Parkinson agrees to Fylde RFC stay

Powerful lock forward Olli Parkinson is the latest player to sign on with Fylde RFC for a second season.
Warren Spragg is pleased to have re-signed Olli Parkinson for next seasonWarren Spragg is pleased to have re-signed Olli Parkinson for next season
Warren Spragg is pleased to have re-signed Olli Parkinson for next season

The 23-year-old joined the club in the summer of 2017 from Macclesfield RUFC.

A product of the Sedgley Park development system, he went on to play for the North Under-18s squad and made his debut in Sedgley’s National One XV in the 2011-12 season at the tender age of 17.

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He attended Myerscough College before moving on to Bath University where he featured in their first team.

He also played for Bath Rugby’s second team and earned representative honours for British Colleges. He has also played for Sale Jets and for their Under-20s squad.

The 6ft 4in man returned to the North West to rejoin Sedgley Park and became a fixture in the second row in the 2014-15 season.

He had a brief spell at Championship club Rotherham Titans before joining Macclesfield last season.

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Parkinson’s Fylde National One career was delayed due to an ankle injury picked up pre-season, ironically at Sedgley Park in August.

He missed the first five league matches but has been a regular first-team choice since then. He’s made 19 appearances for Fylde, and has a total of 71 National One games in all.

Head coach Warren Spragg said: “Olli was a late addition to the squad last season and has come in with a great attitude, high work rate and willingness to improve.

“He has been almost ever present apart from an injury earlier in the season and this is due to his ability to produce consistent performances every week.

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“Again, Olli is another young player who has had a lot of responsibility in the engine room this year and I am looking forward to seeing how he takes this experience forward into next season.”

Parkinson’s re-signing comes after teammates Matt Garrod and Nick Ashcroft also signed on for the 2018/19 season.

Good Friday also sees the annual Brendan Hanavan Trophy game between Preston Grasshoppers and Fylde at Lightfoot Green (2pm).

This will be the fifth game in this series of charitable contests in the honour of Fylde’s much loved winger who died in September 2013.

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Hoppers won the first game in 2014, the second at the Woodlands was a draw, the last two by Fylde.

The selections for this game are likely to follow the recent pattern of a mix of players from across these clubs senior teams, young players and experienced ones.