Barrow Raiders head coach Paul Crarey admits his squad have nothing to lose as they prepare to visit league leaders Featherstone Rovers in the Betfred Championship this weekend.
The Raiders’ form has picked up over recent weeks, with two wins from their last three matches, but their next assignment takes them to a Rovers side that have yet to taste defeat in the Championship in 2023.
Although admitting confidence will be lifted following last weekend’s 32-16 victory over Whitehaven at the Summer Bash, Crarey says there are areas of improvement for the squad if they want to stand toe-to-toe with the promotion favourites on Sunday afternoon.
“It’s a free hit for everybody that plays them,” Crarey said.
“It’s reported that they’re the biggest-spending team in the competition. I speak with Mark Campbell [Featherstone Rovers chairman] quite regularly, he’s a good friend of mine.
“He expects them to be playing in Super League next year, so we’re going to go there and have a go.
“We probably need to pick up a little more on individual errors – nine in the first half against Whitehaven. When we played them, we had good shape and created some chances, so hopefully we can do that against Featherstone.”
Ahead of the match, Crarey has also revealed thar half-back Jarrod Sammut is a doubt for Sunday’s trip to the league leaders with a torn calf.
Jarrad Stack and Ryan Shaw will also be assessed ahead of the fixture, as will a number of others players suffering from minor niggles following the Summer Bash.
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