Acting coach Garry Atkins' fresh approach has provided the spark to ignite York Wasps' revival, according to the players.

The Wasps made it two wins from two under Atkins' leadership with a 20-18 victory over play-off hopefuls Barrow Border Raiders at Huntington Stadium yesterday.

It was a performance packed with spirit, determination and confidence as they had to fight back from an early 10-0 deficit.

There was also evidence that some of Atkins' new ideas are taking shape, particularly in defence.

Gareth Dobson, who played scrum-half for the first time in his career, said: "Everyone seems a lot happier for whatever reason. We're more willing to play as a team.

"People want to play for Garry whereas at the end of Dean's reign some people didn't have the respect for him and didn't want to play for him."

Hooker Alan Pallister, revelling in his new role as captain following Craig Booth's departure, said: "Garry has got his own ideas but the main thing is his way of getting his ideas across. The lads seem to be listening more. In training everything's a lot sharper and more upbeat.

"The lads now know we can do it if we want to. We've been given that bit of confidence back and I think we're on the right track."

Atkins himself was thrilled that the hard work in defence over the past two weeks was paying such dividends.

He said: "It's just brilliant. The lads have worked really hard on it in training. It gets a bit boring but it's paying off - and there's better to come."

Of the performance as a whole he said: "Barrow are a very well organised side. They are very well-drilled, they've got a strong set of forwards but the lads stuck to their guns and to come away with the points was tremendous.

"The lads are buzzing at the moment. We've got another win so let's enjoy it. Let's thrive on it and enjoy it while we can."

One very different tactic employed by Atkins is the use of substitutes. He made just four changes during yesterday's game instead of a possible six, then reiterated his belief: "If it's not broken don't fix it."

He explained: "If the players are going well I won't make a change for change's sake. When you're working well in defence then one cog can make a difference so I didn't want to take that chance.

"Rugby league players are confidence players. When they're going forward and making yards why take them off when they don't need it?

"They are doing a lot of conditioning work so they should be able to play 80 minutes of hard football."

Dobson's half-back partnership with a rejuvenated Mark Cain was one of the success stories and Atkins acknowledged that would give him a "good headache" ahead of next Sunday's trip to Workington.

Scrum half loan ranger Craig Robinson will come into contention but Atkins will be reluctant to change a winning team.

"I thought Gareth went really well and worked tirelessly. With him and Alan Pallister we've got two very industrious players and to leave one out would be a travesty," he said.

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