PICTURES: Widnes Vikings post Championship win over Barrow

Early tries from Mike Butt, Sam Wilde and Rhodri Lloyd gave Vikings a 16-2 lead before Johnston crossed for the Cumbrians.

Vikings responded when Danny Langtree went over for his first try for Vikings.

The hosts then had a numerical advantage with Ryan Shaw in the sin bin for a professional foul and Brad Walker red carded for dissent.

Ryan Ince and Jarrad Stack were sin-binned for their part in a scuffle.

The Vikings wrapped up the scoring late in the game with Butt’s second, a brace from Joe Edge and the last word from Tom Gilmore.

Head Coach Allan Coleman said: “I thought we were good today. It was the small stuff that we did really well, which is what we didn’t do last week against Batley.

“We’ve worked hard all week on how to stay in control of a game and when getting our noses in front we need to make sure we stay there, to stay composed but also play a brand of exciting rugby and I thought we did that today.

“I identified as soon as I came into the club that we need to be better defensively.

“I think we did five back-to-back sets on our own line today and that was against a very good attacking team who pushed Wakefield all the way two weeks.”

Widnes Vikings: Owens, Butt, Lloyd, Edge, Ince, Lyons, Gilmore, Kirk, Fozard, Murray, Langtree, Wilde, Gregson.

Interchanges: Johnstone, Roberts, Bent, A. Walker, Roby (18th).

Tries: Butt 2, Edge 2, Wilde, Lloyd, Langtree, Gilmore.

Goals: Gilmore 6.

Barrow Raiders: Cresswell, Shaw, Costello, Clarke, Toal, B. Walker, Johnston, T. Walker, Wood, Silva, Greenwood, Stack, Makin.

Interchanges: Smith, Wilkinson, Emslie, Burke, Anderson-Moore (18th).

Tries: Johnston.

Goals: Shaw 2.

Attendance: 1758.