Wigan Warriors halfback joins shock club

Young Wigan Warriors halfback Logan Astley has completed a somewhat surprising move to Oldham RLFC after a number of loan deals at the club.

Young Astley, who was widely considered to be a future Super League halfback and could very well still be, has signed a two year deal at the club.

Roughyeds had to fight off stiff competition to secure Astley’s signature with several interested parties.

Making his debut for Roughyeds in April 2022, Astley scored ten tries and brought speed as well as his off-the-cuff playing style to Oldham in the five games he played over the past two seasons.

A key factor in the 20-year-old putting pen to paper were the plans the club has moving forward.

“The ambitions the club has and where it is looking to be in the next few years were the main reasons I wanted to come here,” he said.

“I really enjoyed my time at Oldham in the stints I’ve had, it was my first experience at professional level and I’m looking forward to playing at Boundary Park with some quality experienced players.”

During the recent 2023 League One season, in his two games for Oldham, he played a key role in the 56-16 victory over Rochdale Hornets and helped secure the 18-4 win over North Wales with a late try.

Growing up, Astley started off playing for Wigan St Pats as well as Orrell St James, and had stints playing for Wigan RUFC and Sale Sharks.

Billinge-born Astley was part of last year’s Warriors reserve side that went unbeaten and won the Grand Final over Wakefield.

A player with huge potential, Astley also represented England at under-16s level before making his Wigan first team debut against Huddersfield Giants in 2022.

This was a game just before Wigan and Huddersfield met in the Challenge Cup Final.

It also saw Matty Nicholson make his debut and score a try. Nicholson would later go on to join Warrington Wolves.

Both he and Astley have big futures ahead of them.

Equally as good at full-back, the pacey Astley adds versatility with him able to operate in a number of positions.

He is a major coup for the club.