Duerden always learning with Barrow Raiders

The Barrow Raiders forward is constantly striving to pick up what he can from those around him, be that by learning from his more experienced team-mates or head coach Paul Crarey.

Duerden has amassed plenty of experience of his own since stepping up to the professional ranks with Workington Town in 2013 and being thrust straight into action in the intensity of the Kingstone Press Championship.

Initially signed to play in the second row, Duerden has since proven himself to be capable of slotting in at loose forward or even as a prop when required – an indication of how versatile a player Crarey believes he is.

The relationship with the Raiders' boss stretches back to the former Askam man's amateur days, while the signing of fellow back-rower and ex-Workington team-mate Jarrad Stack over the winter adds another familiar person he can pick the brains of, along with those who were already in the squad.

“Me and Paul can talk very easily about things to each other and I always want to learn more,” said Duerden. “You can never learn enough, and Paul gives me good pointers on where I maybe need to be improving my game or just altering things slightly.

“I talk to a few of the senior players as well, like Ollie Wilkes, Martin Aspinwall and Jarrad Stack – or even Nathan Mossop on what I can do better for the team as well and how we can work together from a hooker to a forward, and what we can do to benefit each other.

“What advice they give and what knowledge they have, you can't put a price on it. They've played so many games at such a high level and there's nobody better to speak to about these things.

“Paul is great, he always wants to try new things and he sees people's individual skills and strengths, and brings those into the game as well.”

Duerden believes his hard work and attitude to improving himself are paying off after appearing in seven of Barrow's 11 games so far this season, which includes starting in the wins over old side Workington and Newcastle Thunder, when Aspinwall was laid low due to illness.

He has three tries to his name as well, but he was quick to hail the impact of his team-mates for being able to achieve high performance levels and is guarding against any personal complacency after a promising start.

“I'm pretty happy with how I've been playing recently,” said Duerden. “There are always little things in my game I maybe beat myself up because I'm probably my biggest critic and I want to do better.

“Even if I've had a good game, there are still points in that game where I can probably improve, and I go away and try to improve on them over the next week.

“Other than that, I think I've come on a long way from previous years – partially that's because of the rest of the team as well. Everybody has come together and complements each other very well.

“Everybody loves to be in a winning team and playing quite regularly, and the calibre of the team we have got as well, right through the ranks, is high, so it means a lot to be playing.”

Duerden is set to at least play some part against South Wales Ironmen tonight in a match which sees Crarey switch his team around ahead of a busy period in which the Raiders will play three times in the space of eight days (6.30pm).

South Wales have yet to record a win this season, but have run several of the heartland clubs close so far. Indeed, Hunslet are the only side to run up a big score against them, with a 58-6 win last month, and Duerden knows Barrow cannot let their guard down.

“Every team is different in their own right,” said Duerden. “It doesn't matter if they're a southern team or a well-placed team, they've all got their own playing styles and every game is different.

“We've got to approach it in a different way and the biggest thing is to never be complacent, no matter where you are because it's absolutely paramount we keep focused on what we're doing and keep grinding the wins out.

“One of the best things is, even if we do get disjointed in a game or are shocked by some of the thing they do, we do really well to regather and take control of the game again and go forwards.”

After tonight, it is a quick turnaround for Barrow, with a trip to fellow promotion hopefuls Keighley Cougars on Wednesday evening and the Challenge Cup sixth-round tie away to Super League side Leeds Rhinos a week tomorrow.

It presents a mental, as well as physical, test for the team, but Duerden believes the pre-season fitness regime of conditioner Paul Taylor has stood the squad in good stead for such occurrences and is confident they will be able to come through it.

“It's not exactly ideal, but this will show if you are a good team or a great team,” said Duerden. “It's a bit of adversity, but the biggest thing is keeping our recovery up and looking after ourselves after a game.

“Our physio staff are doing the best they can and giving us as much attention as possible, and so are the coaching staff. There will be different training programmes in place to keep us sharp and focussed on what we need to do.”