COACH Mick Cook will instil new pace into his York City Knights side in a bid to help kick-start their LHF National League Two campaign.

Trialist Lee Lingard, the Sharlston amateur, will come onto the wing away to Keighley tomorrow as the Knights look to kick-on from their Challenge Cup triumph at Oldham by taking their first league points of the season.

Fleet-footed Lingard enjoyed a try-scoring debut in the Northern Rail Cup match against Castleford last month in his only game so far.

He played at full-back that day, but Cook will keep Jon Liddell in the number one shirt tomorrow as he largely keeps faith with the side that impressed at Boundary Park. This means no place for the pacy Paul Fairfield, the former Hull Academy winger also on trial at Huntington Stadium.

Cook explained: "Lee is quite sharp with a bit of pace about him, and bringing him on to the wing also allows Neil Law to drop into centre.

"We have registered Paul Fairfield but we've not used him this week. We didn't want to change things too much and this is a reward for the squad from last week. To get a result at Oldham is not easy and they did well."

Cook also sticks with the half-back partnership of Lee Paterson and Scott Rhodes, while Lee Jackson again starts at hooker with Jim Elston on the bench.

Cook added: "We changed the way we played a bit and it worked. We will stick with the same format."

One enforced change, however, is the absence of second-row Simon Friend due to a niggling ankle injury, with Darren Callaghan switching back to the pack. It is hoped the Aussie will be okay next week.

Cook meanwhile reckons minds will be focused on tomorrow's Cougar Park clash rather than next month's mouth-watering Cup tie at holders St Helens.

"I've not mentioned it and the players haven't mentioned it to me," said Cook.

"I don't envisage that coming into play until the week before that game. It might be somewhere in the back of people's minds but we've got some important business before then."

Keighley beat Blackpool 26-12 in their opening league game but lost 53-26 in France to Pia in last week's Cup tie.

Former Knights hooker Jonny Wainhouse (knee) and Aussie Daniel Harvey (knee) are out but prop Phil Stephenson and three-quarter David Foster have been passed fit.

Ex-Knight Chris Beever and Lewis Taylor, whom Cook will know from Leeds Academy, are added to the squad, while a dangerman to look out for is full-back Matt Bramald, who has scored eight tries in the last five matches.

TOMORROW'S SQUADS

LHF National League Two

Keighley Cougars v York City Knights

(at Cougar Park)

Keighley (possible): Bramald, Gardner, D Foster, M Foster, Robinson, Ashton, Firth, Stephenson, Mitchell, Murgatroyd, Parker, Rushforth, Steel. Subs from: Mervill, Clegg, J Ross, Beever, Taylor.

Knights: Liddell, Fox, Potter, Law, Lingard, Paterson, Rhodes, Sullivan, Jackson, Smith, Ward, Callaghan, Kirke. Subs: Elston, Cain, Buckenham, Sozi.

Referee: Phil Bentham (Blackpool).

Kick off: 3pm.

Updated: 09:13 Saturday, April 09, 2005