Featherstone Rovers fully prepared for trip to crisis club Widnes Vikings

Rovers are set to visit Widnes Vikings in the Betfred Championship (3pm).

Widnes’ game at Sheffield Eagles last week was called off after the club went into administration and tomorrow’s match was in doubt until a takeover was completed on Thursday night.

“We know Widnes are going through a bit at the moment, but we’ve just been trying to prepare our boys,” said Rovers coach Ryan Carr.

“It’s hard for everyone, but we’ve been trying to keep the boys’ focus on the game. That’s all we could do. We had to prepare as if we were playing, because we couldn’t not.

“It hasn’t been a bad thing for us because it’s another week together in training. We didn’t have much of a pre-season together so more time training is good and we are just trying to build and get better as a team.”

Of Widnes’ crisis, Carr admitted: “It’s a terrible situation.”

He said: “I spoke to their coach in the week and you can’t imagine what they are going through unless you’ve been through it.

“I feel for them and their families, looking after their welfare is the most important thing.

“I hope it gets sorted so the players, their families and the staff can get some clarity.”

Rovers have won both their home games this season, but have yet to taste victory on the road.

They hammered Halifax 46-16 six days ago and Carr enthused: “They played really well, I was happy for the boys. They put a good performance together and it was a complete performance for the 80 minutes.

“In previous weeks we’ve lost or won because of little moments and they handled the moments better.”

Leeds Rhinos full-back Ashton Golding has been named in Rovers’ initial squad on dual-registration along with clubmates Harry Newman and Luke Briscoe.

James Harrison has recovered from a pre-season injury and could make his debut.