As Blackburn Hawks approach the first leg of their play-off semi-final against league champions Whitley Warriors, head coach Jared Owen is quietly confident of causing an upset.

Hawks limped over the finishing line with a 2-2 draw against Telford Titans last weekend – a result that saw them finish fourth in the table.

Reaching the play-offs was Owen’s number one priority at the start of the season and in doing so Hawks have achieved one of their most successful seasons in years.

Now, the side are hoping to put in one last big effort to top off what has been a very fruitful campaign so far.

Owen said: “I knew I had a talented bunch that needed direction and hopefully I’ve given them that. We’ve had a few lows this season, but overall mostly highs.

“The annoying thing is, in all fairness, we could have and possibly should have been runners up, but that is for the future.

“Even though we have achieved our goal, we now have another challenge ahead of us.”

Although unbeaten Whitley finished top of the pile quite comfortably this season, Hawks were the only team to take a point from the table-toppers at their own ice rink, when they drew 3-3 back in October.

And player-coach Owen believes Hawks are more than capable of giving Whitley a good game again.

He said: “We would like to get something from this first game so we have a lead to defend in the second leg. I know, and the lads know, we can beat anyone in this division on our day.

“If we approach these games in the right frame of mind, nothing is out of our reach. We will get out of this what we put in.

“Unfortunately, what has let us down during the course of the season is our inconsistency, but we have trained hard this week and hopefully we will get our rewards.”

Owen was also appreciative of the support Hawks have received this season.

He said: “Our fans have been making a lot of noise and this gives the team more confidence. The crowd give us a massive lift and our supporters are definitely among the best in the league.”

Hawks will be missing Rick Hughes through suspension, however Owen will be able to call upon the rest of his stars for tomorrow’s clash with the Warriors at the Blackburn Arena (face-off 5.45pm).