Wakefield Wildcats: Let's finish the season on a high '“ Dickens

ASSISTANT-COACH STUART Dickens says Wakefield Trinity Wildcats are determined to end the season on a high.
Stuart Dickens.Stuart Dickens.
Stuart Dickens.

Trinity will aim to break their duck in the First Utility Super-8s – and climb a place to seventh – when they visit Widnes Vikings tomorrow.

They have lost all three league games since securing their spot in the top-eight, but Dickens insisted: “We still want to finish as high as we can.”

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He stressed: “We are happy we’ve made the top-eight and progressed from last season, but we’re not happy to sit back and rest on our laurels.

“There’s still seventh place to compete for. We are still looking up and we’re looking to finish on a real high.

“We don’t want to let the hard work we’ve done through the season fritter away. We want to finish on a positive so we can go away and enjoy the off-season and come back thinking we’ve finished the season well.

“It’s not just how we see ourselves, it’s how people perceive you as well.

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“We are trying to change people’s perceptions. We don’t just want to be competitive, we will be trying really hard to pick a couple of wins up before the season finishes.

Widnes are also out of the hunt for a semi-final spot, but Dickens warned: “They are a good side and they are really, really tough to beat over there. In the time I’ve been here there’s never been an easy game against Widnes and we’re expecting nothing different this week.”

Wildcats’ injury situation is beginning to ease and Dickens said that has helped keep morale in the camp high going into tomorrow’s game. “We are pretty positive again this week,” he added.

“We’ve hopefully got a couple of bodies back which is always a bit refreshing.

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“If you get a few more bodies on the training field it gives the rest of the boys a lift as well.”

Meanwhile, Dickens admitted prop Scott Anderson’s back injury has left the player and coaching staff equally frustrated.

The Aussie has not played since the end of June and Dickens said: “He has got a bulging disc problem.

“We have to be led by his symptoms. He has been getting treatment, he has been to see a specialist, but it is one of those things – he can get up one day and feel all right.

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“He has done a little bit of running, but then a couple of days after it seems like we’ve gone back another three or four steps.

“It is purely on a daily basis with him. He has not trained with the team for a fair while now so it’s obviously frustrating for him as well, but fingers crossed he might get back before the end of the season.”

Wakefield have hooker Scott Moore and centre Bill Tupou back from injury and are set to give a debut to Warrington forward Ben Harrison in place of Jordan Crowther.

Widnes are boosted by the return of full-back Rhys Hanbury and centres Stefan Marsh and Chris Dean after missing last week’s defeat by Hull through concussion while second rower Setaimata Sa is poised to make his comeback after being out through injury since June.

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Widnes Vikings: from Ah Van, Brown, Buchanan, Burke, Cahill, J Chapelhow, Dean, Dudscon, Farrell, Gilmore, Hanbury, Heremaia, Houston, Marsh, Mellor, Sa, Thompson, White, Whitley.

Wakefield Trinity Wildcats: from Arona, Arundel, Batchelor, Fifita, Finn, Hall, Harrison, Jones-Bishop, Jowitt, Lyne, Mazive, Miller, Molloy, Moore, Scruton, Sio, B Tupou, Walton, Yates.

Referee: Gareth Hewer (Whitehaven).

Kick-off: Tomorrow, 3pm.