Last updated at 16:47, Tuesday, 15 January 2013

HALF-BACK Liam Campbell should be fit to feature for Barrow Raiders this weekend after picking up a leg injury on Sunday.

DEAD LEG: Liam Campbell picked up a knock against BARLA on Sunday

Campbell left Craven Park on crutches after the 22-20 victory over the BARLA Great Britain amateurs, having played the second half wearing heavy strapping.

It followed a collision in the first half which forced him to leave the field, but coach Darren Holt reported the knock was just a dead leg and not as serious as it might have appeared.

“Liam just has a dead leg. It’s nothing too serious,” he said.

“I know when you get a dead leg sometimes, it feels like the end of the world, but that’s all it was, a dead leg.”

Campbell himself said the knock was still painful as he left the ground, but was hopeful it would quickly clear up.

During the match, he had been paired with new signing Sean Casey in the half-backs for the first time.

Campbell and the Ireland international are seen as a potential starting partnership when the Championship season starts next month, with Holt happy with what he saw from his fresh recruit at times against BARLA.

“It might be an exciting combination, but not on a day like Sunday, with the weather as it was,” he said.

“I saw a lot of good flashes from Sean and I thought his long kicking game was very, very good. He turned them round and on a day like that, it was very, very difficult.

“If you talk about improvements from the previous week, I thought our long kicking game and our kick-chase game was very good and we forced a lot of mistakes, but the short kick game when we get to the end of our sets, was not asking enough questions.

“But that’s what these games are for and I know we have got players who have it in their locker to do it. It’s just having that composure to bring it out at the right time. There is stuff to work on.”

While Campbell’s injury is not serious, Barrow are still waiting for Ruairi McGoff (knee), Jamie Butler (wrist) and Nathan Mossop (knee) to overcome problems which date to the start of pre-season.

Prop Andrew Dawson is also recovering from a knee wound picked up against Keighley Cougars in the first friendly of the year, which required stitches.

First published at 16:44, Tuesday, 15 January 2013
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk