A TOUGH run of fixtures may be on the horizon, but Warrington RUFC head coach Andy Roberts’ optimism remains undampened.

Their next five fixtures are all against high-flyers in the North One West table, starting with Saturday’s hosting of sixth-place Birkenhead Park.

They were hoping to go into their tricky run with a victory but started the new year with a narrow 21-18 defeat to Vale of Lune at Grappenhall Sports Club.

Despite the defeat, however, Roberts can sense things coming together nicely for his side.

“Obviously, this was a game we had targeted as a win so we are disappointed with the loss,”he said.

“However, we are now getting our game together after a shaky start to the season.

“Although we have five hard fixtures in front of us, I am confident we can add to our points tally and start to move up the league table.”

A try from Tom Arnold and a Luke Gilooly penalty had Warrington ahead at the break before the visitors’ muscular pack allowed them to stretch to a decisive second-half lead.

Another Gilooly penalty and a converted Max Caldwell try brought the hosts to within a score, but they had to be content with a losing bonus point.