Lam previews Catalans

Warriors News · October 12, 2020

Adrian Lam looks ahead to Thursday’s Betfred Super League clash with Catalans.
Lam: “We want to try and back up our last performance with another strong performance.”
Wigan Warriors vs Catalans Dragons, Thursday 15th October, Halliwell Jones Stadium, K.O. 5:30pm.

The Wigan squad are very well aware of the threats posed by this week’s opposition Catalans, according to Head Coach Adrian Lam.

The Warriors take on Steve McNamara’s side on Thursday at Warrington’s Halliwell Jones Stadium in a battle of second versus third (K.O. 5:30pm).

Speaking in his weekly press conference via zoom link, Lam discussed the dangers of playing the in-form Perpignan outfit.

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“There’s a lot of ex-Wigan players in their team who are going to want to do well, as they do every time.

“We’ve had issues with them in the past, such as last season in Barcelona. We know what they are capable of and if we’re not on our guard I’m sure they could hurt us.”

The Warriors head into the Betfred Super League Round 16 clash off the back of an important victory over Warrington in Round 15.

With last week’s win fresh on his mind, the Papua New Guinean hopes the momentum can carry through to this Thursday’s game.

“We want to try and back up our last performance with another strong performance.”

How the Super League table looks after Round 15

Which four teams make the play-offs? #SuperLeague pic.twitter.com/05bn5tfuVg
— Betfred Super League (@SuperLeague) October 12, 2020

This unprecedented 2020 season has seen Wigan cope for many weeks without a number of experienced players. With the final stretch of the season in sight, Lam explained how important it will be to keep his squad fresh.

“We are getting a lot of experienced players back in the coming weeks so a lot of players may miss out, but we’ve done a pretty good job with the young ones.

“We’ve got to prioritise our first 17, and as we improve, try and rate that squad to ensure everyone is fresh for the end of the season.”

On the injury front, the Head Coach had a couple of updates ahead of Tuesday’s 21-man squad announcement.

Clubb last featured for Wigan against Huddersfield at the start of March.

Having not featured in a squad since the restart due to a neck injury, there was positive news for one experienced prop-forward. “Tony Clubb is available this week.”

In contrast, their was an update on the ankle injury of young forward Ethan Havard, who has been sidelined since Wigan’s Coral Challenge Cup defeat to Leeds in September.

“We’ve got to clarify the extent of the injury. He’s got a high ankle sprain, so we need to find out to what level that could be.”

“It’s between 6-12 weeks as we understand it now.”