Town boss Leon Pryce admitted this weekend’s Ike Southward Memorial Trophy derby with Whitehaven is a game that "nobody wants to lose".

The Workington coach says his side always want to win and he is well aware of how important the game is to both the club and west Cumbria.

But he also urged people to keep their perspective and remember that this is the opening pre-season friendly and the goal has to be getting the squad ready for the up and coming League One season.

“The game is important to the locals and, obviously, to the club but I always like to keep things in perspective,” said Pryce, who is going into his second season in charge at Derwent Park.

“There is no love lost as it is Workington and Whitehaven, and everyone knows the history of the two clubs.

“There is a trophy at the end of it and it is a game that nobody wants to lose and we want to win every game we enter into.

“But for me, personally, we have to keep things in perspective. We haven’t really been together as a full squad until recently and there are still five weeks to go before the start of the season.

“We just have to make sure we get the basics right and use the friendlies to get game time under the players’ belts.”

Town and Haven will be getting the most of both squads in the encounter at Derwent Park on Sunday (3pm ko) with the two coaches agreeing on squads of 20 players with unlimited subs.

Pryce says he is happy with the squad that he has under his charge for the new season and he believes the training is starting to come together.

He added: “It is all shaping up okay now.

"It has been a bit of a stop and start pre-season but we are all back in now and pretty much on track for where we want to be.

“We have got a few games coming up but this is all still pre-season and we have to make sure we get as much conditioning in as possible.

“I am happy with the players we have got so far and they have all trained well and I don’t think we are too far off.”

The club has also appealed to fans to try and get a bumper crowd for the fixture, which is a shared gate between the sides.

Prices are adults £15, concessions £13 and children £3. However you can make a £2 saving if you pre-purchase your tickets from the club shop between the hours of 10.30am to 2.30pm today or tomorrow but no pre-sales will be available to purchase on the day.

Town will follow up this pre-season opener, with a second friendly on Sunday, January 20 when they welcome Huddersfield Giants to Derwent Park.