NEWS EXTRA
SEDGLEY Park captain Matt Riley is desperate to end the club’s tag as ‘nearly men’ by leading his side to the National 2 North title.
They trail league leaders Hull by nine points with six games to play but are not giving up the fight.
Centre Riley, 35, said: “It’s out of our hands at the minute, all we can hope for is to win all our remaining games with bonus points and that Hull drop points. It’s an honour to captain this great club and to achieve promotion would be incredible.
“I’ve been here since 2006 and apart from a couple Lancashire Cups we’ve won, I’ve been relegated twice, and lost two play-off games as well. It would be nice to achieve something rather than being the nearly men falling short, and it would be great to play at National 1.”
Riley, who joined the club aged 20, has captained the side for seven years and says the club holds a special place in his heart.
“I’ve been here pretty much all of my career,” he said. “I love the club and always felt it right to stay and help stabalise when others have moved on.”
Sedgley possess one of the most potent attacks in the league, with 861 points scored in 24 games and have the league’s top try scorer in hooker Matthew Gallagher.
Riley said: “We pride ourselves on our strike plays. It doesn’t always come off but we try and play an attacking brand. A lot of Sedgley fans have thanked me for the entertainment we give them – but we don’t just do it for that, we do it to win games.
“Matthew has been fantastic. Last week was his 50th league game for the club. He benefited from the Covid break as he’s lost some weight, worked on his lineout and fitness. He’s not just got himself on the back of driving mauls, he’s scored tries that backs would be proud of.”
Also, impressive is flyhalf Stephen Collins who has scored 193 points this season – the second most in the division. Riley added: “He does things other 10s can’t do. He is a little maverick and really important to us.”
The best betting sites
