Kingstone Press League 1 Preview:: Barrow Raiders v London Skolars
Barrow Raiders lost 30-20 at Swinton Lions last week but coach Paul Crarey felt it was a game they should have won.
“I think we gave it away,” he said. “We were in total control with 14 minutes to go, then Peter Lupton was sinbinned. A lot of unforced errors then cost us the game. Tommy Gallagher crashed over for two close range tries when we were down to 12 men, so that was it.
“We’ve got to pick ourselves up this week against London, who had a good win last week. It’s tough with the distance they have to travel, so we’re hoping to catch them cold.
“We started well at Swinton and finished poorly. What we’re looking for is consistency and an 80-minute performance. We’ve got to be focused when London come because we need to win these sort of games to stay in touch with the top teams.
“It was tough when we played them down there for 60 minutes before the deadlock was broken, so we’re expecting a tough game. They are a team that fight, so we’ve got to be on the ball.”
Wing Cameron Pitman is struggling with a groin injury and centre Andy Litherland is likely to be out with a head injury, however second row Adam Nicholson should be back while stand-off Bradley Marwood and wing Kyle Dolan are both available.
London Skolars got back to winning ways with a victory over local rivals Hemel Stags last week.
Coach Jermaine Coleman said: “I was pleased with the result. There were elements of our performance that were really good. Ultimately, there are still flaws within our game and our systems that cost us in other games but didn’t at the weekend.
“It’s a long trip up to Barrow this weekend but it’s an opportunity for people to spend a bit of time together. It’s probably not the nicest way to do it but it is what it is and we all know what we’re buying into when we start.
“It’s something we’re looking forward to and for us as a group of people at the moment it’s all about being consistent. We need to take Sunday’s performance into this week and see where that gets us.”