OPPONENTS should respect York City Knights and not be shocked when they get turned over by the new club.

That was the message from chief executive Steve Ferres following the Knights' fourth win in five games on Sunday.

Ferres explained he was "mindful" of the way opposing clubs have reacted to defeat by York - tt is almost as though they feel defeat at the hands of the Knights is a disgrace.

Sunday was another example as Dewsbury players were ordered to have an impromptu training session immediately after their 28-24 loss.

"Everyone seems to have a go at our players, saying, 'we should have beaten York, we're better than them', but I think people out there should give a lot more credit to our squad and look at the players we've got," Ferres told the Evening Press.

"I'm a bit mindful that some people have been a bit disrespectful to our players, expecting to turn us over, and the times when we've won they've seemed a bit surprised - but they shouldn't be surprised.

"They need to look at what we've got and pay due respect to the quality of player in our squad rather than be over-critical of themselves.

"People like Paul Broadbent, Richie Hayes, Chris Smith, Trevor Krause don't take too kindly to being written off. They are champions in their own right and so are the players around them.

"They are proud individuals and, when you think about it, some of them have played at a higher level than probably 90 per cent of the players they are playing against. It's not a big shock to them when we turn teams over and it shouldn't be to anyone else.

"We are not the finished article and there is still a long way to go, but if people don't pay us due respect then they will probably realise we are better than they expected."

Ferres also looked forward to Sunday's home clash against Featherstone, the final group game in the Arriva Trains Cup, which he described as a "big match for both teams".

"I've no doubts (Rovers coach) Andy Kelly will pay us due respect," he said. "Featherstone are a quality side and this will be a tough game for us but it will also be tough for them.

"They need to win to go into the next round and they will be up for it, and it will be a test of how far we've come.

"But only one team (Hull KR) have done the double over us and we don't want it to be two teams. Our players will want to put the record straight following the defeat in February and we need to keep our momentum going ahead of the league season."

Updated: 11:21 Tuesday, April 08, 2003