BEING invited to observe a few days of Warrington Wolves’ training camp in Portugal gave us a rare insight into how preparations for 2023 are coming along.
With the season opener against Leeds Rhinos now less than a month away, time is starting to be of the essence and players will be competing to either cement their place in or break into Daryl Powell’s plans.
Having been in the camp in Vilamoura, our Wire reporter Matt Turner tells us who in particular caught his eye in the sessions he saw…
DANNY WALKER
The hooker looked in fine fettle in Portugal and the coaching staff are certainly impressed by what he’s delivering.
Perfect evidence of that was the “yo-yo test” that took place on Thursday, testing players’ fitness and endurance.
Walker not only won it, but he won it hands down – even going a couple more levels up despite being the last man standing.
He’s clearly in fine physical condition and if that’s anything to go by, he could be in for a big year.
JOSH MCGUIRE
For a new signing to be parachuted straight into the team’s leadership group, it tells a story of the impact they have had.
Speak to anybody inside the Wire camp, though, and they will tell you this was an easy decision.
During sessions and even outside of them, McGuire’s voice is the among the loudest and most prominent – on one occasion, he halted the work to speak to the players in his group about how they could go about things better.
He’s also a player who clearly trains how he plays – at full tilt, and sometimes that can go close to the line of on-field legality.
If Wire can keep him on the pitch, he will surely have a big impact.
PETER MATA’UTIA
Reading fans forums and social media, you get the sense supporters aren’t exactly convinced by what they have seen from the centre so far.
That does not stretch to the dressing room, however, where he is extremely highly valued by players and coaches alike.
He is another player whose voice is heard frequently during sessions, driving his teammates on and pushing them.
With the ball, he looks sharper and a yard quicker too so it will be interesting to see how that translates into a match situation.
With his contract entering it’s final year, it is a big year for the Samoan international.
MATT DUFTY
One of the great hopes for 2023 is that we see Matt Dufty in full flight and being the danger those who follow the NRL know he can be.
The six-game “sighter” he had at the end of 2022 saw him carry a foot injury sustained in his debut at Huddersfield, but he still made somewhat of an impact by touching down five times and performing so well in that crunch match with Toulouse.
With the niggles behind him and with a full pre-season under his belt, he looked the part in Portugal – another big voice at the back and with the ball, he was doing some fantastic things.
JOE PHILBIN
Including an injured player on this list may appear strange, but there’s justification aplenty for it.
In the final stages of his recovery from the dreaded ACL, Philbin’s fitness stats are seriously impressing the coaching and medical staff.
Indeed, he is even outperforming some of his fully-fit peers on that front!
He still has a little bit to do before he can get back on the field of play – the Round Four trip to Hull KR is believed to be a tentative target for his return – but he is certainly ticking boxes emphatically.
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