FESTIVE fitness training must rank high on the list of rugby players’ least favourite things, but Wolves boss Tony Smith has offered a hefty reward to a select number of Warrington’s younger talents who impress him in the next few weeks.

Smith has confirmed that the entire first team squad – including those currently undergoing rehab for injuries and operations – will travel to Australia for the club’s pre-season training camp in January, with five additional places up for grabs to those fringe players willing to swap roast potatoes for shuttle runs.

“I think we will be taking 29 players this time,” said Smith.

“The full-time squad, obviously, but it will include a few of the younger boys as well, the ones who deserve to go.

“That will depend on how they work in pre-season, so it’s quite an incentive.”

A three-week trip to Sydney and training alongside NRL champions Sydney Roosters is a huge prize to offer, but Smith also revealed that his side will not only be working with the NRL title holders in the new year.

Wolves’ head of coaching and rugby hopes that Warrington will try and sample as many different teams’ training cultures as possible on the three-week trip, including a reunion with Australian Rules football team the Sydney Swans.

“We will be doing some training sessions with the Roosters and we are looking at some arrangements with other clubs who are keen to train with us as well,” said Smith.

“We want to give the players a taste of how some other teams train, how they go about their pre-seasons and their culture within the club.

“Certainly the Roosters is a fantastic set-up to be part of, them being the NRL champions.

“It has mainly come about through my close association with Trent Robinson (Roosters head coach) who is a good friend and my nephew Keegan Smith, who used to be at Catalan with Trent and is now involved with the coaching staff there as well.

“We’ll also certainly be linking up with the Sydney Swans again, as from my experience of visiting other sporting clubs they were perhaps one of the most impressive I have seen in terms of culture and attitude to training and performance.

“We got a whole lot out of spending time with them two years ago and I’m sure we will do the same when we go back in January.”

Wolves fly out to Australia on January 6 and are set to arrive back in the UK on the 28th, but unlike in 2011 – the last time they spent pre-season in Australia – Warrington have not organised a match like the one played against South Sydney Rabbitohs at the Redfern Oval.

Smith added: “We’ll do some opposed session with Roosters, but it won’t be full contact by any means.

“It will likely be a simulated game and an opposed training session at some stage.”