Featherstone Rovers boss James Ford out to defy challenges and 'ridiculous stat' to claim play-off spot

Featherstone, who lost only two games last season on their way to lifting the League Leaders' Shield, face a fight to make the top six after Sunday's 46-18 defeat at table-topping Wakefield Trinity left them on the outside looking in.

"It's really tough for Featherstone at the minute," said Ford.

"The situation the club is in has been fairly well documented and that's having a huge impact on us. We've just got to deal with it as best we can.

"We've probably taken for granted that we've been right up at the top or near the top of this league for such a long time.

"This period hurts a lot and we certainly won't be taking it for granted when we rebuild and are back up there."

Ford has handed out close to 30 debuts in 2024, with Maddox Jeffery and Samy Kibula drafted in from Wigan Warriors and Castleford Tigers respectively ahead of the short trip to Belle Vue.

The 41-year-old, who steered York Knights to the semi-finals of the Championship play-offs for the first time in the club's history in 2022, would rank a top-six finish with embattled Featherstone among his career highlights.

"It's really hard to put a team out when two or three of them have trained once," said Ford.

"We've had 29 debuts this season. That's got to be up there with the most ridiculous statistics in the game. We've been begging and borrowing blokes off teams pretty much all season.

"We've just got to pull together, get through this period and build towards the back end.

"Getting this team from this situation into the play-offs would be right up there as one of my favourite achievements.

"Some days I've just not known what to do. I've just been looking at a wall thinking: 'What do you do now?' We've been training with 12 players and there's only so long you can do six versus six.

"If and when we're in there and we get people back from injury, we'll go alright."

Former captain James Lockwood will bolster the pack for Sunday's home clash with Batley Bulldogs after returning to the club late last week.

Ford is in the dark about further reinforcements ahead of Friday's transfer deadline.

"I don't know where we are as a club in terms of continuing to try and bring people in," he said.

"It's a real challenge but nobody is going to help us get through it; we've got to fight our way through it.

"As frustrating as it is now – and it is incredibly frustrating – we've got to safeguard the long-term future of the club and start addressing some of the things we may have done differently previously.

"We've got to manage the club through this period. It's been tough but eventually we'll come through it. I'm really confident we will."