1895 Cup preview: Liam Finn looking for Halifax Panthers ‘improvement’ in Rochdale test

Fax’s defence of the competition got off to the worst possible start thanks to a 24-20 defeat at Oldham. And although Finn believes hopes of progressing into the quarter finals are “out of the window”, he wants his troops to “regroup” ahead of the must-win clash at the Crown Oil Arena.

He said: “It is a disappointed group, of course it is. We are all disappointed because we want to be good and the lads want to go back-to-back in this competition. It is not our major priority but it is certainly something we want to do well in.

“That looks like it is out of the window now unless there are some freak results but I would say that is unlikely looking at the groups. That’s sport. It is about sticking together, regrouping, making sure we keep improving and making sure we give ourselves the best chance of winning at Rochdale and take it from there.”

Asked if he had seen much of Sunday’s opponents, Finn said:

“I have not seen an awful lot of them so far. I think they have only played in one friendly, up at Barrow. I know Gary Thornton and I know he has a good squad and he will have them working hard for him.

“Every team is a challenge if you don’t turn up with the right attitude. I couldn’t fault the lads’ attitude against Oldham. It was just some technical areas and some mental errors that cost us.

“Attitude-wise they have been first class throughout pre-season. If you have got a good attitude then you will always have a chance.”

Greg Eden scored two tries in the defeat at Oldham and Finn is wanting more of the same throughout 2024.

He said: “It was his first proper game for us and we know what he is about and what quality he has got, as we do with a lot of other players.

“We just need to get that cohesion and make sure we are a little bit calmer and that we can take advantage of players like Greg and generally get better.”