Super League: Friday’s talking points and team news | Rugby League News

Wigan and Warrington clash in a Super League derby on Friday

We take a look at what is being said and the team news ahead of Friday’s Betfred Super League matches…

Wigan Warriors vs Warrington Wolves (8pm, live on Sky Sports)

At the start of the year, few observers would have expected Warrington to find themselves languishing in 10th in the Super League table and six points off the play-off places as the regular season heads towards its climax.

But last week’s 32-22 defeat to Huddersfield Giants left Daryl Powell’s side in that position with six games to go and it does not get any easier for them as they travel to the DW Stadium for a derby clash with high-flying Wigan.

Nevertheless, optimism remains strong in the Wolves’ camp and even while recognising the dangers posed by Man of Steel contender Jai Field and Super League’s leading try-scorer Bevan French, prop Joe Bullock believes the visitors have identified areas they can undo Wigan in.

“There are definitely places we can go get them,” Bullock told Sky Sports. “We’ve isolated areas in their game we feel we can go challenge them and break them down.

“I think we’ve got the opportunity to break them, get into a position where we can strangle them a little bit and get some points, but then we’ve got to be thinking next play because we could be on top, and they could flip it on its head.

“It’s important for us to be switched on for the whole process, know where their dangers come from and be ready to combat it all.”

Wigan Warriors vs Warrington Wolves

August 5, 2022, 7:30pm

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Warrington are without new signing Matt Dufty for up to three weeks after he suffered a foot injury on his debut against Huddersfield last week.

Sam Powell is out for Wigan too due to an injury picked up in last week’s 46-4 win at home to Hull Kingston Rovers, while Brad O’Neill is suspended, leaving them short of options at hooker.

Warriors head coach Matt Peet knows his side cannot afford to let up against Warrington either as they aim to take a step closer towards making certain of a top-two finish and a home play-off semi-final.

“These kinds of games, everyone will be saying form goes out the window and it’s who performs best on the night, and that’s exactly right,” Peet told Sky Sports.

“We’ve got to prepare for the best of Warrington and the talent they’ve got, and what they’ve shown in spells in recent weeks is they’re not too far from having a decent win soon.

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The best of the action from the Betfred Super League clash between Wigan Warriors and Hull Kingston Rovers

“You tend to look at these games with the St Helens games and Leeds games as the showpiece games. We’re looking forward to it, we know they’ll travel over in numbers and create that proper atmosphere we’ve not had at the DW Stadium for a few weeks.”

Named squads

Wigan Warriors: Bevan French, Jake Bibby, Liam Marshall, Cade Cust, Brad Singleton, Patrick Mago, Willie Isa, Liam Farrell, Morgan Smithies, Kaide Ellis, Harry Smith, Oliver Partington, Liam Byrne, Kai Pearce-Paul, Joe Shorrocks, Jai Field, Abbas Miski, Sam Halsall, Junior Nsemba, Mike Cooper, Harvie Hill.

Warrington Wolves: Kyle Amor, Matty Ashton, Joe Bullock, Daryl Clark, Jason Clark, Ben Currie, Matt Davis, Riley Dean, James Harrison, Oliver Holmes, Peter Mata’utia, Thomas Mikaele, Greg Minikin, Robbie Mulhern, Matty Nicholson, Stefan Ratchford, Josh Thewlis, Danny Walker, Jake Wardle, George Williams, Connor Wrench.

Huddersfield Giants vs Hull FC (7.45pm)

Brett Hodgson wants to see another resilient display from his Hull FC side as they aim to build on getting back to winning ways against Toulouse Olympique last week.

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The best of the action from the Betfred Super League clash between Toulouse Olympique and Hull FC

The Black and Whites head to Huddersfield aiming to strengthen their play-off credentials after their 30-6 win in the south of France.

Head coach Brett Hodgson has had to contend with a squad hit hard by injuries in recent weeks and is calling for more of the same spirit shown against Toulouse when they travel to Huddersfield on Friday.

“We’ve done it tough, and it will get tougher against Huddersfield, but we showed against Toulouse with a lot of players out of position that we can handle the pressure,” Hodgson said. “I’m very proud of them.

“We’ll gain some confidence out of the win, but the reality is that it’s just one performance and we’ve still got six to go that we have to be good for.”

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Highlights of the Betfred Super League match between Huddersfield Giants and Warrington Wolves

Connor Wynne and Chris Satae return for Hull FC as they head to the John Smith’s Stadium, while the hosts welcome back Leroy Cudjoe and Tui Lolohea.

Giants head coach Ian Watson was pleased with the way his side fought back from eight points down to defeat Warrington on their home turf last week and knows they will need to replicate that heading into the play-offs.

“In the last few weeks, they’ve crumbled on the back of a bit of pressure,” Watson said. “It’s always tempting to chase points, but I thought Theo [Fages] and Oliver Russell were patient.

“The message we sent out was to stay in the game and trust in what we do as a group. I thought we showed composure and resilience against a team who were playing not to lose, they just kept trying to chip away at the scoreboard.”

Named squads

Huddersfield Giants: Will Pryce, Ashton Golding, Tui Lolohea, Theo Fages, Danny Levi, Michael Lawrence, Josh Jones, Chris McQueen, Luke Yates, Matty English, Joe Greenwood, Owen Trout, Adam O’Brien, Oliver Wilson, Leroy Cudjoe, Louis Senior, Innes Senior, Jack Ashworth, Sam Hewitt, Toby King.

Hull FC: Jake Connor, Darnell McIntosh, Luke Gale, Danny Houghton, Chris Satae, Jordan Lane, Joe Lovodua, Kane Evans, Brad Fash, Jack Brown, Jordan Johnstone, Connor Wynne, Mitieli Vulikijapani, Jacob Hookem, Scott Taylor, Harvey Barron, Matty Laidlaw, Jack Walker, Josh Simm, Ellis Longstaff, Will Smith.