CAPTAIN Oliver Wilkes says Barrow Raiders will learn a lot from their encounter with promotion-destined Toulouse.

Barrow fell to a 44-16 defeat against the French big guns on Sunday, in a match where the full-time nature of the visitors and their high skill levels proved too hot to handle.

Wilkes, who scored two late tries on Sunday, fully expects Toulouse to seal top spot in League One ahead of the play-offs, with the other sides in the division playing for second.

But he feels Raiders can take a lot from their encounter with a side who have obvious Super League aspirations.

“The positive I take from it is that we never gave up,” said the 36-year-old prop. “We kept working hard for each other.

“There are lessons to be learned defensively – how we need to stay as a solid line and not be lazy on the inside; we’ve got to tie in from the opposite side of the ruck – and that’s something we need to have a massive focus on going into the next few games.

“There are the skill levels as well. But that came down from their defence, their good line speed – they were fit, in your face and they forced errors. It’s difficult to play against a side that is so aggressive in defence.”

He added: “One thing to work on for me is the number of pushes from support players. They had men either side of the ball player and I said to the guys that they don’t push because they know they are going to make a break. They make breaks because they have so many people pushing around the ball. It takes numbers off the attacker.

“I feel that if we start pushing like that – we did it at Leigh when I was there – and get over 100 pushes a game, whereas we’re about 50 or 60, then you are taking defenders off the ball carrier and it creates space. When there is a guy next to you to push it on to, you’re up the field before you know it.”

Barrow have a weekend off on Sunday before returning to action with back-to-back away games at the University of Gloucestershire All Golds and London Skolars.

They will look to take the lessons from the Toulouse loss into those matches, with Wilkes not expecting to come up against a side with such a pedigree anywhere else in the division.

“We didn’t think they were at another level after watching the videos of them,” said the former Wakefield and Harlequins Super League player. “We thought we were probably the only side in the competition who would stand a chance of beating them, because we’ve got good structures.

“But the athleticism and the speed they played with was just that one step too far for us on the day.

“As far as I can see, you write first place off. Yes, they drew with Rochdale, but Toulouse were on the back of a tough game against Leigh in the Challenge Cup the previous week, where they won, and I think they were a bit complacent. There was bad weather to even the game up as well.

“I can’t see anyone else getting anywhere near them this year.”

l James Duerden has been handed a one-match ban for a dangerous throw in the victory at South Wales Scorpions earlier this month.

Duerden entered an early guilty plea for the Grade B charge, which means he is handed the minimum punishment available.

He will miss the trip to the University of Gloucestershire All Gold on Sunday, June 5 as a result.