Head coach Paul Crarey was able to rest some of his players during Barrow Raiders’ 50-6 thrashing of Bradford Bulls in the 1895 Cup on Wednesday, but the night still came at a cost.

The Raiders had the second-round tie at Craven Park won with something to spare, as three quick tries in the early stages of the second half turned around a 6-4 half-time deficit against a much-changed Bulls side.

It was also a night where they were able to welcome back Danny Morrow and Brett Carter from injury, but just when they were thinking the crisis had passed, Barrow ended the night with a few more bumps and bruises.

With such a short turnaround before Sunday’s Betfred Championship fixture against Widnes Vikings, there is very little time for those affected to recover for what is a crucial game.

Crarey said: “We left Josh Johnson on the bench for a long period – I think we only put him back with 13 minutes to go – and Martin Aspinwall was the same.

“We’ve only got a skinny squad and it’s probably got a little bit skinnier now because Nathan Mossop has jarred his AC – the physio is telling me that could be a couple of weeks for him.

“We’ve got Jake Carter coming back from Whitehaven for Widnes and he can do a good job for us, Jake, because he can kick us around. We’ll need that at Widnes because on that all-weather track it can be fast and furious, so we’ll need to take the sting out of the game.

“It’s about us now pulling together again with a few injuries; Stargroth Amean has got a [hamstring] pull, so we pulled him out as well and we’re probably going with small numbers.”

Barrow were pushed back into the relegation zone last week, as Widnes made the most of their game in hand by dispatching Sheffield Eagles 36-6 at the Halton Stadium.

However, the Vikings themselves are coming off a quick turnaround, as they were also in action in the 1895 Cup on Wednesday, as they defeated Featherstone Rovers 22-16.

With two good wins under their belt, Crarey believes Raiders will be travelling to Cheshire in good heart, saying: “It’s very hard to work in a pressure environment, so I’ve taken the pressure off them.

“We knew how hard the Championship was going to be, especially with all the injuries that we’ve had, and it’s been a very difficult place, but we’ve got a good group of players and they’ve shown they can play.

“In some of the games, we haven’t been far away – we just haven’t had the quality or consistency in selection to trouble these big teams.”