NEW CONTRACT IS CALCOTT’S REWARD
Give it one last push, says Wild
PROP WILL Calcott has signed a new contract that will keep him at Halifax Panthers until the end of the 2022 season.
The 23-year-old enters into his fifth season with his hometown club having produced several impressive performances at the start of the 2020 campaign as well as in training and pre-season.
Calcott, who was named man of the match in Panthers’ 30-16 win at Oldham in their pre-season encounter last weekend, made his first team debut in 2017 against Leigh Centurions during the Super 8s, having progressed through the Fax Academy Pathway.
Head coach Simon Grix said: “We are really pleased to reward Will’s progress.
“He has worked hard over the last couple of pre-seasons to improve his game and physical condition. He is a late bloomer, missing out on the academy system, but we have invested time in him and it’s starting to pay off for him now.
“He is a big lad with plenty still to learn but we feel he is on an upward curve with the kind of hard working approach we want at our club. Being a local junior, he is very proud to represent his hometown club and I am sure that will be evident in his performances.”
Calcott said: “I’m really pleased to be extending for another year.
“I’m developing and learning all the time from the coaching staff here and a lot of the senior players so it was a no-brainer for me to extend my contract.”
Calcott was among the tryscorers at Oldham last weekend when Grix fielded all 21 of his named squad members.
Panthers started on the front foot and raced into a 10-0 lead with tries from Zack McComb and Calcott before Oldham responded before the break with a try of their own.
Halifax turned the screw in the second half, with two tries in four minutes from Ed Barber and Conor McGrath giving them some breathing space.
Oldham hit back and made it 20-12 heading into the last quarter and the hosts crossed the whitewash again in response to James Saltonstall’s touchdown.
However, the Panthers’ victory was wrapped up when Welsh international Connor Davies bagged the visitors’ sixth try of the game after some neat play from James Woodburn-Hall.
Panthers: Grix, McGrath, Rawsthorne, McComb, Saltonstall, Harris, Robinson, Calcott, Moore (c), Murray, Garside, Barber, Larroyer.
Subs: Bourouh, Co Davies, Cu Davies, Fairbank, Morris, Springer, Tibbs, Woodburn-Hall.
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TOWN MANAGER Pete Wild is calling for one last push from his side at Eastleigh on Saturday in what will be Halifax’s sixth game in 19 days
The Shaymen have picked up 16 points from the last 18 available, including two hard-fought 1-0 wins at home to Solihull and Aldershot in the past few days, lifting them to sixth in the National League, with 43 points.
And they now face ninthplaced Eastleigh before having a full week to prepare for the visit of leaders Sutton to The Shay next Saturday.
“Let’s get to 50 points, that’s our first target, and when we’ve got to that we’ll take it from there,” said Wild. “But nobody’s getting ahead of themselves Eastleigh on Saturday, that’s it. We’re just on a good run, that’s all it is.”
Wild says his side can go to Eastleigh with no pressure on them.
“Just be compact, be hard to beat, all the pressure’s on Eastleigh because they’ve got to beat us so we go there and express ourselves,” he said.
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