Whitehaven face another week of checking the progress of injured players as the clock ticks down to the Super Eights which will decide their Championship fate.

Batley visit the Recreation Ground on Saturday night (6.30pm) for Whitehaven’s penultimate home game in the regulation season with the Cumbrians delicately placed in the table.

Chairman Tommy Todd said: “It was a big disappointment to lose at Oldham on Sunday, especially after the start we made. A win would have put some daylight between ourselves and the Roughyeds, but it’s just a point now.

“I think it is all going to depend on how we all fare in the last seven games when we play each other. That’s going to decide who occupies the final two relegation positions.”

Todd has already gone on record as saying he does not want Workington to go down either, as with the two neighbours in Championship One it would be a devastating blow to rugby league in the county – especially if Barrow are still down there.

“Injuries haven’t helped us and we had another case on Sunday with Thomas Coyle having to cry off late.

“I think we missed the Gallic flair of Louis Jouffret and Ugo Perez while Jordan Burns and Chris Taylor are still missing. We will be looking throughout the week at how they are all progressing and hope that they will be in contention against Batley.

“Sam Brooks hasn’t played much at all and he was hardly on at Oldham before he had to go off and I understand he now has his foot in plaster,” said the chairman.

Six of the bottom eight teams who will contest the Shield section of the Super Eights are virtually known now – Swinton, Dewsbury, Sheffield, Whitehaven, Oldham and Workington. They will be matched with two from four – Halifax, Batley, Bradford and Featherstone.