TOULOUSE Olympique’s stunning win over Championship big guns Leigh has reinforced two things for York City Knights boss James Ford – that they are huge favourites for the League One crown and that the Knights were handed an unfair fixture list.

York return to league action on Sunday at home to regular whipping boys South Wales Scorpions – a side thrashed 64-0 by Toulouse a fortnight ago.

A comfortable victory is odds on, but the enormity of the long-term task of winning promotion that faces Ford's men this year has been put into perspective by the French team's Challenge Cup success against the Centurions last week.

Head coach Ford also reckons the fact his team do not play Toulouse at Bootham Crescent in the regular season – the one fixture between the sides is over the Channel in early July – is a disadvantage they face in the race to get a good position in the Super 8s.

“As far as I’m aware, Toulouse are a full-time team and they will take some dealing with this year in League One," said Ford.

"But we’re excited by that prospect. I've seen Leigh and Toulouse on a couple of occasions (this season) and I thought their game would be close.

“It’s a good advert for League One isn't it – not only beating a Championship team but arguably the best Championship team.

“I think that makes them favourites (for League One).

“Also, we don’t get to play them at home in the regular season, and that contributes to it."

Of the other eight likely challengers for the Super 8s and play-offs, York were given home advantage against North Wales, Rochdale and Hunslet in the regular season, but away tests at Doncaster, Barrow, Newcastle, Toulouse and Keighley.

“We’ve got both Keighley and Toulouse away from home at the end (of the regular season) – arguably two of the favourites to finish top. It certainly raised eyebrows when the fixture list came out.

“I spoke to the RFL about it but it seems there was nothing they could do and we just need to deal with it.

“It’s a challenging one, certainly. My initial feeling was we had been a little bit hard done by, having to play five established teams away and only three at home.

“That does not make sense to me. It would have been more logical to play four of them at home and four away, but you don’t always get logic in rugby league.”

As for this weekend's game against the Scorpions, who also shipped 60 points against Keighley last month, Ford was not calling it a home banker.

“We will set some goals and some standards and do our utmost to hit them," said the head coach, whose team's seven-match winning start to the season ended in a cracking cup clash at Championship side Dewsbury last week.

Asked if those goals included a points tally against the perennial strugglers, Ford said not.

“They generally focus on the processes and the things that lead to the outcome, rather than the outcome itself," he explained.

“As a club we’re not thinking, ‘it’s only South Wales’. We’re preparing for a different type of challenge to the Dewsbury game. It’s the first time we’ve been at home in about a month and we’re looking forward to it.

“We want to make sure we perform to a good standard to keep our progress going on the pitch.”