Ceramicus exodus
A long season ends in disappointment

They say it's sometimes better to travel than arrive. And in Hornets case, it's true. On what has been a mammoth odyssey since we lifted the Law Cup in November last year, the joy of the journey has by far exceeded the let down of the destination.

Indeed, it took just five minutes for Oldham to get on the board. A stupid knee in the tackle by Stevo saw Oldham gain 60 metres with the penalty. A smart half break by Molloy, neat offload to Gibbons and his hand-on to Barber saw the ball planted under the black dot. He converted his own try and the more astute of the Hornets supporters sensed that this really was going to be one of those days.

Ten minutes later, the usually steadfast Sean Cooper made his one cock-up of the season to gift Oldham a second try. A last tackle grubber sent more in hope than expectation caught Tommy in two minds and, whilst he was deciding whether to gather it or hoof it dead, Sibson leapt in to touchdown. Barber slotted home the conversion, followed two minutes later by a penalty. Oldham were up with the clock and, to be scrupulously fair, Hornets looked out of the game with an hour remaining.

But they stuck to their rudimentary game plan - grind the ball up close and see what happens. A fantastic last ditch tackle knocked the ball from James Bunyan's grasp as he looked certain to score; Paul Smith dropped the ball as he stretched over the line; Damian Ball was held inches short.

Needless to say, the next time Oldham took the ball up the other end they manufactured a huge overlap only for Goddard to cough a certain try-scoring pass.

Half time 14-nil and Hornets relying almost totally on the forays of Richard Pachniuk, the determination of Paul Owen and the steely, unyielding defence of Brendan O'Meara.

With the paint no doubt peeling from the Dressing room wall, Hornets began the second half with a little more vigour - but with no more luck. First the ball falling from Wes Rogers' hand as he went to ground it, then Pachniuk penalised for the least obvious double movement I've seen this season. Having thrown everything at the Oldham line and come up empty, all Hornets had to show for their efforts was a ridiculous penalty from Danny Wood - yet another incidence of Hornets kicking into a deficit instead of looking for greater rewards.

On 65 minutes Oldham applied the coup de grace. A massive break through the middle of the defence by Roden; Oldham three on one with paul Owen; Roden chose Barber and it was all over.

Matt Long's last minute crash-over try was hardly consolation as Hornets' season ended not with a bang, but with a whimper.

In the great scheme of things, this was just one defeat in what's been a fantastic season - but expectation is a cruel thing. Yes Hornets looked like they'd had a fortnight off, but as Martin Hall said afterwards, "If we'd played like that against any team, we'd have lost." And he was right. Hornets struggled to find any sort of rhythm at all - and failed spectacularly to get the ball wide where we know we can do damage.

But Oldham had done their homework. They kept the ball tight in the middle of the park, Molloy the ball-playing foil to the hard-yard-lard tactics of Clegg and Guest. They backed up in numbers and displayed the huge enthusiasm that their coach has imbued them with. Simply, they wanted it more.

As Oldham progress on an unlikely trip to Batley - another team big on spirit and doing it the hard way - Hornets are left to ruminate on yet another season bookended by Oldham and ended in disappointment.

Martin Hall could hardly speak after the game - passionate for the Hornets cause, he knows we stepped up to the line and came up well short. It's a long, long way to the next game - another arduous journey that's bound to throw up some twists and turns.

Thanks for your support - both on the website and on the terraces. And remember - nil illegitimi te carborundum.

Onwards Hornets Onwards.