PANTHERS FIRED-UP FOR BATLEY’S VISIT
Halifax Panthers will be welcoming a “club legend” back to The Shay on Sunday when Batley Bulldogs visit for the round three Championship clash (kick off 3pm).
Former Fax captain Brandon Moore signed for the Bulldogs after the end of last season after making 188 appearances in eight years for the club.
He also scored the Panthers’ only try in their memorable 1895 Cup final triumph over his current side.
And Fax head coach Liam Finn believes he will receive a good reception. He said: “Brandon is a club legend for what he did at this club.
"He wanted to move on and challenge himself and have a freshen up in his career and in his life which we wish him well in.
"We want to make sure he comes out on the wrong end of the result at the weekend but he’s more than welcome at this club whenever he wants.”
Moore and his Bulldogs teammates will undoubtedly be fired up for the contest having lost their opening two league games of the season, including Good Friday’s defeat at rivals Dewsbury Rams.
But Fax will also be looking to bounce back after their own loss at Odsal over the Easter period.
Finn said: “They are a good team and they have been a good team for a number of years. It is always going to be a tough test and a battle, but hopefully it will be entertaining for the fans.
“We expect nothing different this week. We expect them to be well up for it and we know that they have got some really good players that we need to be able to manage but, at the same time, we know we have as well. It makes for an interesting game.
“But we just need to concentrate on ourselves and improve and get better in the areas we have identified. We need to turn up with the right attitude and fix up in the areas we need to fix up on and be confident in our own ability.”
He added: “We battled away resiliently in the second half off our own try line but anything that could go against us did go against us (against Bradford Bulls). I was happy with the commitment and never-say-die attitude to keep us in the mix and still within touching distance going into the last ten minutes.
“But we didn’t get the opportunities to push it that bit further and we came out on the wrong end of it.”