Widnes Vikings coach Tim Sheens says he remains in the market for new signings, but has been enthused by what he’s seen of his squad so far.
The former Australian national coach has 22 first-team players at his disposal at present, along with a handful of young triallists and others looking to step up from the Academy.
Sheens told League Express: “We’re still recruiting, so until we finalise that I don’t want to be making too many predictions.
“We’ve got some good senior payers here, but we need a bit of depth in a few positions and there’s still a bit of money there that we can spend.
“You always need another front rower and probably another back or two – a centre and maybe a fullback or halfback type player too.
“We’re trialling a few young guys who are not big names and we’re not in a hurry to make decisions.
“We’ve got 22 training, including some good Academy lads who are now too old because the age has dropped to 18s.
“There are two or three really good kids there, and I’ve got my eyes on a couple of others as well.”
Close-season signing Shane Grady is continuing to recover from a knee injury but should be fit for the start of the season, and Sheens has been impressed with another recent recruit.
He said: “Logan Tomkins started with us on Tuesday and he’s looking good.
“He looks even better than when I first came over here to work with Salford three years ago.
“He’s definitely improved and at 27 he’s in his prime now.”
Sheens has also relished his own return to the field after leaving Hull KR towards the end of last season.
He added: “I’m out there with the whistle a lot and coaching is what I enjoy; it’s what I’ve done for so many years.
“At some stage they might wheel me out and I’ll have to do some backroom stuff somewhere, but I’m still enjoying it.
“We’ve set the place up well now with some principles and a leadership group in place, and the guys have been training well.”
