Barrow Raiders chairman Steve Neale writes a weekly column for The Mail:

We got back on the horse at the weekend with victory over a very dogged Coventry team.

The match reminded me of the reverse encounter in that we got early points on the board, they had a strong middle section, before we managed to pull away again. We hung in there during that middle section and sometimes you have to be patient and ride the storm and I felt we did that well. What was pleasing was the number of local players in the squad, with none of them looking out of place.

Obviously, the big fixture on the horizon is the trip to Workington and this could go a long way to decide the destination of the title. Workington have lost a couple of fixtures to Covid and I’m not sure that is a good or bad thing. They have slipped slightly behind us in terms of percentage points per game, but have they avoided a potential banana skin at Rochdale. They could be fresher, but then again, they could be rusty. Either way, I expect a fantastic Cumbrian derby with a healthy crowd bolstered by a strong travelling contingent. That vocal support could well be what tips the balance.

I don’t think victory for either side guarantees the title as we both have at least a couple of tricky away trips. League 1 is turning out to be a league full of drama and a lot more competitive than envisaged with plenty of unpredictable results. Our selection should improve slightly for the fixture. We will have Dan Toal available following his long ban, Charlie Emslie will be free from the pingdemic while Tee Ritson and Adam Walne could sneak into the line-up.

Off the field, we have been summoned to an RFL meeting on Friday. They are going to talk about 2022 funding and a possible league restructure. Whatever the outcome from that, we are building solid foundations. I just hope that the pathway to the top still remains as ultimately that is our ambition. We realise we have a lot of work to do in terms of improving the facilities and the team but hopefully our matchdays and events can continue to fuel those ambitions.

Looking ahead, we have just announced that we are to host an Octoberfest. Based on Munich, we hope to encourage the people of the area to dress up, enjoy some traditional music interspersed with local acts, and continental food and drink. Things like the Dickensian festival in Ulverston have proven popular, with many Barrovians heading east. We are hoping to reverse that trend and give Barrow something different and help boost the local economy. We are mindful of our neighbours, so we won’t be going on too late, but we do hope the rest of the town centre gets a boost. We would be happy to join forces with the council to make the event special and hopefully attract visitors from outside of the area. There is an open invitation to get in touch.