Wolves captain to sit out Giants battle (From Warrington Guardian)

Wolves captain to sit out Giants battle

PAUL Cullen is confident that Warrington Wolves are capable of winning at Huddersfield without Lee Briers.

The club captain, who is still expected to be sidelined with a thigh strain, was sorely missed as Wolves crashed to a 30-10 home defeat against St Helens at the weekend.

But now that Wolves have got fixtures against the top two out of the way - they lost 46-22 at home to Leeds in their previous match - Cullen thinks a result is possible without the influential Briers at the Galpharm Stadium tomorrow, Friday, kick-off 8pm.

He said: "We have won a number of games this year without Lee Briers, but they weren't against Leeds or St Helens, and the difference in class was obvious and one we don't hide from.

"We knew full well that for us to beat Leeds and Saints back-to-back we were going to need our best 17 all fully fit and at the peak of their form, and the obvious fact was that they weren't.

"But we won at Bradford without Lee Briers and Nathan Wood, and whether Lee plays or not at Huddersfield we have the ability to win the game."

Nevertheless the Wolves coach expects a tough match against a Huddersfield side that won 44-12 at Wakefield on Sunday.

Giants are renowned for their physical approach, which was there for all to see during two gruelling matches against Wolves earlier in the season, and Cullen believes his side's ability to handle that will play a big part in the result.

He said: "Winning the physical battle is very important. We have come up against that in the last three years against them, and we are fully prepared for it.

"Anyone who wins at Wakefield by that points margin needs respect and it will be a very intense, tough, physical and important game.

"We have to stand up to them, dominate the middle channels and make sure we complete, kick and chase."

Danny Lima is available after dislocating a finger against Saints but Wolves are likely to go into the game without Graham Appo, who has a shoulder injury.

On top of that Dean Gaskell is still absent with a groin tear that will probably rule him out until Wolves take on Salford on September 4, so Cullen expects to hand a debut to winger Chris Riley, who narrowly missed out on selection against Saints.

The 17-year-old will be preferred to Paul Noone despite the forward impressing during a try-scoring emergency left wing appearance against St Helens.

But Cullen wants to keep Noone available as a substitute second rower and has no fears about Riley's ability to cope with the physical examination.

"I've got no doubt in my mind that Chris can handle what's thrown at him," he said.

"He's worked very hard, has got natural pace and a great desire, and it is the effort in the gym that has facilitated him being brought into the first team squad."

Cullen has set a target of three wins from the next three games against Huddersfield, Widnes and Salford, and he is not too concerned about consecutive defeats against Super League's top two.

"We're not worried about the results at all - sometimes you go up against teams that are better than you," he said.

"The table and form this year suggests that Leeds and St Helens are better than Warrington, and we always knew it was going to be tough.

"At some point we were going to have to sit on the ropes for a couple of rounds, get a bit of a towelling and have enough character to bounce off them, and that's going to be tested tomorrow night.

"We're going to Huddersfield for the win. We want six points from the next three games, and then Andrew Johns arrives and it becomes a whole different ball game."

After securing a short-term deal for Johns, who will link up with the squad on September 6, Wolves have been linked in the Australian media with a similar move for Sydney Roosters loose forward Luke Ricketson, while Great Britain international Adrian Morley has also been touted for a loan switch to Super League.

But Cullen said: "We're not planning any more short-term deals - I think we've shocked the world enough for now!"

Expected team to face Huddersfield: Brent Grose; Henry Fa'afili, Martin Gleeson, Toa Kohe-Love, Chris Riley; Chris Bridge, Nathan Wood; Chris Leikvoll, Jon Clarke, Mark Hilton, Logan Swann, Mike Wainwright, Ben Westwood. Subs: Paul Noone, Mark Gleeson, Paul Wood, Danny Lima.

Statistical preview

Last meeting: Giants 22 Wolves 24, June 5, 2005. Jon Clarke, Henry Fa'afili, Ben Westwood and Chris Bridge crossed for Wolves, with Bridge also landing four goals. Away results versus Giants in Super League (Wolves first): 1998, 6-28; 1999, 40-12; 2000, 38-28; 2001, 10-52; 2003, 20-8 and 25-12; 2004, 34-18; 2005, 24-22. Giants squad: Paul Reilly, Hefin O'Hare, James Evans, Michael de Vere, Stuart Donlan, Chris Thorman, Paul March, Brad Drew, Jim Gannon, Chris Nero, Ben Roarty, Stanley Gene, Stuart Jones, Iain Morrison, Paul Smith, Eorl Crabtree, Jonathan Grayshon, Paul White, Paul Jackson, Ryan Clayton, Tom Hemingway, Bolu Fagbouran, Jason Southwell, Stephen Jones, Marcus St Hilaire, Stephen Jones, Lee Greenwood. Links with Giants: Martin Gleeson, Chris Bridge and Graham Appo all had spells at the Galpharm Stadium. Danger man: Combative hooker Brad Drew is capable of creating and scoring tries with darts from dummy half. Form guide - Giants' last five competitive home games: Leigh won 32-22, Wakefield won 40-22, Bradford lost 38-20, Warrington lost 24-22, London won 34-24.

Table to date

P W D L F A Pt

Leeds 23 20 0 3 1026 356 40

St Helens 23 19 1 3 784 481 39

Hull 23 13 2 8 602 513 28

Warrington 23 14 0 9 615 594 28

Bradford 23 13 1 9 805 604 27

London 23 11 2 10 670 576 24

Wigan 23 10 0 13 550 588 20

Huddersfield 23 10 0 13 568 649 20

Wakefield 23 9 0 14 610 830 18

Salford 23 8 0 15 432 610 16

Widnes 23 5 1 17 506 806 11

Leigh 23 2 1 20 371 932 5