Preview: Workington v Hunslet

Jack Pedley and Lee Dutton return for Workington, who will also include new signing Ryan MacDonald. Stewart Rhodes remains another week away from a return to action.

Town coach Gary Charlton said: “Ryan’s a tough, no-nonsense forward, and that’s exactly what we’ve needed. He’ll certainly be in contention for Monday.”

He added: “Hunslet have played some good rugby. They do their jobs well and they’ve got some good players mixed in with some leaders.

“They do the basics right and they’ve been getting results. It’s up to us to put something in place to combat that.”

Wayne McHugh is definitely ruled out for Hunslet after suffering an ankle injury, while coach Paul March rates Stuart Kain’s chances as only 50/50 due to a knee problem.

March said: “Workington away is a tough fixture, but we’re making sure that we’ll have the best possible preparation for it. We’re going up early to prepare for the game, so we’ll have no excuses.

“We’ve then got Barrow away, which is another one we’re looking forward to, and then it’s capped off with York away. We’ve got to win these games if we want to put ourselves in the race for automatic promotion.

“The tough period starts now and our focus is all about these next two league games and the Cup game at Barrow.”