Wakefield Trinity v St Helens: Trinity planning for next season

Trinity, who meet champions St Helens in a ‘home’ fixture at Emerald Headingley tomorrow afternoon, are bottom of Betfred Super League and have suffered eight successive defeats since the coronavirus shutdown ended. But, with no relegation this year, the pressure is off and coach Chris Chester admitted his thoughts are now turning to ensuring Trinity go into next season in good shape.

“We are probably going to look at freshening the team up this week and give some guys an opportunity,” Chester said.

“We have got a couple of short turnarounds coming up and we’ve had the travel to Catalans – there and back in a day – and I think it’s a really good opportunity to see some fringe first teamers play and try and play some guys into form.

“We are trying to build some momentum going into next year; that’s how we are treating it at this moment in time.”

Chester added: “I am expecting people like Brad Walker to get a run out and Innes Senior is back from Covid.

“It is a really good opportunity now, over the next two or three weeks, to have a look at some guys and see some young kids play and just see where we go. We have got to try and take some positivity and take something into pre-season to work with.”

Chester accepts his side have not adapted to new rules brought in since rugby league resumed in August and that is something they will be focusing on from now until the end of the campaign.

“We recruited the way we did not knowing things were going to change so dramatically,” he admitted.

“Probably my team, more than any other team, have struggled with the rule changes. We just have to get to grips with it.

“I am not making any excuses – we haven’t been good enough over the last six or seven weeks – but we have got a good opportunity now until the end of the year to try and work on a few things. That’s what we will do and we will see where it takes us. I am really looking forward to [today], it will be a good test for us and for a couple of young kids.”

Meanwhile, Trinity’s CEO Michael Carter says he feels there is “no logic” behind some of the track-and-trace analysis policy after revealing one positive Covid test had led to nine players in total missing tomorrow’s game against St Helens.

Trinity say they will play at Emerald Headingley despite being down to their last 17 players.

Even then, Carter explained: “Ultimately we’ve got 14 fit players and three guys out of a group of about five who played rock, paper, scissors to see who’s the least injured.”

Carter added: “We came back [from France] on a private plane and had to bring the [match] officials with us, so there is an element of the fact that some people are a little bit closer than they should be.

“The fact then we get one positive on Monday morning means suddenly we’re facing 10, 12 players standing down just because of that one positive test.

“For me, there’s just no logic in it anymore.”

According to the team news released before the latest coronavirus test results were revealed, big forward Dave Fifita will return this week after various Covid-related lay-offs.

Chester added: “It will be nice to get a big-name player back; we have certainly missed him.

“We know we are a better team when Dave is in there and playing well. He has had to be stood down twice now through track-and-trace procedures.”

Along with Fifita, Walker and Senior, other players back in contention are Max Jowitt, Jack Croft, Ryan Hampshire, Eddie Battye and James Batchelor, whose brother Joe is included in Saints’ squad. Bill Tupou, Tony Gigot and Joe Westerman drop out from the team beaten in France last Sunday.

Tommy Makinson has completed a five-game ban – for a ‘squirrel grip’ tackle on Castleford’s Liam Watts – and is set to feature for Saints.

Matty Costello drops out from their initial 21.

Wakefield Trinity: from A Walker, Johnstone, Lyne, Jones-Bishop, Miller, Fifita, K Wood, Arona, Ashurst, Pitts, Kopczak, James Batchelor, Tangata, Crowther, Jowitt, Croft, B Walker, Hampshire, Tanginoa, Senior, Battye.

St Helens: from Coote, Makinson, Naiqama, Grace, Lomax, Fages, Walmsley, Roby, Taia, Peyroux, McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Knowles, Lees, Amor, Smith, Bentley, Welsby, Joe Batchelor, Simm, Dodd, Graham.

Referee: Liam Moore (Wigan).

Kick-off: Tomorrow, 5.30pm.