SWINTON LIONS coach Paul Wood has challenged his side to be more ruthless as they bid to put together a promotion challenge.
That’s despite being joint-top of the table with Rochdale after opening the league campaign with two wins under the rookie team chief.
After edging out Whitehaven in a home opener, Swinton enjoyed a comfortable 48-6 success away at Newcastle which brought nine tries, including a Gav Rodden hat-trick.
But former Warrington star Wood believes there are still further gears for his new-look side – which includes 20 new faces following last year’s relegation from the Championship – to go through.
“I want consistency. I want us to be ruthless every single week,” he said ahead of Sunday’s home clash with Dewsbury.
“I want us to set high standards. Regardless of our opposition, I want us to raise the bar.
“In patches (against Newcastle) we did but there were some patches were we needed to refocus and get back in the game.
“Every single week we’re going to raise the bar. When players think they’ve reached a specific standard, I’m going to ask for more.
“I do think there’s a lot more in us. We’re a relatively new team. There’s only a few players from last season’s squad so we’ve got to keep building those connections and relationships in the playing squad and that comes with time.
“So far we’re happy with the position that we’re in. We’ve played two league games and we’ve won two, so we’ll take that at this time of the year.
“We’ll now work hard to pick more wins up because this is an ongoing project. I’m never satisfied and the lads know that, so I’m going to keep challenging them.
“They’re really receptive to it and they’re pushing each other. I’m really happy with the group of players that we’ve got because they’re willing to work hard, learn and keep pushing which is fantastic.”
