DIRECTOR of Rugby for Barrow Raiders Andy Gaffney has spoken on how hard the backroom staff have been working to pull off some key signings ahead of the Championship season.

He believes the squad he and the team have built are more than capable of competing this year and is ready to take action if any injuries or Covid cases hit.

The issue of Covid and injuries plagued the back end of their last campaign even though they managed to win the league, so Gaffney is hoping to avoid that situation this year.

"We are always looking to strengthen the team wherever we get the chance - but we are happy with our squad as it is at the moment," he said.

"In the situation where we have dropouts due to Covid or injury, we have some good academy players ready to step up or two dual registered players who can come in.

"The squad as a whole has a great atmosphere, and the Championship is a really good standard this year, so we need to be on our game.

"We had a good pre-season which went really well for us in terms of results, but we need to perform throughout the season now."

Gaffney explained that they want to be competing in every match and to keep fighting throughout as he is aware of the dangers posed by other sides - and any slip ups can be costly when up against such high-quality opposition.

"It is going to be hard, but as long as we are competitive, I think we stand a chance in every game to get a win.

"I feel we are much stronger than we were when we were last in the Championship," Gaffney continued.

"I feel it will be a good year for us if we get off to a good start.

"It is also nice to get a home game to open the season as it has been a while since we last got that.

"Like I said though, we had a good pre-season and I hope we can keep it going in the first game."

He went on to explain that off the field the club has been brilliant - but on the field they have "a good group of lads" who are backed by fantastic support staff which flows through from head coach Paul Crarey to the backroom staff.

Gaffney concluded by stating he has "no doubts" his squad can compete and achieve their ambitious goal for this Championship season.