Warrington Wolves head to Wakefield on Sunday desperate for a win before the international break.
Trinity are fresh from bagging their first in seven in Super League, and eight in all competitions, after Jacob Miller’s field-goal sealed a 19-18 extra-time triumph over Hull at the Be Well Support Stadium.
That hoisted Willie Poching’s side four points above basement team Toulouse.
Long-overdue redevelopment of their famous old Belle Vue ground is due to start next month with the demolition and subsequent replacement of the main stand – and from the perspective of Wakefield if not expansionists, it’s so important top-flight status is retained.
Meanwhile, just what is going on at Warrington?
The Daryl Powell era started reasonably enough for the Wolves, with three successive wins.
But in twelve games since, there have been ten defeats, two of them by Wakefield, who won at the Halliwell Jones Stadium in Super League and Challenge Cup in consecutive weeks in March.
Warrington are just a place and two points above Wakefield after four defeats on the bounce, the most recent at the hands of Leeds who, with Kruise Leeming a livewire hooker, romped to a 40-4 victory at the Halliwell Jones Stadium.
There was some encouragement from the performance in the previous game, the 12-10 home setback against St Helens.
But Friday’s display was dismal, and while the Rhinos faithful celebrated a second successive win under recently-arrived coach Rohan Smith, many Wolves fans vented their frustration, with Powell and his players booed both at half-time and the end of the game.
In the heat of the moment following the final whistle, forwards Mike Cooper and Ben Currie entered the North Stand to confront one angry supporter.
There was no shortage of criticism on social media afterwards, with suggestions of unrest among the squad as Powell puts his stamp on the club.
But the former Castleford coach insisted: “There’s positive steps being made, but that doesn’t discount from tonight not being good enough. I’m not going to hide away from that.
“It’s pretty disappointing that we can’t string two high-quality performances together.
“I’ve said to the boys that we’re going to have to change what we’re doing a little bit because clearly, we need to be more consistent. That hasn’t happened yet this season.
“We’ve got to find a way of making sure we win next week and then we can make positive steps to try and find some consistency.
“We’re working hard but we’ve got to do better.”
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