Rich wants Doyle to stay with the Latics

RICHIE Wellens paid tribute to hot-shot Eoin Doyle and admits he’s keen to retain his loan ace after his two late goals downed Rochdale.

With the score locked at 1-1, the Irishman pounced in the box to smash home a halfcleared free-kick in the 83rd minute.

The on-loan Preston striker – whose future from January is up in the air – then made it 13 for the season with a brilliant first-time volley on the back of an Aaron Amadi-Holloway flick-on, catching Josh Lillis off his line with a searing 25-yard strike.

“He is enjoying his football and playing with a smile on his face,” said Wellens of his top scorer. “If a character like Eoin Doyle is scoring goals, he is happy.

“Are we going to keep him? We all would love to. He’s always on the move and he’s a great example.”

As for the win, that takes Oldham to 15th and Wellens felt it was thoroughly deserved.

“We were the team making the chances and we played really well on the front foot,” he said.

“There was a good tempo to the game and Rochdale contributed to that but bar (Ian) Henderson’s chance, when, as good a finisher as he is, he will feel he should score, I don’t think we gave any chances away apart from the goal, which came from our mistake.”

Rochdale manager Keith Hill was gracious in defeat and rued that his side didn’t take care of Doyle well enough late on.

“It was a fair result,” Hill said. “We got it back to 1-1 and had a great opportunity to score in the second half when the game was opening up.

“Their second goal was very disappointing because one of the top scorers in League One was free as a bird inside our box.

“Doyle shouldn’t be playing in this league because he is Championship quality. His second goal was a wonderful piece of skill and he is doing exceptionally well for Oldham, but that doesn’t take away the pain I’m feeling after losing the game.” Oldham fullback Cameron Dummigan raced in to score with his head from a sweeping Gevaro Nepomuceno cross in the second minute, before making an error with a poor back-header that allowed Matty Done to race clear and slot home.

Dale captain Ian Henderson dallied when well-placed in a second half that predominantly featured heavy pressure from the hosts at Boundary Park.

Though Doyle was first denied by a very sharp Lillis save, he made amends to strike twice and seal the win.

STAR MAN EOIN DOYLE Oldham