Having fallen foul of Oldham's ground fiasco on the opening weekend, the Lions of Swinton finally got their show on the road last weekend. Unfortunately for them they came face to face with a Hull KR side that seems to have hit the ground running this term and turned up on the wrong end of a 28-6 scoreline.

Swinton coach - and follicly challenged ex-Hornets forward - Tony Humphries still found some positives in the defeat. "A lot of my side have not played together yet and, once they get it together, I think we'll be a force to be reckoned with this season. The lads kept their fighting spirit and we should be ready for Rochdale next week."

Talking of fighting spirit, Swinton's ranks still include the testicle squeezing Chris Newall, who will be breathing slightly easier knowing that he won't have to renew aquaintances with Danny Sculthorpe, who re-arranged his features ever so slightly last season after Newall tickled his fancies.

Up front, Andy leatham and Lee Hansen give the Lions presence, whilst the resurrected Craig Dean gives his career one last shot at scrum half. In the second row, Grand Final winning Steve Gee gives Swinton a much needed combination of craft and graft.

With 15 new signings in the squad, Tony Humphries will be hoping that his charges gel sooner rather than later and both he and Hally will no doubt have taken note of Swinton's second half lapse last week where thay turned a six point deficit into a 16 point one within 8 minutes of the re-start. And despite Hull KR being down to 11 men, they still failed to conjure up a score.

But what the long-suffering Swinton faithful will really want from this season is consolidation and a visible improvement in on-field fortunes. Tony Humphries is enthusiastic and optimistic - and with Martin Hall as his template, he knows that anything is possible.

As for Hally, he'll be less than pleased with last week's performance against Hunslet. A side that, on paper, was head and shoulders above the Hawks, failed spectacularly to transfer its potential into action. Only some very severe remedial action at half time spared the blushes and he'll be looking for major improvement this week.

I spoke to Marlon Billy at the 'A' team game and he reckons he'll be fit for Sunday, which should shore up the wing. One or two other players could also be in contention, but expect it much as we were at South Leeds - but with significantly more effort.