Warrington Wolves return to the Halliwell Jones Stadium this weekend to take on Huddersfield Giants, following on from a 54-6 victory away at Hull KR. With a few question marks over selection, read on to find out who I would like to take to the field on Sunday afternoon...
The team news this week sees Jason Clark drop out of the squad, while Ryan Atkins doesn't make it either. Jake Mamo's absence continues and he is not in the squad to face his former side. Josh Charnley picked up a knock towards the end of the Hull KR game and looked like he might be unavailable, though has been named in the squad for the Huddersfield clash. Here is the team I want Steve Price to pick...
Full Back - 1 Stefan Ratchford
Ratchford was well back to his best on Monday, improving dramatically from two hopeless performances previously. His goal-kicking was impeccable against Hull KR, and in what could be a tight game this weekend, it'll need to be at a similar level.
Winger - 2 Tom Lineham
I've been very impressed with Lineham's recent performances, and he bagged two good tries last time out against KR. With Charnley potentially unavailable for this game, Lineham will carry a lot of our scoring threat.
Centre - 3 Bryson Goodwin
Goodwin put in one of his best Warrington performances last Monday against Hull KR, scoring a try and having a generally positive impact on the game. With Jake Mamo still not selected and Ryan Atkins not in the frame, Goodwin will definitely keep his place.
Centre - 18 Toby King
King has been our best centre this season and scored his second try of the season against KR. His partnership with Josh Charnley continues to blossom and the entire back five was outstanding in the previous game.
Winger - 5 Josh Charnley
There have been some doubts over Charnley's fitness this week after he left the field early on Monday with an ankle injury. Steve Price confirmed that he would be in contention for this game, and with Charnley named in the squad for Sunday but Mamo not, it seems fairly certain that Charnley will be okay to start.
Stand Off - 6 Blake Austin
Another tryscoring performance from Austin on Monday saw him notch his twelfth of the campaign - meaning he and Charnley are level at the top of the league's scoring charts. Austin had a field day against Huddersfield in March, particularly in the second half, and the current Man Of Steel leader will be looking to have a similar effect on the game this time round.
Scrum Half - 15 Declan Patton
I thought Patton might have been dropped for the KR game, but he kept his place and put in a better performance than against Salford or St Helens. It still wasn't perfect but it was one of his better displays. Price looks like he is very committed to the Austin-Patton partnership so he will surely play this weekend.
Prop - 8 Chris Hill
Despite persistent doubts over Hill, he played well at KR, putting in a fine prop forward performance. The Giants are a big side and his yardage will be important in this game.
Hooker - 9 Daryl Clark
The best news of the week is that Daryl Clark has tied his long-term future down to the Wire, signing a deal that sees him contracted at the HJ until 2023. His performances this season have been phenomenal and he is always a joy to watch. What a player.
Prop - 10 Mike Cooper
Cooper was rested for the win over KR, with Lama Tasi taking his place. Tasi did alright, but there is no doubt that Cooper is in our first-choice selection, and will surely return to the fold this weekend.
Second Row - 11 Ben Currie
Currie was another player who was rested on Monday, and it was Ben Murdoch-Masila who started instead of him. Currie's tackling game is essential to our performance levels and he should be back in the team on Sunday.
Second Row - 12 Jack Hughes
We saw a decent performance from Hughes at KR, playing a glorious no-look pass to Toby King for his try. Despite Murdoch-Masila's good display on Monday, I expect Price to revert back to the usual Currie/Hughes partnership.
Loose Forward - 23 Matt Davis
Matt Davis made his first start on Monday, playing at loose forward. He did a good job and I reckon he will keep his place. Joe Philbin suits a role better on the bench, meaning Davis is likely to start again.
Interchange - 13 Ben Murdoch-Masila
Monday was Murdoch-Masila's first start of the season. He played well and was on for the majority of the game. Still, with Ben Currie back in the squad, I expect him to start and BMM to hopefully have an impact from the bench.
Interchange - 17 Joe Philbin
With two tries against Hull KR, Philbin proved that he is best utilised from the bench. Both of his tries were easy on the eye and having scores coming from different areas of the team is key for any rugby league side with ambition. I think he'll stay on the bench now.
Interchange - 19 Sitaleki Akauola
Wire fans' calls to see Akauola get some action were finally answered when he came off the bench for his first appearance of 2019 on Monday. He scored a neat try on his big day too, and added a bit of physicality and drive to the forward pack. He will probably keep his place in the team.
Interchange - 34 Ben Westwood
The fourth interchange spot is the one where there's a few fighting for it. Between Westwood, Lama Tasi and Harvey Livett, there is a difficult decision to be made because all have shown good signs lately. Personally I would play Westwood because I still think he is an important player for us - though we'll need more output from him than his last performance.
LINEUP LAST TIME OUT
Ratchford; Lineham, Goodwin, King, Charnley; Austin, Patton; Hill, D Clark, Tasi; Murdoch-Masila, Hughes; Davis
Interchanges: J Clark, Livett, Akauola, Philbin
SWEET 17 VS HUDDERSFIELD:
Ratchford; Lineham, Goodwin, King, Charnley; Austin, Patton; Hill, D Clark, Cooper; Currie, Hughes; Davis
Interchanges: Murdoch-Masila, Philbin, Akauola, Westwood
Huddersfield have had a bizarre season so far. They started terribly and were woeful in their Round 3 loss against us, though they've really improved recently, with good wins over Castleford and London in their last few home games. Their threat scoring-wise is largely from wingers Akuila Uate and Jermaine McGillvary, while Lee Gaskell has a great kicking game that has torn teams apart in the Super League and the Championship over the years. We will need to look out for this as it was the creative play of Jackson Hastings at scrum half that tore us apart in our last home game. The Hull KR win was hopefully a turning point and if we carry that level of performance into Huddersfield, we will get the job done. Let's hope the Halliwell Jones is packed and the team put on a good performance.
Prediction: Warrington 42-20 Huddersfield
It's always our year.
Daniel (@aloosewire)
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