CRAIG LINGARD will use Cougars' friendly against a Keighley amateur select side on Sunday to finalise his squad for the first match of the competitive season.

The coach is likely to field a stronger side than anticipated this weekend after a disappointing defeat at Barrow Raiders left him with questions over his first starting line-up, when Cougars begin the defence of the iPro Sport Cup at home to Doncaster on February 19.

Lingard said: "Three-quarters of the team is made up in my mind. There's maybe some who played themselves out of the team (against Barrow).

"There will probably be more first-team players playing (on Sunday). Four or five are going for two remaining spots in the starting 17. We'll have a chat with those guys and let them know that those two will be selected not just based on their performance this coming week but also on what we have seen so far in pre-season.

"There are difficult selection headaches but I will pick the team on merit."

Cougars' promising pre-season was marred by a lacklustre show at Barrow, who were convincing 48-14 winners.

And while Lingard admitted wins over Whitehaven and Bradford Bulls, plus an encouraging display in defeat at Batley, had perhaps raised early expectations too high, he wants Cougars to be much better than in the Raiders' rout.

He said: "Barrow will be a real strong contender for the top two/top three. They were unlucky not to go up last year, have recruited well and will be stronger.

"That's the standard. Some of our guys need to ask themselves some difficult questions about their performance, about how they prepare and what they want to achieve in the game."