Having ended their own losing sequence, Whitehaven will look to add to a dismal run of defeats by Halifax on Bank Holiday Monday.

After 10 straight losses, Whitehaven won 28-24 at Workington on Sunday, while Halifax were slipping to their sixth defeat in a row when they lost 24-22 to Dewsbury.

Whitehaven have already gone close to beating Halifax at the Recreation Ground, finishing 12-12 when they were denied by a try and conversion 30 seconds from time.

Looking ahead to the re-match on Monday, Haven director Mark Stamper said: “I’m sure the lads in charge won’t be emphasising the poor run Halifax are on, but will be pointing out how dangerous they can be.

“There’s no doubt Halifax will be coming up to Whitehaven with a strong squad aiming to win and I am sure we will be ready for that challenge.”

Stamper had nothing but praise for how the Whitehaven players responded to the new four-man collective running the team after the sacking of coach James Coyle.

He said: “The atmosphere has been really positive and the vibes were very good in the few days leading up to the derby game at Workington.

“As a dynamic, it works really well with two lads watching and two out there on the pitch.

“People might say it could be a case of too many cooks but all four bring something different to the collective and we couldn’t have asked for a better reaction.

“I think it shows just what the players think of the club and the fans by the way they have rallied round. The response by everyone has been magnificent.

“It was disappointing from our point of view that Swinton won at Sheffield but we have to believe that we can still get out of trouble.

“There are four winnable games left.”