Championship Round Seven: Squad news, TV coverage & predictions

Here is everything you need to know ahead of Championship Round Seven, including squad news, television coverage and our predictions.

The next round of Championship action gets underway on Saturday as Sheffield host second placed Toulouse at Olympic Legacy Park with a 3pm kick-off.

It’s followed by six games on the Saturday, with no televised fixture this coming Monday on Viaplay Sports.

Sheffield v Toulouse (Saturday, 3pm)

Matty-Dawson Jones (hamstring), Joel Farrell (HIA) and Blake Broadbent (rib) all miss out of Sheffield’s squad for the weekend’s opening fixture. 

Connor Bower, Bayley Lui and Quentin Laulu-Togaga’e  all return. 

Harvie Hill has been named for his Toulouse debut after joining the club on loan from Wigan. The club have also confirmed that full-back Olly Ashall-Bott has suffered a season-ending ACL injury. He recently took to social media following the devastating blow.

Sheffield: Guzdek, Jones-Bishop, Welham Oakes, Bass, Thackeray, Douglas, Halafihi, Dickinson, Bower, Hodgson, Gwaze, Wood, Kirk, Murphy, Chrimes, Liu, Roberts, Sene-Lefao, Laulu-Togaga’e, Aston.

Toulouse: Rennie, Jussaume, Marcon, Ralph, Shorrocks, Belmas, Hansen, Stefani, Marion, Pelissier, Akauola, Bretherton, Pezet, Armitage, Richards, Baldy, Brochon, Guidez, Hill, Lima.

Prediction: It’s a split office on this one – predictions saying either side by eight. I’ll go with the visitors by 10.

Barrow v Halifax (Sunday, 3pm)

Wigan centre Iain Thornley is in line to make his debut for Barrow after joining the club on a one-month loan deal earlier this week. 

Scotland international Lachlan Walmsley drops out of Halifax’s squad due to a finger injury. After making the move last week from Featherstone, full-back Brandon Pickersgill has been named for the first time.

Barrow: Broadbent, Brooks, Bulman, Burke, Carter, Cresswell, Dawson, Emslie, Evans, Gillam, Iaria, Johnston, Langtree, Sammut, Shaw, Stack, Thornley, Toal, Wells, Wood, Worthington.

Halifax: Calcott, Doro, Fairbank, Gannon, Gee, Inman, Jouffret, Kavanagh, Keyes, Maher, Maizen, McComb, Moore, Murray, Pickersgill, Rawsthorne, Saltonstall, Tangata, Tibbs, Wood, Woodburn-Hall.

Prediction: Barrow need to pick up their first win of the season sooner rather than later. We’ll go with the Raiders by 4.

Featherstone v York (Sunday, 3pm)

Featherstone have won their last eight home meetings with York.

The Knights’ last away victory against Rovers was a 22-16 Northern Rail Cup win on 26 February, 2006.

Head coach Andrew Henderson has named an unchanged 21-man York squad for the trip to Championship leaders Featherstone.

Featherstone: Briscoe, Hall, Gale, Dean, Kopczak, Jones, Lockwood, Day, Taylor, Bussey, Wildie, Davies, Moors, Cooper, Leilua, Fleming, Aekins, Cozza, Lacans, Yei, Evans.

York: Antrobus, Barley, Brown, Clarkson, Daley, Dee, Fitzsimmons, Glover, Harris, Harrison, Hingano, Jubb, Kirmond, Marsh, Michael, Price, Ta’ai, Teanby, Thompson, Towse, Ward.

Prediction: Featherstone are flying, so we can only see one winner in this one. Rovers by 16.

Keighley v Bradford (Sunday, 3pm)

Germany international Jimmy Keinhorst will play for Keighley in the Championship this weekend on dual-registration from Hull KR.

Mo Agoro drops out, replaced by Kyle Kesik. 

Bradford will have three Leeds players at their disposal for their Championship derby with Keighley on Sunday afternoon. Trio Luis Roberts, Liam Tindall and Leon Ruan have all been named. George Roby returns following suspension

Keighley: Young, Stephenson, Graham, Parker, Gaylor, Everett, Levy, Kesik, Spence, Santa, Walker, Chisholm, Storey, Ioane, Doyle, Adebiyi, Tomlinson, Gibbons, Gale, Webster, Keinhorst.

Bradford: Appo, Arundel, Baldwinson, Blackmore, Butler, Flanagan Snr, Foggin-Johnston, Foster, Gill, Holmes, Johnson, Lawford, Lilley, Patton, Roberts, Roby, Rogers, Ruan, Scurr, Tindall, Wallace.

Prediction: Keighley have already announced ticket sales of more than 3,000, but we think it’s going to be a home defeat. Bradford by 12.

London v Swinton (Sunday, 3pm)

Lewis Bienek drops out of London’s squad, with Wigan’s Ramon Silva named on loan. Academy graduate Jensen Monk is named, with Dan Hoyes missing out.

Swinton have confirmed the loan signing of forward Ben Forster on a short-term loan deal from Halifax. Salford pair James Greenwood and Ryan Lannon have also been named alongside St Helens’ Wesley Bruines. 

London: Albert, Allen, Basset, Davis, Grant, Horsman, Jones, B.Leyland. O.Leyland, Lovell, Macani, Monk, Natoli, Parata, Raiwalui, Silva, Stock, Ulberg, Waine, Walker, Williams.

Swinton: Abram, Badrock, Baker, Brogan, Bruines, Butt, Greenwood, Gregson, Hall, Lannon, Lowe, Parnaby, Case, Cooper, Cox, Eaves, Forster, Gibson, Rodden, Spedding, Waterworth.

Prediction: This will be a close one, but we’ll go with the hosts by 6.

Whitehaven v Batley (Sunday, 3pm)

Italy international Ryan King is in contention to make his second debut for Whitehaven after re-joining the Cumbrian club earlier this week.

Connor Holliday needs one appearance to reach 150 for Whitehaven.

Aidan McGowan, on loan at Batley from Huddersfield, has been named in Craig Lingard’s squad.

Whitehaven: Freeman, Taylor, Teare, Dixon, Bishop, McAvoy, Walker, Holliday, Lanskey, Aiye, Doran, Newton, Tabu, Singleton, Bradley, O’Brien, Castle, Rourke, Spencer-Tonks, Ainley, King.

Batley: Buchanan, Hodson, Campbell, White, Woods, Leak, Manning, Walshaw, Brown, Meadows, Kear, Ward, Lillycrop, Kibula, McGowan, Morton, Kaye, Richardson, Flynn, Burton, Reilly.

Prediction: Tough one to call this. Batley looked good against Barrow on Monday, so we’ll back the Bulldogs by 8.

Widnes v Newcastle (Sunday, 3pm)

The Vikings could welcome back key forward Owen Farnworth for Sunday’s game against Thunder.

Chris Thorman has made one change to his Newcastle squad with Alex Donaghy included in replacement of Evan Lawther, who drops out through injury. 

Widnes: Owens, Ince, Fleming, Dixon, Craven, Farnworth, Fozard, Amor, Wilde, Lawton, Bent, Field, Grady, Lyons, Davies, Edge, Brown, Tilleke, Brookes, Holroyd, Walker.

Newcastle: Johnson, Young, Walker, Wynne, Clegg, Donaghy, Williams, J.Chapelhow, Davies, Clark, Foster, Gallagher, Bailey, Balmforth, T.Chapelhow, Clarke, Tuliatu, Moore, Miller, Laidlaw, Staveley.

Prediction: We think Widnes will be too strong for Newcastle. Vikings by 18.

READ NEXT: Drive, determination and resilience: Jansin Turgut discusses remarkable return to professional game