Clark steps in for Barrow

Jamie Rooney, Ned Catic, Zeb Luisi and Anthony Blackwood are all expected to return for Barrow Raiders.

But hopes are fading that Michael Knowles, Chris Young and Gary Broadbent will be fit to play.

Dave Clark, Raiders’ former coach who has agreed to steer the club on match-days only until the end of the season, said: “The boys are very enthusiastic about this game.

“They had a three-games-in-seven-days spell recently that took it out of them physically, but there are some bodies coming back and the squad is really focussing on what they want to achieve.

“They’re trying to get the very best out of the situation they find themselves in.”

Clark added: “I don’t know much about Widnes this year, but I’m sure they will have prepared well for this time of the season and they’ve got lots of good quality players within their squad.”

Widnes Vikings will be without Gareth Haggerty, while dual-registered Ben Davies is ineligible after failing to make 15 Widnes appearances during the course of the season.

Departing quartet Mark Smith, Lee Doran, Matt Strong and Scott Yates will be looking to finish on a high.

Defeat on Sunday would bring to an end their Vikings careers, but they are determined to go out with a bang.

Smith said: “I’ll be professional about it and continue to do my best for the club until the end of the season – the same as I have for the previous six years.”