PAUL Crarey will be expecting lots of bite from a wounded Cougars team when the sides lock horns in a match which could have a massive impact on Super 8s positions.

While Barrow Raiders were earning a comfortable 62-4 win over visiting Hemel Stags, Keighley were being put to the sword by League One leaders Toulouse in an 84-6 hammering.

Despite the crushing defeat, Raiders coach Crarey reckons Keighley will come out fighting as the season reaches a crucial stage before the split and subsequent play-offs.

Barrow should overcome Oxford in their final game of the regular season to secure a play-off position. But victory in Yorkshire could go a long way to cementing a place in the top-four and a chance of more home games in the Super 8s – especially if London Skolars do them a favour and pick up at least a point over visiting Doncaster.

Keighley’s run-in is tougher, with a trip to early pacesetters Rochdale Hornets and then a visit from York, in a league where positions are tight at the top.

“There is nothing between third place and where we are, I think there are two or three points which is absolutely nothing and Keighley have got a real hard run-in. They have got us, York and Rochdale,” said Crarey.

“If they start losing games they can finish outside the eight as daft as it may seem, so the pressure is all on them. We have got a game against Oxford at home which hopefully will get us in. But again we want to put pressure on Keighley.

“But there is no doubt they will be ready for us, so we’ve got to be ready.

“They will be wounded after going to Toulouse and getting 80-odd points put into them, but they will come out firing against us, and if they beat us, all will be forgotten.

“They need to win, they have got a real tough run-in, they need to beat us to finish above us.”

Keighley claimed a league double over the Raiders last season, but both games went to the wire with the Cougars winning 24-22 at Craven Park and 18-17 at Cougar Park.

Crarey will certainly be doing his homework before the clash and added: “We are going to have a look at what we have got and who is fit after training and have a look at some tapes of Keighley.

“We will have a look at what’s good for us, we will probably have to play a little bit wider than we did at the weekend.

“But the big thing is we have got to go knowing we are going into a bit of a war, it always is there, they are a spoiling team. We are going to go there and put our bodies on the line and focus this week solely on Keighley and putting in a performance.

“They are always very tight games so it is important to get some momentum going into the eights. We probably didn’t want the lay-off after the last game which is two weeks. We will probably have to go into a mini pre-season to keep us topped up.

“We have got points in the bag, other teams have got games in hand. We want to sit there and see what happens, but the league is so tight. Again it is about getting some momentum going into the play-offs.”

Barrow, who sit sixth in the table, have won seven and drawn one, with their last result being that crushing victory over the Stags. But as Crarey added: “For us it is about one game at a time, they’re crossed off now and we move to Keighley, who got well beat at Toulouse, but we are not reading anything into that at all.

“They will be ready for us. They will want a reaction, they are very difficult to play at home. All the the contests between the two teams have been really tight so we are expecting nothing else other than a really tough game.

“We want to put them under pressure, they are one of our main rivals, so we want to give them a hard time.”