Henderson calls for York Knights to right wrongs against Oldham

The Knights were their own worst enemies as they crashed out of the Betfred Challenge Cup to the Eagles last weekend, playing over half the match with 12 men after full-back Will Dagger was dismissed after an alleged headbutt on his home debut.

Matters were also not helped by sin-bins to both Jesse Dee and Jordan Thompson, the latter who spent a quarter of the entire match on the sidelines after two separate incidents - with the Knights down to 11 men by the interval.

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Having left themselves with an uphill battle against an Eagles side likely to be challenging in the play-offs alongside them come the end of the season, Henderson is keen to see his side clean up their discipline against Oldham in their AB Sundecks 1895 Cup quarter final.

“It’s an opportunity to right the wrongs from last week,” he admitted.

“I’m confident that the players will respond in the right manner and deliver a more positive performance. 

“Whether the performance will be good enough, we will see on the day because we are coming up against a very good side. 

“But we need to see some progress from the weekend moving forward.”

Loose forward Jordan Thompson was sin-binned twice during the first half as the Knights were made to pay for their ill-discipline against Sheffield. (Image: Craig Hawkhead)

Despite plying their trade a tier below the Knights, Oldham are among the favourites for promotion from Betfred League One this campaign.

Their high-profile off-season recruitment has included Craig Kopczak and Matty Wildie, both part of the Featherstone side that claimed the Betfred Championship League Leaders’ Shield last year, alongside vastly experienced Betfred Super League duo Jordan Turner and Joe Wardle.

Widnes Vikings stalwart Danny Craven and former New Zealand international Elijah Taylor have also made their ways through the doors at Boundary Park.

And with Super League legend Sean Long now at the helm following spells with both Featherstone and Wakefield Trinity last term, Henderson believes that the Roughyeds are a League One team in name only.

“They’ve built a very competitive squad there,” he explained. “They are a League One club at this moment in time but I think that they are a Championship team. 

“The recruitment that has been done at the club by Mike Ford and Sean Long has been very good, there’s been an abundance of Super League and Championship-standard players. 

“They’ve got some quality players, they’ve got people like Wardell and Turner who have played in the Super League, the likes of Wharton, the likes of Danny Craven and Jamie Ellis who are two quality half-backs at this level with Super League experience. 

“The forwards that they got there, for me there are a lot of established Championship-level players in that team, as well as some Super League players who have literally just come out of the Super League two months ago. 

“They are a good side, are well coached and we have to be ready for that.”

However, he warns that Oldham will also be seeking to bounce back from their own Challenge Cup defeat to Swinton Lions last weekend.

“We know that we’re going to be up against a very good side that will challenge us, and ultimately they are in a very similar position to us in their wounds. They’re coming off of the back of a very disappointing result and a disappointing performance from the week before.

“I think both teams will be looking to react in the right way which will make it a rife contest.

“Hopefully, we will be able to unlock them in the areas that we feel we can exploit them in, hopefully we will deliver a performance to earn us a result.”