Covid restrictions make pre-season tough for Featherstone Rovers

Featherstone coach James Webster. Picture by Simon Hulme.

Rovers are preparing for the new campaign, after last month’s two-week shutdown, but not allowed to train indoors, other than on weights and only able to work in small groups, with no contact.

The draw for the first and second rounds of the Betfred Challenge Cup will be made tomorrow and Rovers will kick off their campaign with a tie in that competition on the weekend of March 20-21, more than a year after their previous game. The second round will be staged the following week and the Betfred Championship is due to kick off on Easter weekend, April 2-4.

“We are in training and we are going okay, but we’ve not done any contact yet,” Webster confirmed.

“We are in small groups and just starting to ramp it up a bit, but it is really tough for a part-time team, to go through all the groups and get everything covered.”

Webster is back at Rovers full-time after a spell last year as assistant to Leeds Rhinos coach Richard Agar.

“Last year at Leeds it took ages to get things done, but you had time,” he recalled.

“We start at 6pm, then you have to have time for testing and then working in small groups, it does really stretch the time to be able to get through all the work.

“It is difficult, but last year I learned a lot from it and you have just got to deal with what you can deal with.”

Other clubs are in a similar situation and Webster added: “We aren’t going to be prepared [for the first game] like we normally are and you always feel like you want to change things, because this is not what normally happens.

“But we’ve just got to get on with it and spend less time worrying about it and more on what we can control.”

Webster confirmed Rovers players are being tested three times each week for coronavirus.

There have been two positive cases, both contracted away from the club.

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