Widnes Vikings captain Jack Owens admits it is good to see the squad competing at the top end of the Betfred Championship in 2023.
With six wins from their opening nine league matches, the Vikings sit fourth in the league table heading into the mid-season break.
Following back-to-back wins against Swinton Lions and Barrow Raiders, Owens is confident that the squad can continue looking up the division rather than down, with a third of the regular season under their belts.
“Everyone knows that this club should be top six, and we’ve performed well below average for the past few years. Everyone knows that, it’s no secret,” he said.
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“We’ve spoken quite a few times, and this league is just mad – everyone beats everyone, you know.
“You look at where York currently are. Batley had a slow start and they picked things up. Bradford getting a few unexpected results. Everyone is going to beat everyone.
“One of our targets for the previous games, when we played the likes of Barrow and Swinton, we said that these teams are going to start picking up wins, but it doesn’t start against Widnes Vikings.
“That was the focus for those games, coming off the back of the result against Dewsbury.
“Look, we’re happy where we are. We’re in the mix near the top with Sheffield, Toulouse and Featherstone, so I’m looking forward to the next two thirds of the season and seeing what it brings.”
With no game this week due to being knocked out of the Betfred Challenge Cup in the previous round, John Kear’s side will now have to wait until Monday 8 May for their next taste of competitive action.
That will come in Round 10 away at Batley Bulldogs, who upset the odds to reach the Championship Grand Final last season.
Owens, who has featured 10 times in the matchday squad so far this season, believes there are positives and negatives to having such a long break without a match.
“It is a bit unusual, and I’ve said this in a previous interview – it’s going to be hindsight,” the 28-year-old added.
“I think we’re going to turn up at Batley on May 8, and if we win it’ll be a good thing having this break. If we lose, it’s obviously not ideal.
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“As a player, it is nice to get a little break within the season. I wish we didn’t have this three-week break – I wish it was only two weeks.
“Obviously, I wish we were still in the cup, but it’s going to be nice to go back just to rugby training and not focusing specifically on different teams each week and how they play.
“We can just work on ourselves for the next couple of weeks and get some bodies back hopefully. It’ll be a nice little break as a player.”
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