Oldham Athletic are a club we have met many times over the years; 56 to be exact, which have resulted in 24 wins for Rovers, 19 for Oldham and 13 have ended all square.

All of those games were in the league and there have also been four FA Cup ties between the clubs and both have a win apiece while there have been two drawn games.

The Latics were relegated from League One at the end of the 2017/18 season and have endured a pretty torrid time since then.

Since June 2018 they have changed managers frequently and former Rovers defender Keith Curle is the eighth incumbent since then.

Last season Curle, who only took over in March of this year, guided them to 18th place and they finished with 54 points in spite of a home record that saw them win six games, draw two and lose 15.

Boundary Park, the second highest stadium in the league, after West Bromwich Albion, has a capacity of 13,513 and boasts a relatively new North Stand (the Joe Royle Stand) which houses a fitness suite, supporters bar, event facilities and offices.

There have been a few games between the clubs down the years that have been quite memorable, including a 4-4 draw at Boundary Park in September 1997, when Peter Beadle (2), Jamie Cureton and Barry Hayles were on target.

A 4-1 win in February 2000 saw goals scored by Jamie Cureton (2), Andy Thomson and Vitalijs Astafjevs, while the Chelsea loan duo of Jake Clarke-Salter and Charlie Colkett scored the goals that gave Rovers a 2-0 win in October 2016.

Players who have played for both clubs include Junior Agogo, Jonny Burn, Danny Boxall, Paul Heffernan, David Lee, Josh Low, JP Kalala, Joe Jacobson, Steve Mildenhall, Cristian Montano and Ian Muir.

The first league meeting between the clubs was on 16th April 1954 when Rovers were 1-0 winners at Eastville. There wasn’t long to wait until the second meeting, as they played out a goalless draw at Boundary Park just three days later!

Rovers players who have made their league debut against the Latics include Raymond Chandler & Frank Allcock (1953/54), Aidy Boothroyd (1990/91), Rhys Evans & Nigel Pierre (1999/2000), and John Akinde, Michael J. Green & Danny Senda (2010/11).

Our last two meetings came in season 2017/18 with Oldham winning 3-2 at the Memorial Stadium and the game at Boundary Park ending in a 1-1 draw.

If you plan on driving to watch next season’s games at Boundary Park, a one way journey is 175 miles.

Keith Brookman