IT’S fair to say that Warrington Wolves fans will be hoping for much better in 2023 following the disappointment of the 2022 Super League season.
The Cheshire club finished second bottom in the Super League table with only the relegated Toulouse Olympique below them.
Now, head coach Daryl Powell has recruited heavily for next season with the likes of Catalans Dragons trio Josh Drinkwater, Gil Dudson and Sam Kasiano, St George Illawarra Dragons forward Josh McGuire, Canterbury Bulldogs star Paul Vaughan and former Wire winger Matty Russell.
Going forward, there will be high expectation from those associated with the Warrington club to improve on the 11th-place finish in 2022 with Powell clearly feeling that his pack wasn’t strong enough.
The new signings all plug the gaps necessary to make 2023 a much more successful year, but there is still potentially one area that the Wolves could well have recruited and that is in the centres.
With Connor Wrench set to be sidelined for the early part of next season and following the departures of Jake Wardle and Toby King, Stefan Ratchford has been handed the number 4 jersey.
In 2022, Ratchford played in both the halves and fullback for the Wolves with centre perhaps the least favourite option of the three as Peter Mata’utia takes the number 3 shirt.
Matty Russell was brought in to bring depth to the Warrington backline, but someone such as the Leigh Leopards’ Nene MacDonald or their newest signing Ricky Leutele would have been headline signings.
That being said, Hull FC’s new recruit Liam Sutcliffe could have been perfect for Powell and Warrington because, not only is centre his now preferred option, the former Leeds Rhinos man can also play in the halves, at fullback and even in the back-row, making Sutcliffe the perfect player to have in a squad.
