THE first of two Warrington Wolves home fixtures back-to-back has arrived.
For the first time since 2014, Bradford Bulls will visit The Halliwell Jones Stadium for a Super League fixture looking for their first away victory since returning to the top flight and what would be their biggest scalp of the season yet.
Of course, The Wire will be aiming to make sure this fixture goes to form and that they are the ones that sizzle in the heat, with searing temperatures expected this afternoon.
So will it be fun in the sun, or will the Wolves get burnt?
Check out our Game Day talking points below…
Feelin’ hot, hot, hot…
It’s going to be a sizzler today, with temperatures as high as they have been all year.
The forecast says the mercury could hit 27 degrees Celsius today and in that kind of weather, where else would you rather be than The Halliwell Jones Stadium?
Conditions, then, would appear perfect for Warrington Wolves to get an attack that has been somewhat clunky in recent weeks firing again.
That may seem a harsh assertion given they are currently averaging more points per game (32.8) than anybody else in Super League, but it is fair to say they haven’t been at their sharpest in recent weeks.
If they can get ahead in the game, there could be some fun in the sun to be had later on but on the other side of the coin, this is not the weather in which to be chasing a game.
So get the SPF50 on, give the ball some air and let’s have some fun…
Picking up the gauntlet
This is Round 12’s final act on a weekend that has seen the sides at the top of Super League square off against those towards the bottom.
And beyond that, what looked to be “tie of the round” on paper was somewhat tainted when Wigan Warriors quite understandably rested their front-line stars for their meeting with Challenge Cup Final opponents Hull KR ahead of facing them at Wembley next weekend.
The Robins were ruthless as you’d expect while Leeds also made short work of Huddersfield but while they showed what to do, St Helens did the opposite as they were well beaten by Castleford Tigers yesterday.
That means Warrington can move joint-top of the table with a win today while also solidifying themselves firmly inside the top six – they have a fair cushion now, but they must keep building it.
This is the second of three matches in which, with due respect to their opponents, The Wire will be considered strong favourites. They have already ticked one box, now for another…
A big carrot to dangle
After this game, Warrington are not in action again until Hull FC visit The Halliwell Jones Stadium on June 5.
Of course, it is not a break they would have wanted as, if all had gone to plan, focus would have been turning to Wembley next weekend. However, Hull KR put paid to those plans earlier this month so The Wire will join 12 of their Super League rivals in powering down for a week.
After that, though, it will be full steam ahead until – hopefully – October 3, and their schedule will also likely include a midweek trip to Hull KR for their delayed Round Two fixture.
With that being said, this is a valuable opportunity to refresh and recharge but for now, the Wire squad have a job to do.
With the prospect of an extended period of time off to follow, there will surely be no need for any further motivation to empty the tank today.
Seminal moment for Burgess
Wire’s head coach can be forgiven for feeling a little sentimental today.
While he may not admit it publicly, this game against the club with whom he first made his breakthrough will have been circled on the calendar for him when it became clear that Bradford were returning to Super League.
Indeed, this will be his first official reunion with the Bulls since leaving Odsal to join South Sydney Rabbitohs and embarking upon the stellar career that followed.
Both Burgess and Bradford have been through plenty since then, but today as well as August’s trip to Odsal will no doubt be special for him.
Beware the Bulls
This is the last of the newly-promoted clubs that Warrington have run into this season, and the previous two games have gone similar ways.
Wire won by eight points at Toulouse last week, as they did at York back in March, but not before being given a big scare by opponents they were expected to brush aside with ease.
If Burgess’ boys weren’t acutely aware that these sides are perfectly equipped to exploit any lapses in performance before, they surely are now having come way too close to seeing a 24-point lead gobbled up for comfort in France.
Bradford are yet to win on the road this year but they have demonstrated that they can damage teams – they have scored at least two tries in every Super League game this year and of sides currently outside the top six, only Catalans (211) have scored more points than their 208.
They are vulnerable defensively – their 299 points against is the second-highest figure in the competition after Castleford Tigers (346) but they play the kind of care-free, swashbuckling rugby that can catch teams off-guard.
What fans will be keen to see is their side treating this fixture with the utmost respect and professionalism.
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