Furness are not immune to the now all-too-familiar declarations of unavailability and last-minute drop-outs affecting all sports, which left the Blues down to the bare 15.
Exasperation at the predicament they faced seemed to inspire Corne Els’ men who put in a magnificent 80 minutes to a man, and selection is made simple, as all those who travelled are first on the sheet.
A more familiar front row of Paul Dean, Leon Sweet and Cameron McClure starts, with the versatile Els moving to second row.
The Mallinson brothers, Will and Joe, were outstanding last week and will be joined by the returning Rhys Studt in the back row.
Sam Dutton claims the number nine shirt following some hard and regular training. Mike Backhouse had a tremendous 70 minutes last week taking into account his 10 in the sin-bin, and he partners Tez Nueto in the centres.
Lee Starkey and Ryan Cunningham are proving an effective attacking pairing from the back and always prove a threat with ball in hand. Returning players are pushing for a place in the squad leaving the selectors at the Strawberry Grounds with a potentially healthy bench.
Defeat away at Workington last week was a bitter pill to swallow so no doubt captain Jamie Hardman will be looking for more from his troops this time out.
Dan Harrison and Steve Dixon will no doubt join Hardman in the front three, with the engine room seeing Johnny Benson teaming up with Phil Murphy looking to push the front three on.
Scrum-half David Wiggins will look for support from back row forwards Leon Surfontain, Josh Dawson and Paul Mahler in his pursuit of good, clean ball, while the feisty threesome look to clear the ruck early.
In Bertie Hodgeson, Windermere have a real talent and with good clean ball from Wiggins he is sure to get the back line up and running.
David Oakley and Andy Duncan in the centres are more than capable of forcing opposition defences onto the back foot, especially with wing men Moses Dawson and Tom Atkinson outside them.
Kane McMahon at full-back will be looking to not only join the line, but to be the last line of defence as the Ambers go in pursuit of the points.
Hawcoat, bottom of the Cumbria/Lancashire League, are better than their placement suggests and it is hoped tomorrow will see them start to climb the table as they are back to near on full strength.
John Donnan, Adam Grainger and Andy Kent take up the mantle in the front row as Ash Mowat returns to the side to partner Callum Ramsey in the second row, giving the front five a more solid look.
Back-row selection could be interesting with Jason Priss, captain Brad Morrow, returning Mike Lightfoot and the superb Alfie White all looking for one of the three starting shirts.
It looks like Lewis Sayle may well play at scrum-half and if so he will link up with James Howden at fly-half.
George Smith’s inclusion in the squad is massive and the wide men could be interesting, with Will Coles and Rodny Odandi both declared fit, plus the inclusion of Sam Jones now the rugby league season has finished.
With Chris Burns and Matt Burrows also available, Hawcoat go strong in their pursuit of five points this week.
Thankfully, O’Brien is on the mend but will be a massive miss for the team over the next month, starting with tomorrow’s game, which sees them on the road to Leyland Warriors in a first-versus-second battle.
It is hoped last week’s try-scorers Josh Archer and Connor McDermott will be able to travel to give Hawcoat that extra attacking impetuous.
Paul Woodburn is hoping to be released by work to travel and will join Ryan Brown, Mark Hall and hopefully Mike Gibson in a strong front three, although Hall may feature in the second row.
Skipper Martin Kennedy could see Luke Shaw or Jackson Glynn alongside him in the second row, with back row forwards Josh Vial, Boneham Peacock, Matt Robson, Charlie Butterworth and Connor Vetes Young all looking to start.
The backs go strong with Adam Williamson and Scott Garnett looking for the number nine shirt and Euan James pulling the strings from fly-half.
Fingers are crossed that McDermott and Archer will be available, but joining them will be Joe Dalton, Dave Wynne, Will Howard, Ethan Vial and Col Wright in a strong squad.
And even with a few key players missing due to holidays and work commitments, they are confident of taking this one.
Callum Lamont takes up a place in the front three, joining Dean Doyle and Kieron Rogan in a strong-looking set up.
Ian Cummings and Joe Thomlinson look to support the front three from behind and are a real handful on their day. Captain Trevor Dixon takes the number eight jersey in the back row, with Peter Redhead and Matthew Jordan on the flanks looking to disrupt the opposition’s play when and where they can.
Robbie Pattinson and Joe Moyes link up in the half-backs looking to get centre duo Scott Fisher and Ryan Carter up on the attack.
The wide men of Connor Sykes and Kyle Barnes will need early ball to give them time to round the last man, with Craig Mounsey always on hand to help from full-back.
Keeping the bench warm are Sy Robinson, Joe Laydon and player-coach Adam Redhead, who will all add something to the game when they get the call to arms.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here