WITH their hopes of finishing second in the Super League table out of their hands, Warrington Wolves could have taken the self-preservation route for London Broncos’ visit to The Halliwell Jones Stadium tomorrow.
It is a route often travelled at this time of year, most recently by Salford Red Devils who, with their play-off spot secure, have made wholesale changes to their squad for their trip to Wigan Warriors in the final round of regular-season fixtures.
However, head coach Sam Burgess insists following that particular road never crossed his mind, preferring instead to ensure his players are primed and ready for the do-or-die games to come.
The Wire will finish no lower than their current position of third in the Super League table, which would mean an eliminator tie at The Halliwell Jones Stadium a week on Saturday – September 28 – against one of the four sides that can still finish in sixth.
Should they beat London by more than 17 points, however, a slip-up from Hull KR at home to Leeds Rhinos will see them jump into second place, thereby skipping the eliminator round and securing a home semi-final on Friday, October 4.
The difference between the two routes to Old Trafford is stark but for Burgess, he is focused solely on what his players produce on the pitch against a Broncos side fighting to avoid finishing bottom of the table.
“I’m not too fussed. Whatever happens happens,” he said of his side’s chances of second spot.
“When things go out of our control, I stop worrying about them. All we can control is how we play ourselves.
“We’re pretty focused on that and we’re now trying to build our form into the finals, and this is another chance to do that.
“We just want to get a great performance out there. It’s our last home game of the regular season and we want to build on what we think works for us.
“We don’t want to take a step backwards in those aspects of the game.
“It’s going to be a challenging game, but that’s what we want.”
Barring any late hiccups, there looks set to be only two changes to the Wire side that hammered Huddersfield Giants 66-0 at the weekend.
One of them is enforced, with youngster Arron Lindop set to replace Rodrick Tai in the centres after the Papua New Guinean pick up a slight ankle sprain during Round 26, although he is expected to return for the play-offs.
Burgess is also primed to welcome Matt Dufty back at full-back, with the Australian to start the game having recovered from knee surgery as Warrington look to finish off the regular season in the right way.
“It’s gone quick – I was saying to the team that I can’t quite believe that we’re at the final round of the season,” the Wire boss said.
“It seemed so far away during the pre-season but it’s been fun.
“I’ve enjoyed it – there’s been ups and downs and loads to manage, but I’ve enjoyed every single part of it.
“We’re getting towards the most exciting part of the year now where we try and put all the hard work we’ve done out there for people to see.
“We’re going after something the club’s not done for a long time, so it’s exciting.”
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