WIGAN will have to cope without star fullback Jai Field for up to two months following his Wembley injury – and they have fresh concerns over Kruise Leeming and Jake Wardle.
Field suffered a hamstring problem in the Warriors’ Challenge Cup final win over Warrington earlier this month.
He played the full game to help his side triumph but a lengthy lay-off has since been confirmed by Matt Peet.
“It’ll be around the six-to-eight-week mark,” said the Wigan coach.
“To be honest, because he finished the game, I thought it would be two or three, so initially I was a bit surprised.”
Peet hailed the fact that Field “played through the pain barrier” with the injury, which was suffered early in the game, to help his side win the Cup.
“I think it shouldn’t go unnoticed or unappreciated how special it was what he did that day, because if he had opted out, we would have been up against it,” he added.
“It makes me realise how tough he played that day. We won’t rush him back.”
Bevan French deputised at fullback in Wigan’s win at Castleford the week after Wembley, moving from stand-off where Ryan Hampshire was promoted into the side.
Hampshire himself can also play at the back, with both options used already this season when Field has been unavailable.
But the absence of one of Super League’s most exciting players is nonetheless a major setback for Wigan as they aim to finish top of the table for a second season running.
Field has scored 44 tries in 73 games for the Warriors, with that recent Challenge Cup title the fifth piece of silverware he has won with the club.
Leeming and Wardle – a likely pick for England coach Shaun Wane if fit – both suffered ankle injuries in Friday’s win against London, with the severity yet to be determined.
* Wigan Chairman Chris Brookes will feature in this week’s League Express Podcast to talk about his career and about his club. The Podcast can be heard on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and other podcast platforms and it can be viewed on YouTube by going to https://www.youtube.com/@totalrugbyleague5093. The Podcast will go online at 4.30pm.
First published in League Express newspaper, Issue 3,436 (June 24, 2024)
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