Warrington Wolves boss previews Hull KR Challenge Cup trip

MT: It looks like the camp continues to look pretty fresh?

SP: Other than Ryan, Stef and Kev being out, we are looking pretty good. There’s no injury concerns

We looked after Daz Clark a little bit on Saturday which gave Danny Walker the opportunity. We’re all fresh.

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MT: I was going to come onto Danny – it was good to see him getting a run. The last time he played at Wakefield he had a lot of defending to do but he showed a bit of what he can do with ball in hand on Saturday.

SP: He’s a good little player, Danny. All the players love having him around – he’s a bit of a joker and a lively sort of guy.

It was good to see him get out there. He’s been working very hard on his defence in training and has been doing everything right so it was a really solid performance from him.

MT: It may have surprised a few that Joe Philbin won our MOTM poll from Saturday, but it shows how solid his performance was.

SP: He got the chance to start again, which he got a taste of four or five weeks ago before going back to the bench. He showed a lot of intent early on.

All 17 contributed – I was really impressed with what Toby King did through the game and Blake Austin came up with some big moments.

We’re not about individuals here, it’s about the team and I was really pleased with the team performance.

It was another tough game – it had semi-final intensity.

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MT: Do you think Philbs is ready to start more games?

SP: Time will tell – his performances will dictate that. I’m looking for a lot more consistency from him.

If he keeps knocking out displays like that, he’s going to give me a really good headache. That’s what I want.

Joe Philbin impressed when starting at loose forward against Wigan. Picture by Mike Boden

MT: I personally thought Ben Currie had his best game since coming back – do you feel he’s starting to get up to the levels we know he can reach?

SP: I think that was his 12th game back – there’s been no pressure on him from us to get back to the Ben Currie of old as I know that’s going to take time.

I was really pleased with BC’s performance at the weekend. There were a lot of hard effort areas he was contributing to off the ball that pleased the coaches.

If he keeps building all those little areas, the big picture will take care of itself.

He can take a lot of confidence out of the weekend – I thought he played tough and was on point with his defence.

The more games he plays, the better Ben will be and we’re happy with how he’s progressing.

MT: Camp must be a good place to be at the moment after such a special day on Saturday?

SP: We had fantastic support – they deserve a big mention. There was some fantastic singing and they made the most noise.

We’re very appreciative of the support they showed – thank you to all of them.

Wire fans turned out in great numbers at Anfield. Picture by Mike Boden

MT: A slightly shorter turnaround now going into Hull KR. Ideally, would you have liked a little more time?

SP: No, not really. We have a six-day turnaround but they played on Sunday so they only have five.

We’ll cop that. We wouldn’t want it any other way.

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MT: Are there any areas in which you want to see particular improvement from?

SP: Defensively, we have to be on point. Their kicking game through Josh Drinkwater and Danny McGuire has been their big focus for a long time now.

We’ve got to be prepared for a couple of trick plays from Hull KR.

Offensively, we just have to keep building our game. We’re always talking about chasing that perfect display – we get that it’s a work in progress but we’re taking some good steps forward.

The Wire won 54-6 at Hull KR on Easter Monday. Picture by Mike Boden

MT: As you just said, you’ve got to expect the unexpected from any team coached by Tim Sheens haven’t you?

SP: 100 per cent – we always prepare well but it’s a matter of what we take in between the ears now.

We’ll go down there on Thursday, stay overnight and then tune up to go again on Friday.

We need our best performance to date. It’s knockout football and we only get one chance.

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