LATICS’ final workout of pre-season ended in a 5-1 defeat at Rochdale.

The behind-closed-doors game at Spotland was rearranged after Oldham saw their trip to Huddersfield scrapped as the Terriers brought forward their Carabao Cup first round tie at Sheffield Wednesday to Sunday.

Keith Curle fielded a mixed side against Latics’ League Two neighbours, focusing on players who were in more need of match minutes with four trialists involved – including two goalkeepers and the afternoon’s goalscorer.

Harrison McGahey, Callum Whelan, Dylan Bahamboula and Hallam Hope were among the players to sit out the game eight days out from the season opener against Newport County at Boundary Park.

First-year pros Harry Vaughan, Junior Luamba, Vani Da Silva and Will Sutton were all in action with Carl Piergianni, Jordan Clarke, Dylan Fage, Kyle Jameson, Andrea Badan and Davis Keillor-Dunn the senior names to get a runout.

Nicky Adams, Sam Hart and Zak Dearnley supplemented that by playing the final half an hour off the bench.

The Dale side was also experimental, with boss Robbie Stockdale looking at four trialists.

The home side set the tone for the afternoon by making a strong start.

Conor Grant’s driving run and pass set up Abraham Odoh whose effort was routine for the first Latics keeper of the afternoon out to impress.

Oldham were then nearly the architects of their own downfall with Piergianni robbed and Grant again in the thick of things, feeding Jake Beesley who saw his effort saved.

Latics’ first opening saw Badan send an effort wide from a Keillor-Dunn centre before the Italian lined up a second shot after a good run into the box but it was off target.

Curle’s first trialist keeper certainly made his mark as the first period ended goalless.

First he denied Odoh after Stephen Dooley had skipped past Kyle Jameson to cross and then the keeper kept out a goal-bound effort from Grant. A meeting of trialists resulted in a third stop, the Latics shot-stopper this time keeping out a header.

The opening goal came early in the second period when Aaron Morley’s shot from 20 yards left Latics’ second trialist goalkeeper of the afternoon with no chance.

Morley then saw a free-kick saved but Dale didn’t have to wait long for a second with Jim McNulty heading home the resulting corner.

It was three when Alex Newby’s cross was diverted into his own goal by Hart, fresh from two goals against Crewe, shortly after he came onto the field.

Beesley made it four when he found room in the box to fire into the top corner.

Keillor-Dunn tried to stem the tide when his run and pass freed Da Silva in on goal but the youngster saw his effort saved.

It was soon 5-0 with Matty Done on target 15 minutes from time after a move down the left proved too much for Latics.

The consolation goal for the visitors came on 79 minutes, one of the trialists, a wing-back, cut inside before sending in a shot that proved too much for the Dale keeper.

Latics: Trialist A (Trialist C 46), Fage, Clarke (Hart 62), Piergianni (Sutton 72), Jameson, Badan (Adams 62), Trialist B, Diarra (Trialist D 44), Vaughan (Da Silva 52), Luamba (Dearnley 62), Keillor-Dunn.