Two codes, one town event

Rochdale AFC Community Trust played host to a live Q and A featuring local authors on Wednesday evening.

Mark Hodkinson discussed his book ‘The Overcoat Men’, while former Rochdale Hornets chairmen Jim Stringer and Mark Wynn talked about their book ‘Triumph and Disaster’.

Rochdale AFC chairman Simon Gauge also featured on the panel and further stressed the importance of keeping the club fan-owned, amid the hostile takeover attempts that have troubled the club in the past few months.

The Overcoat Men describes how two unsung heroes, David Kilpatrick and Graham Morris, were able to save the football club from the brink, while Triumph and Disaster documents the 150-year history of Rochdale Hornets, with a behind-the-scenes look into the inner workings of the rugby league side.

Both Rochdale Hornets and Rochdale FC have faced economic turmoil in their history, with both clubs staring in the face of extinction, but all those on the panel were in agreement that fan support was vital in keeping the clubs afloat.

Jim Stringer said: “The fans have always stepped in the death, they’ve always found something whether it was big or small. They've always come good.”

He also shared the story of Morrisons stepping in during 1987 with an investment that helped to save the club when it was ‘dead and gone’.

 

 

Both clubs have found it difficult to compete with bigger, local clubs such as Manchester United and Manchester City or Wigan Warriors and Bradford Bulls from a rugby league perspective, but those on the panel felt that it was a positive for the two co-existed in the town, despite some disagreements in the past.

Mark and Jim both shared fond memories of the Hornets’ 2016 win against Toulouse in France, while Mark Hodkinson recalled Dale’s impressive 3-0 win against Bradford City in the Keith Hill era, suggesting that he was ‘levitating’ following the performance.

Following the talk and the Q and A, which focussed on what could be done to improve attendances at the Crown Oil Arena, Mark Doyle spoke about an upcoming exhibition at Touchstones Rochdale.

It features 60 selected works submitted by more than 1,000 people across the UK and abroad, opening on March 12 and running until the end of June, with the top artwork awarded a £10,000 prize.

 

 

Artists Alan Ward and Neville Gabie, both of whom have a long history of football-related arts projects, have been commissioned by Touchstones Museum to lead on a project specifically related to Rochdale AFC.

They are appealing for people to share objects and memories related to Rochdale FC at Touchstones on Friday 25 and Saturday 26 February.