The dominant display from Oldham on the opening day of the Betfred Championship season has reverted York by a rookie in the league who had played their first match in the second tier since 2021.
Impressive performances from Junah Sambou, Josh Drinkwater, Phoenix Laulu-Togaga'e and others led the rough to victory.
Knights coach Mark Applegers spoke about the disappointment of the contest, even labeling the results as “embarrassing,” but Long did not share the same sentiment. The game is '.
“The performance we thought was probably the best was the best, but we can't stand the glory,” Long told Club Media.
“It's a long season, so we have to keep getting better and better and work on everything we need to sort things out.
“Performance to Riley Dean, he came at the very last minute. He just fined him, and it was a really good performance from 1 to 17, they were outstanding.
“Everyone has done their job, and when you do the job and everyone gives tips at the right time, they work hard for each other and you get paid.
“The scoreline doesn't reflect how tough the game is. York has a really good team and they're really good teams.
“They're coming back strong.”
Oldham's recent promotion to the championship and the final results have made it a statement performance from Roughyeds to the rest of the division.
For a long time, he hasn't wanted his players to be satisfied after the results. “It's a tough thing, I don't want to get carried away, so I want to keep my feet on the ground.
“We know what we can do, but we can't drop your standards.
“Last week we played well, we had to raise the game and take another level with York this week.
“We certainly did that, but we can't spend the weekend.
“I really felt that our attitude and professionalism from the young people were great.
“We're not hooked, we're not worried about others. It's not rude, but we're trying to fix things in our own backyard.
“Foots on the ground.”
