan star, that shows just how far the club has come in reconnecting with the area.
The Challenge Cup winner, who scored at Wembley, was part of the Warriors’ side that saw off the Roughyeds 28-16 in a pre-season trial match at Boundary Park.
But just driving from his Springhead home showed him just how much progress is being made.
Eckersley said: “I drove and met the team at Boundary Park and for the first time, I think I drove through Oldham and saw people walking about with shirts on.
“That’s great to see. You wouldn’t have seen that in previous years but it’s great to see the game growing in the town and get up and running again.
“A couple of years ago, the Roughyeds were playing at the Vestacare Stadium but to play Oldham at Boundary Park was very special.
“The buzz around rugby league in Oldham seems to be up and running again. That’s great to see.”
It may have been Wigan’s first match after winning a historic quadruple in 2024 but to Eckersley, a product of Waterhead ARLFC, it may as well have been the upper League Grand Final.
Such was the feeling of playing at Boundary Park, next to which he played football as a kid, it compared with the biggest of stages.
Only he could actually spot familiar faces in the crowd.
Eckersley added: “I was chatting to my dad and said, ‘I’m quite nervous for this game.’ Being from Oldham, I saw a lot of people who came to watch me.
“I went to school with a lot of them, a lot of my mates came down to watch. Old coaches too, eve a few of my old teachers.
“And yes, I do still call them ‘Sir.’
“It was a different type of nerves but I was very nervous before the game. Being that, though, shows you care.
“I watched a couple of games in League Oen last year and I watched a couple of football games when I was a kid.
“I played on the fields behind the stadium – at Little Wembley. It’s a special place for people growing up in Oldham.”
Welcoming Wigan saw a crowd of more than 3,000 – Oldham’s biggest for more than 20 years – turn up.
That did not pass Eckersley by either.
The 21-year-old told Saddleworth Independent: “Oldham are a really good team and gave us a tough game. It seemed like a long time since I played my last one.
“It was good to get back on the field, though, and to see the stadium so full was really good for the town.”
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