Deakin: We were up against it from the off

STEVE Deakin stood up for his tired side after the Barrow defeat, pointing to the injuries which laid waste to the pre-match game plan.

Stand-off Neil Roden was forced from the field in the opening minutes with a back problem and captain Rob Roberts was also led out of the action in the first half after suffering a blow to the head.

Though the game was in the balance up until the point where Liam Harrison claimed Barrow’s second try early in the second half, from then on in an increasingly weary Roughyeds outift — already shorn of influential pair Paul O’Connor and Said Tamghart from the start due to injury — struggled to stem the home side’s tide.

“I feel a bit disappointed for the players as the final scoreline in no way reflects their efforts,” said Deakin.

“We came here up against it with only two recognised props. Then within the first five minutes we lost Neil Roden and after that we lost Two Bobs and all of a sudden, everything we wanted to do goes out of the window.

“At half-time, even though it was 10-6 and we had effectively lost two players, there was still a chance. We were as good as they were and they never really looked like breaking us. We got punished for some unforced errors.

“We then started the second half in really good shape, controlled the football and put a kick in to the left corner and from being in a position where we should have got a back-to-back set, they got out and went the entire length to score.

“The game literally flipped.

“When you are beaten, bruised and busted — and by that stage some people had played nearly 50 minutes, which is what they would normally play in a full game — it massively deflates you.

“After that we just didn’t spend enough time in the top third and always seemed to start our sets close to our line. We made a few unforced errors again in the second half, with some poor decisions like trying to catch the ball from a drop-goal attempt.

“The bottom line is, the pressure killed us.”

In addition to Roden and Roberts, Chris Baines (ankle) and Tommy Goulden (knee) both suffered problems and Deakin now has the task of lifting his squad ahead of another vital fixture at home to Doncaster on Thursday night.

“We played our part in a good, physical game,” Deakin added. “They just looked a little bit fresher than we did and that was perhaps the difference.

“But that is league football. We have to put it to bed and hopefully get some learns out of it and get back on the horse for Thursday. We can’t dwell on it.”