Squad news for Warrington this week is dominated by the return to the 21-man-squad of co-captain Chris Hill, who has served his three-match suspension for a red card in the opening round against Wigan. There is no place for Matty Ashton though, as a hamstring injury sustained in the win over Toronto last week keeps him out, meaning yet another change in the full-back position is on the cards. Bill’s fellow co-captain Jack Hughes remains unavailable as he recovers from a hernia operation, while new signings Leilani Latu and Samy Kibula will have to wait to make their Wire debuts as neither make the 21.
Let’s find out my ideal selection...
Full-Back - 1 Stefan Ratchford
There is little to no doubt that Ratchford, who has captained the side in the last three games, will be back to his regular spot at full-back on Friday night. This will be his third position change in as many games, which demonstrates his versatility as a player.
Winger - 2 Tom Lineham
Lineham is having an interesting season, with two excellent performances in the two home games and two poor ones in the two away fixtures. If he can perform consistently he’ll be a great asset this season.
Centre - 4 Toby King
Centre has been a real problem position this season, with Anthony Gelling being unavailable and both Jake Mamo and Stefan Ratchford having a run there. Toby King has been the one constant though and he’ll keep his place for this one. I’d love to see King be more offensive, though he is pretty solid at the back.
Centre - 24 Keanan Brand
Steve Price has plenty of options for this spot: Luther Burrell, Jake Mamo or even moving Ben Currie but for me, the best choice would be to give Keanan Brand his debut. He has not featured since signing from Widnes in the off-season but is a very talented player and has looked good in the reserves. We’ve had success in giving Ashton gametime, so why not try another talented youngster out? None of the other options mentioned fill me with confidence.
Winger - 5 Josh Charnley
Out wide, Charnley has nailed down his spot and has no competition for it. He’s started the season well with two tries against Saints and Toronto and some huge defensive efforts in the latter as well. Leeds have a bit of a leaky defence so Charnley needs to see plenty of the ball.
Stand-Off - 6 Blake Austin
I got a fair bit of stick for criticising Austin’s performances last week and whatever you think of him so far in 2020, we certainly need more from him. He’s had a couple of games with Widdop now so we should start to see their combination flowing.
Scrum-Half - 7 Gareth Widdop
Widdop’s first big game in a Wire shirt. There’s been some nice flashes in his first two matches and in a contest like this, which is likely to be tight, his pinpoint kicking on fifth plays could be crucial if he can get them right.
Prop - 15 Joe Philbin
As well as picking a centre, Price’s other big decision this week is whether to restore Chris Hill to the starting line-up. For me, Philbin’s performances in the three games he's started should make him undroppable. We’ll see...
Hooker - 9 Daryl Clark
Back in 2018, Wire defeated Leeds at Headingley in a huge win with Daryl Clark putting in one of my all-time favourite individual performances. On his day the man is unstoppable and if he reaches anywhere near his top gear on Friday, a win will be likely.
Prop - 10 Mike Cooper
It’s surely between Hill and Philbin for the other prop spot, as Cooper has been tremendous so far this season. I don’t especially rate Leeds’ pack and if Wire can get on top, a result will be in our own hands.
Second Row - 11 Ben Currie
One of the real positives of the season so far has been the form of Ben Currie, who is showing some signs of the player he was a few years ago. With no Jack Hughes still, Currie is a certainty to start this one.
Second Row - 13 Ben Murdoch-Masila
After four games, Wire’s player of the season has been either Matty Ashton or Ben Murdoch-Masila. The second rower has been incredible and teams have found him impossible to deal with. Will Leeds be added to his victim list?
Loose Forward - 14 Jason Clark
Clark has improved a lot so far this season. His defensive work is non-stop and he has become an organiser of the back line. He'll have a job on his hands to keep his place when Jack Hughes returns but for now, no doubt that he starts at 13.
Interchange - 8 Chris Hill
Deciding whether to start with Hill or use him from the bench is a big call for Price this week. As touched on earlier, Philbin's excellent form should see him keep his place, which would relegate Hill to the bench. Considering his age, it may be time to start gradually phasing Hill out and using him from the bench would be the start of that. He'd be a brilliant man to have among the interchanges though, with his power and relentless energy.
Interchange - 18 Sitaleki Akauola
Akauola didn't make it last week though I expect him to be back in the fold for the Rhinos. Luther Burrell and Luis Johnson struggled to make significant impacts last week and Price is likely to go for a more experienced forward with big hits in him.
Interchange - 19 Matt Davis
It wasn't Davis' best game against Toronto last week but his work ethic and industrious defensive shifts should see him maintain his place in the squad for this one - a great option from the bench.
Interchange - 20 Danny Walker
I considered Burrell and Johnson for the final bench spot, though Burrell has looked out of his depth in recent weeks and I think Price seems to like having Walker on the bench in order to rest Daryl Clark for parts of games.
Leeds and Wire is always a big match and Friday night should be the same. Both teams have won two games so far, though the Rhinos have played one game less. In Luke Gale and Robert Lui, they possess a very imaginative half-back pairing and have scoring prowess in Konrad Hurrell, Ash Handley and Harry Newman. This week's addition to their squad of Joe Greenwood makes them more of a threat in the forward pack, while they also have Rhyse Martin at second row, who I really rate. There is no Stevie Ward, who is injured, as is former Wire man Rhys Evans, though former Wolves Richie Myler and Brad Dwyer are both in the squad. Richard Agar's team have been quite difficult to predict in his time at the helm so far, though they are coming into this off the back of two big wins over Hull KR and Salford.
This is a huge game for Wire. The nature of the narrow win over Toronto has done little to ease the fears of those who feel the team are underachieving. Leeds are not the force they once were but a trip to Headingley is always tough and the players will know that. Leeds have let themselves down in the big games in recent years, whereas Wire have done pretty well in them, and that gives me some belief. A win in this game and it would probably be judged as a decent start to the season for Wire, but a loss would see it be deemed as a poor one. Massive match.
Round Five predictions
Hull KR v Castleford - Castleford by 6-11
Leeds v Warrington - Warrington by 6-11
Toronto v St Helens - St Helens by 24-29
Huddersfield v Wigan - Wigan by 12-17
Hull FC v Catalans - Hull FC by 18-23
Salford v Wakefield - Salford by 1-5
Daniel (@aloosewire)
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