Scars of battle (From Warrington Guardian)

Warrington Wolves start preparations for 2013 by sending players for surgery

7:00am Friday 12th October 2012 in Wolves news By Christopher Terris Taylor

POST-season operations will commence for a host of battle-scarred Warrington Wolves players this week after the season ended with Saturday’s Grand Final loss.

Wolves’ head of coaching and rugby Tony Smith has confirmed that five first-team regulars will go under the knife in a bid to fix them up for the start of the 2013 Super League season.

It was announced on Monday that both Ryan Atkins and Ben Westwood have pulled out of England’s Autumn International series due to ongoing injuries, with Westwood set to have an operation to fix a groin problem and Atkins is booked in for shoulder surgery.

Garreth Carvell will undergo an operation to ‘flush out and tidy up’ the cartilage in his knee, while Simon Grix will once again have an operation to fix a persistent elbow injury.

Chris Bridge will undergo an operation that will hopefully cure the 28-year-old of the tendinitis that has plagued him throughout the season.

Smith said: “Chris Bridge is probably the longest-term recovery of the lot, as the operation to get him repaired will probably take the longest to sort out.

“But anybody who needs an operation will be having theirs done in the next week to make sure there is maximum chance for them to get ready for when we return.

“That way they will miss little or no pre-season and it gives them a chance to start rehab as soon as possible.”

Wolves’ players will now enjoy a minimum of six weeks off, with the first wave of players set to return to training on November 22, though that date will depend on operations and whether players are involved in internationals (see page 87).

Of the current first-team squad, five players will not return for next year, with David Solomona’s contract coming to an end and Matty Blythe joining Bradford on a one-year loan.

The other three are young full-time players who have been released by Warrington, with 19-year old half back Bobbie Goulding joining Wakefield, 21-year-old prop Brooke Broughton signing for Doncaster and 20-year-old full back or winger Ben Hellewell confirming a move to Featherstone Rovers.

Only Rhys Williams’ immediate future is yet to be settled