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Championship wrapped up for 2017

The line-up for the Kingstone Press Championship has been confirmed. Salford got a Golden Point win against Hull KR at the Lightstream Stadium to condemn Rovers to the Championship for 2017. This will see Tim Sheens butt heads with Alan Kilshaw with the two at opposite ends of their coaching careers.

Meanwhile in the South of France it was Toulouse Olympique who edged Barrow Raiders to claim their spot in the second tier but they had to do it through the play-offs as Hornets saw them off last month to win the Promotion Final.

After a thrilling Championship Shield campaign, Whitehaven and Workington were relegated to League 1 with local rivals Swinton Lions and Oldham Roughyeds surviving. Hornets have been lucky to swap two trips to Cumbria for local journeys to Heywood Road, Sale and Bower Fold, Stalybridge.

In 2017, Hornets will have to travel 2,996 mils (round trips) with the shortest trip being to Bower Fold to visit Oldham whilst obviously the furthest will again be to Stade Ernest Argeles to face off with Toulouse Olympique.

In the Championship there is also the small matter of the Summer Bash. Whilst no plans have been confirmed for 2017 yet, the showpiece event is expected to take place again at Blackpool FC's Bloomfield Road Stadium on the May Bank Holiday. For the past two Summer Bash events, games have been televised live on Sky Sports.

It is set to be a thrilling campaign for Hornets as Alan Kilshaw has already started to build his squad and in the past week Lewis Palfrey and Jake Ecclestone joined Spotland for 2017 with more signings due to be announced.

Bumper kit sale

To celebrate what has been an outstanding season on and off the field at Rochdale Hornets, the Rochdale Rugby Shack will be holding a bumper kit sale this week

The Shack are working with kit suppliers Surridge to sell loads of Hornets branded items out of the club shop, as well as at the upcoming members meeting and also at the end of season awards dinner on Friday.

Surridge are keen to shift some stock to allow for space in their warehouses for some upcoming projects and are giving Hornets supporters this exciting opportunity to purchase some unique items.

There will be loads of products including polo shirts, training jackets, sweatshirts and fleeces in a variety of sizes and colours.

The club will not be taking orders and the sale is on a strict first come, first served basis.

Members Meeting

The next members meeting will take place on Tuesday 4 October at 6:30pm. It will be held at The Flying Horse Hotel, Packer Street, Rochdale.
Any apologies can be sent to james.cannings@hornetsrugbyleague.com

Hornets land Palfrey

Rochdale Hornets have added their second signing for the 2017 season, as Lewis Palfrey joins from neighbours Oldham on a two-year deal.

The 26-year-old ends a four-year spell with the Roughyeds and makes the short move to the Crown Oil Arena for their Championship campaign next season.

Jake Eccleston, first new signing for the 2017 season 

Rochdale Hornets have announced their first new signing for the 2017 season, as Jake Eccleston joins from fellow Championship club Halifax.

The 21-year-old winger or centre has signed a one-year deal after finding chances limited at the Shay this season, making just eight appearances.

Despite the lack of action in 2016 he still managed to cross for five tries and he is raring to go for Hornets, feeling that he has a point to prove when he meets his former club next year.

“I won’t be targeting the Halifax game but it’ll be nice when it comes around and I’ve definitely got a point to prove,” he admitted.

Pay what you can extended

The pay what you can offer offer, which has seen Hornets sell over 50% more than last year’s season ticket sales in the last week alone, has been extended to include the Members Meeting and the End of Season Presentation.

With life in the Championship now confirmed, you can secure your 2017 season ticket for as little as £100. This will cover entry for 18 home games (regular season and then Middle 8's/Championship Shield). This means adults can gain entry to each game next season for just £5.50.

Now that Championship rugby is confirmed Hornets are asking for a voluntary donation on top of the £100 early early bird rate to represent the amount supporters would be happy to pay in the Championship. If you can afford that little bit extra to help the club on their way then great, but if you can just afford the £100 then that's fine too.

Hornets Chairman, Mark Wynn, said: “We are a members owned club and the more money we generate from season ticket sales, the more competitive can be on the field.

"This excellent offer was put in place regardless of the league we were in, whether it be the Kingstone Press Championship or the Kingstone Press League 1.

“If you want the club to be more successful, pay more, and if you can only afford the minimum then that’s fine too."

The offer ends on 7 October 2017.

Supporters Player of the Year - Vote Now

Voting is now open for the Supporters Player of the Year which will be announced at the club’s annual awards dinner which will take place this year at Rochdale Circket Club on 7 October (tickets on sale now).

Each year supporters are given the chance to vote for their player of the year and this year they can do so by emailing Luke Harrison at commercial@hornetsrugbyleague.com or calling the club on 01706 648 004.

Voting closes at 4pm on Wednesday 5 October so get them in quick!

Final call for end of season Awards Dinner

The club has got a limited amount of tickets left for Friday's awards dinner at Rochdale Cricket Club. Following the clubs on field success in 2016, tickets have flown out of the office to people who want to celebrate with Hornets.

The three course dinner will take place at Rochdale Cricket Club on Friday 7 October (7pm for 7:30pm start).

Following discussions with members, the event will be smart dress (lounge suits) and it is an event for the whole Hornets Family with awards being presented to the Hornets Ladies, Hornets Wheelchair Team and the Hornets First team.

Tickets are priced at £25 per person. Book now to avoid disappointment by contacting james.cannings@hornetsrugbyleague.com or calling 01706 648 004.

Hornets go back to school

Rochdale Hornets have officially linked up with Manchester Business School at Manchester University to work with Masters students who are working on a not for profit project as part of their course.

The University will provide two teams of postgraduate business students for a period of six months to conduct research, surveys and analysis on two distinct projects.

One team will focus on a piece of work aimed at boosting attendance and membership. They will conduct surveys and analysis of supporter trends and also focus on 'non-attenders’ and those who are semi-engaged.

As well as providing a greater understanding of our target audience, the detailed segmentation will help to shape the strategy for member and supporter engagement going forward.

The second project will focus on raising long term funds for the development of the Community and Performance base at Mossway.

Community shares and grant funding will all be looked at as a way of generating capital and revenue streams to secure the venue short and long term.

Rochdale Hornets Director, Luke Harrison, attended a welcome meeting at the Business School on Wednesday evening to meet with the tutors and students that would be taking on the projects and he admits he was nervous in the build up.

He said: “As a club it’s not something we have really done before – when I saw the calibre of the students we would be working with I was genuinely impressed. There are people who have held prestigious jobs in banking and construction from across the world and I was a little taken aback when a student from Columbia who had been in the country for two weeks was asking me about Wayne English and Dale Bloomfield.

“We, as a club, feel that we are doing a lot of good stuff both on and off the pitch and we aren’t reaping the rewards for our continued hard work in terms of improved attendances and membership.”

Try of the season - vote now

Hornets are asking supporters to vote for their try of the season from the following shortlist:

 

• Wayne English v Keighley Cougars (Rd 14)
• Samir Tahraoui v Hunslet Hawks (Rd 1)
• Jack Holmes v Toulouse Olympique (Grand Final)
• Joe Taira v Coventry Bears (Rd 2)
• Chris Riley v Toulouse Olympique (Grand Final)

The shortlist was compiled by the coaching staff - there is a mixture of stunning solo efforts, great build up play, and big tries that influenced big games.

 

Vote for your favourite try by either emailing Luke Harrison: commercial@hornetsrugbyleague.com or calling the office on 01706 648 004.