Wigan’s two-try hero Jake Bibby says he’ll play anywhere in the Warriors’ backline after winger Jai Field hurt his hamstring on Friday night.
Bibby was moved from the centre to the wing after Field was taken off in the first half in the round one victory over Leigh.
The 24-year-old thrived on the flank, scoring two tries to seal a memorable 20-18 comeback win.
With injuries already to the likes of Dom Manfredi, Liam Marshall and Oliver Gildart, along with Bevan French’s unavailability, Bibby could stay on the wing in round two against Wakefield this Thursday.
“I really didn’t expect to get a double,” said Bibby, who also scored Wigan’s only try in November’s Grand Final.
“I always try and get on the scoresheet but obviously a double is even better. I didn’t even expect to be on the wing. What happened to Jai is a shame as I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do.
“I was just happy to play at centre because I didn’t play much in the centres last year because of injuries. But I’m happy to play anywhere if it helps the team.
“We’re missing several first-team players, but we’ve got pretty good depth with our young players so we should be alright.”
The Centurions raced to an early 18-0 lead in the first half and an upset looked on the cards.
But Bibby’s 36th minute score sparked a turnaround and he crossed again on 65 minutes, backing up a Zak Hardaker break, to give Wigan the win.
“All the team knew Leigh what would do – we never underestimated them, we knew they’d start fast and strong,” the former Salford man said.
“It took us a while to get going and when it was 18-0 we were looking at each other thinking this will be alright and we had to flick a switch and turn ourselves around. We weren’t playing our best and Leigh came out firing.
“After half-time we had to change our attitude, which we did. Luckily we got that late try and held out in the end.
“It was a gritty win. We showed in the Grand Final that we can hang with any team until the last second.”
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