Batley Bulldogs aim for return to winning ways against Dewsbury Rams

Craig Lingard’s side have lost their last three Championship outings after winning seven of their first nine fixtures.

Their most recent defeat came against Toulouse but head coach Lingard was pleased by the performance from his side and feels that will stand them in good stead as they make the short trip to the Tetley’s Stadium this evening.

“They were three different kind of defeats,” he said of the recent losses.

“We had a good game against Halifax but didn’t manage the game well in the second half.

“Against Bradford, we didn’t play well in the first half but showed some fight in the second half but against Toulouse, we had a real good dig against them. If we played that way in the other two games, we might have had a couple more victories.”

Lingard has coached Batley in two friendly meetings with Dewsbury but tonight’s fixture will be the first time he takes charge of a competitive derby clash.

“It might be a little different with the restricted attendance,” said the former Bulldogs player.

“They were always games I loved playing in. It will be my first experience of it as a head coach in a competitive game and I am looking forward to it.”