Ram among five Batley signings
Ram among five Batley signings
By Trevor Watson
BATLEY Bulldogs have re-signed three of their players and snapped up two from outside as the team building process hots up.
The three to have agreed to stay on are captain Paul Handforth, hooker Kris Lythe and prop Dave Tootill. The Bulldogs have also signed Alex Bretherton from neighbours Dewsbury Rams and centre Daley Williams from Keighley Cougars.
Bretherton joins a growing list of those who have moved across the valley in recent years, either one way or the other - at one time it was almost unheard of but in these days of freedom of contract times have changed.
He was signed by the Rams from amateur club Thornhill Trojans and has been at Dewsbury for six years, making 126 appearances. He was hampered last season by a shoulder operation and played only in the last 10 matches.
He has played most of his professional career in the second row but last season all his games were at centre, so he gives the Bulldogs an option.
Williams is well known to Batley coach Karl Harrison from his time at Salford City Reds and this could be another shrewd piece of business by the Mount Pleasant boss as he also picked up second row man Jason Walton from knowing him at Salford.
Batley have had one surprise with loose forward Ash Lindsay seeking release from his current contract to play amateur rugby with Ossett Trinity, who have Francis Maloney as coach.
The Bulldogs have made an offer to Lindsay for next season but there is a concern that if he gets injured, that offer could be withdrawn.
Batley chairman Kevin Nicholas said: "We didn't want Ash to play in the amateurs but he has done a very good job for this club in recent seasons and we had no wish to stand in his way.
"The danger is if he gets injured or we come up with the chance of signing another good player, the same offer might not be on the table."
The Bulldogs are also trying to sort out the future of back row man Tommy Gallagher, who has been attracting interest from Swinton Lions.
Scrum-half Gareth Moore and pack man Walton are still undecided, although both have been made offers to stay on at Mount Pleasant next season. Moore, however, certainly has attracted interest from other clubs and things are very much up in the air, although the fact Handforth has decided to stay on could be an important factor in the No7's decision.
The re-signing by the latest trio is a big boost for the club. This is underlined by the fact that Lythe played in all the 31 games last season, Handforth missed only four and Tootill just two and they could again be key figures next year.
The Bulldogs are also doing the rounds of Super League clubs, hoping to attract players, like Moore, who feel they are standing still at the leading outfits and are anxious to gain first team experience at Championship level, playing against far more experienced players, and there is no doubt it helps their development.
Batley are aiming to build a squad of around 25, which is what they had at the start of last season, but then they lost Eddie Kilroy, Jack Watson, Jon Simpson and Anthony Henderson for a variety of reasons and this caused them to bring in other players.
Supporters are reminded the Player of the Year awards are at The Frontier next Friday (September 17), while tickets at 25 are still available for the celebration dnner at Zucchinis on October 8.
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Weather for Batley
Sunday 05 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 3 C to 6 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: West
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 0 C to 6 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North west
