THERE are currently ‘alarms ringing’ for York Knights opponents for Sunday Barrow Raiders after a winless start to the 2023 Betfred Championship season, according to BBC Cumbria journalist Jordan Weir.

Barrow have had a difficult start to their season after suffering defeats to Toulouse Olympique, Sheffield Eagles and Swinton Lions, with the Raiders currently sitting second from bottom.

Andrew Henderson’s York will be eager to pile on the misery on Sunday at the LNER Community Stadium (3pm), with the Knights currently in ninth position and being just two points off the play-offs.

But BBC Cumbria Sport journalist Weir believes there is reason for concern at Barrow, after picking up zero points in their opening three fixtures.

Barrow are winless so far this season, why do you think that is, and can they turn it around at York on Sunday?

Barrow have come up against some tough opponents so far with home defeats against one of the league favourites Toulouse and Sheffield.

They won’t have been too many complaints in defeats against these established Championship teams but defeat on Sunday at Swinton especially in the manner they did in the final minutes may set alarms ringing amongst some of the Barrow faithful.

I think a lot of the Championship sides were caught off guard about Barrow last season and the way they played the rugby, especially with the likes of Jarrod Sammut and Hakim Miloudi in their side and with the loss of Miloudi and Tee Ritson sees the Cumbrians in a bit of transition period.

How well have Barrow recruited during the off-season, and have they lost anybody particularly influential?

The Raiders made a number of off-season signings with the experienced former Salford and Wigan forward Greg Burke certainly showing the potential that the Raiders want to be aiming for alongside Greg Worthington who has been a mainstay across some of the Championship’s top teams across the last decade.

They will look to negate the loss of Hakim Miloudi with Worthington and also hoping the late signing of Andrew Bulman will help with their try scoring following the loss of Tee Ritson.

The Thai international has joined St Helens following a record-breaking season in 2022.

How would you describe Barrow’s style of play, and where do their strengths/weaknesses lie?

Any Paul Crarey side likes to use their forwards to march up the field before using their strike players out wide and I wouldn’t expect anything less from them again this weekend.

Their biggest strength can also be the biggest weakness. That is Jarrod Sammut. The mercurial half back has played in all three leagues throughout his decade-plus stay in the UK game.

He can turn a game on his head with his skills and creativity but sometimes can try to take it too far and win a game on his own and look for the miracle play too often.

Are there any star players that will likely cause York problems?

Despite what I said about him earlier Jarrod Sammut is the star man in the Raiders side and Andrew Henderson will no doubt focus some of his preparation on making sure the Knights close him down at every opportunity.

Josh Wood missed out last week due to injury but if available this weekend he will lead the Raiders round the field from hooker too.

What is your prediction for the match?

I predict a tight encounter on Sunday with both sides looking to kickstart their respective Championship campaign but I expect the Knights to have too much for the Raiders, especially at home. Knights by 10