A victory for the hosts could see them climb out of the relegation spots if other results go their way.

Gartland told the Rochdale Observer: “We said we didn’t want to talk about bad luck, but it’s a case of when you’re down the bounce of the ball and refereeing decisions seem to go against you.

“But we must remain positive and look at winning the games against Sheffield and Batley. It’s imperative we get off to a good start against Sheffield.”

Eagles’ boss Mark Aston reckons his side could be ready to soar – if they can cut out the penalties.

Sheffield conceded 13 penalties against Castleford last week but Aston was pleased with other aspects of the performance.

He said: “We ran out of steam at the end of the day but we had a big penalty count against (us) – again.

“But there are lots of positives and we’ve come on a massive amount in the last month or so.” Rest of the matches