February 2002
29th February 2002. The Wires' four injury worries for their Super League opener against Halifax Blue Sox have been passed fit.Matt Rodwell, Lee Briers, Paul Wood and Darren Burns have all been cleared to play in the home game.Performance director Steve Anderson commented: "I am delighted to have a full-strength squad that I can choose from as we go into the opening rounds of the league."
28th February 2002.Matt Rodwell has declared himself fit to face Halifax on Sunday.Although he may not be picked.
Wire captain Matt Rodwell has identified consistancy as the key to success this year,it is the first time Matt will have played a season in the UK and he and the other 15 newcomers would like to make a good impression and press for a top six spot "Last year Warrington were beating the likes of Bradford and then struggling against Salford ,This is what Steve Anderson wants to turn round,if we can be consistant over 28 rounds then surely we must be looking at a top 6 spot.whilst teams do not want to talk up their chances,you have got to aim for something and if you are not aiming for a play off spot you should not be playing.there has been a lot of talk of Warrington not giving 100% all of the time and I think that is somewhere we can improve a lot and show the fans that we are going to give it a go.
On being asked what the Wire fans can expect this year first team coach David Plange said "Warrington fans should be turning up for games expecting to see 17 committed players on the field, at the start of the season we didn't have the budget to bring in Superstars,so we have gone for players with a good work ethic,a lot of young players who have come through the system at Warrington will also be getting a chance for example Gary Hulse Mark Gleeson and Steve Maden.Jon Clarke has been a revelation he is still only young and the improvement on last year has been remarkable."
The Wire have signed 16 year old Steven Pickersgill from Crosfield Amateurs ,Steven is the son of Roy Pickersgill who played for Warrington in the 1970's.The Squadbuilder scheme recently set up by Wire fans has helped the club capture the talented youngster.Steven born and brought up in Warrington has been through the clubs developement camps ,he is currently studying for his GCSE's at Penketh High School he will receive an educational apprenticeship at Warrington and will play a key role in the newly formed under 17's academy team coached by well known Wire player Gary Chambers.Gary said " From the Wolves point of view it is important that every effort is made to sign players of Steven's ability .His development through the camps and scholarship has been excellent and the work done by Crosfields has paid dividends."" Steven's signing is the first step into introducing more players from warrington to play for Warrington."
Squad to play Halifax on Sunday KO 3pm Dave Alstead, Rob Smyth, Lee Penny, Dave Kidwell, Leon Felton, Tommy O'Reilly, Jon Clarke, Mark Gleeson, Dale Laughton, Mark Hilton, Paul Marquet, Dean Busby, Sid Domic, Steve Maden, Paul Noone, Matt Sturm, Dale Cardoza, Kevin Crouthers, Jon Hill.
26th February 2002.. Wire captain Matt Rodwell could miss the match with Halifax on Sunday after injuring his eye. Jerome Guisset (fractured tibia) is out and Lee Briers (knee ligaments) is a doubt while Darren Burns will face fitness test after an ankle knock.
22nd February 2002..
WARRINGTON 14-36 ST HELENS
Holders St Helens progressed into the sixth round of the Kellogg's nutri-Grain Challenge Cup despite a battling display from the Wire at Wilderspool. Tom O'Reilly pounced to open the scoring but Paul Wellens (twice) and Sean Long put the visitors in the driving seat going into the interval. Saints' Sean Hoppe crossed just after the break before debutant Paul Marquet burst through to reduce the deficit.But Anthony Stewart and a late Michael Higham effort sealed the victory .
Warrington...............................................................St Helens
Tries: O'Reilly Marquet Goals: Briers (2) Smyth.....Tries: Wellens (2)Long Hoppe Stewart Higham
Goals: Briers (2) Smyth.........................................Goals: Long 6
21st February 2002..
The Wire are hoping to muscle Saints out of the Challenge Cup on Saturday, Steve Anderson has 13 players in his train on squad for the game who can play in the forwards,Dale Cardoza is a surprise omission from the squad.Lee Briers is set to continue at full back a position he is quite happy to play he says " the new role I have is similar to what I have done before,peole have to realise it's not fullbacks standoffs and halfbacks in Ando's way." They are all similar,we want pivotal roles and if that means playing at fullback so that Steve can get someone else into a pivotal role then so be it.
" In this role I am only fullback when we are in defence,in attack I'm up there and organising like usual so to me there's not much dlfference." Tom O'Reilly at standoff captain Matt Rodwell at scrumhalf,Jon Clarke at hooker and Sid Domic at loose forward.It's Rob Smythe on one wing with Leon Felton and David Alstead in contention for the other.Centres will come from either Lee Penny David Kedwell or Steve Madden.
Anderson was pleased with the work done by props Hilton and Laughton last time out and is expected to stick with the pair,others named are Marquet , Sturm, Hill ,Wood, Busby, Burns and Paul Noone.
Injuries in training cost Jerome Guisset and Gary Hulse places both are expected to be out for up to 4 weeks with leg injuries,Guisset has a stress fracture while Hulse has ankle ligament damage.
Steve Anderson and Ian Millward go back further than Super League both it seems were at Illawarra Steelers at the same time Anderson says Ian or" Basil as I call him"was under 21's coach and I was development manger and skills coach,Ian's dad Bob got me down there and I have a lot of respect for him too.We've both got a long career in coaching which I don't think people understand .We've been through years and years to get where we are now.
My first coaching job was at 17 when I was coaching an under 17 side.Even when I was playing I was coaching,I was playing first grade at Brisbane souths and coached the 3d grade.People reckoned Basil was inexperienced when he signed as coach for Leighbut he had years behind him,he didn' just walk in at Leigh and start from scratch.
Wolves on the Road. With their car bedecked in Warrington colours and loud speaker, Director of community and marketing and Sean Mellor commercial manager did the rounds of Warrington promoting the Wire v Saints Cup Game on Saturday,they even gave Saints a helping hand by venturing into the St Helens area to inquire if anyone was afraid of the big bad wolf.Kick off is 3pm tickets can be had if available on 01925235005 between 9am and 5pm.
The naming rights for the Warrington Wolves new stadium are at the moment in the hands of Tesco,Wire finance director Neil Dowson has revealed that Warrington are in negotiations to get the naming rights for the stadium in the clubs hands,if this situation is not resolved it would make The Tesco Stadium as the favourite title although this would not be popular with Wolves fans who have suggested The Wolves Den or The New Wilderspool or the Brian Bevan Stadium.However if the club were to hold naming rights this could be worth up to £1 million pounds .
Speaking after the launch Wolves chief executive Andy Gatcliffe said " Tesco have been a very good partner and as well as building a superstoreas part of the developement the company has providesd £5 million pounds towards the cost of the stadium.The club are also looking at the naming rights for the four stands."
The latest plans have the stadium and store separated by a car park,the original plan envisage the stadium as an integral part of the store,there is also a different arrangement for seating and standing,new plans will have standing at one end and along one of the touchlines.
Martial arts in Warrington received good news when it was revealed that a purpose built centre of excellence for the sport is to be created within the stadiums facilities and is likely to involve Warrington's highly respected expert in the sport Paul Graham of Cheshire Martial Arts Karate Club in the set up.
A 450 seat corporate banqueting suite is also envisaged as are educational classrooms and community rooms for the people n the aerea to use.It is hoped the stadium would be ready for Rugby Super League 1X 2004.
The Warrington Wolves community partnership scheme is entering it's 3rd year, the scheme encourages local busineses to buy season tickets which are them donated to disadvantaged and underprivileged supporters .The tickets give the user a seat in the Bevan Stand plus a match programme and a chance to meet the players.Tickets cost £ 192 for one £380 a pair or £ 1,000 for 5.For details call Adam on 01925635338 or write to him at Wilderspol stadium Fletcher St Warrington WA4 6PV.
14th February 2002..
Steve Anderson was not impressed with winter rugby at Barrow last weekend,” how winter rugby was ever played in this country I will never know, I cannot believe that winter rugby was persisted with for so long after Sunday it is a complete joke.” Said Anderson.” It hinders the spectators view and the players performance, my comments are not meant to be derogatory to English league but it’s fact. I was watching our game against Barrow and I thought to myself there’s a question mark over it. There are still people here who want winter rugby why? Let’s move on.” Anderson continued “ Neither side could do anything in attack it was pointless, the wind was blowing the ball from dummy half to our first receivers.”
Sid Domic predicts Lee Briers will have a good year Domic says “ some people are complaining that Lee should play stand off , but anyone who watched the Barrow game would have seen Lee at stand off when we are attacking and so far this year he has been playing a great style of football.” Despite playing in the worst conditions ever at Barrow on Sunday Sid says he is enjoying his rugby, a really funny moment on Sunday had me really laughing, When Burnsy ( Darren Burns)kicked through to score I had to laugh seeing him put a kick through it looked ridiculous but it was great when he scored,” Domic was asked if he had seen Burnsy kick before “ I’ve Seen him try” was the reply.
The final piece of the Wolves jigsaw flew into Britain this week Paul “Pepe” Marquet the Grand Final winning forward is in an as yet unnamed 18 man squad for the Challenge Cup game against St Helens on Saturday February 23rd at Wilderspool kick off 3pm.The Match will not be all ticket but fans are being advised to get tickets early as Warrington are expecting a large crowd. Adam Jude director of communications and marketing said” The Wolves record super league crowd was against St Helens and that match was live on Sky. Saints are a well supported side and we expect them to bring 4,000 fans. Brian Bevan season ticket holders have until 5pm tomorrow Friday to reserve their seat before they go on general sale on Saturday at 9am.
Steve Anderson again asks fans to be patient with the team do not expect miracles early on it is a rebuilt team and it must be given time to gel. Anderson says “ From a fans perspective they’ve got to judge us on what we produce rather than pre-empt, like they have been doing.
The spectators have to appreciate that I have cleaned the joint out. This is new group of players and a lot of them are young players, with youth comes enthusiasm but at the same time there is experience attached, the only way to get experience is to expose the players. I intent to bring the young players through, they’ll be tested .Teams will notice when we have young players on the park and they will be targeted by the opposition,” Anderson has heard fans ask why the Wire never put 50 past Barrow.
He says to that “ you have to crawl before you can walk, the crawling has been the defensive work we have been putting in and it is paying off, not one Wire player will crumble against St Helens, we have built a very competitive environment for that reason. There will be times in the season when we are going to struggle, it is the true mettle of a side that can regroup and that’s what we have been doing in training.
Saints have a very free-flowing game and that has taken a number of years to achieve, our team is new and for that reason we will have to play a very structured game. I have to do it because the players are new to each other in terms of the football we will play.
Warrington’s finances have shown a steady improvement over the past twelve months, losses of £ 800,000 a year have been reduced to £ 200,000 , with the new stadium on he horizon plenty of companies have been showing an interest in the corporate side of the club, boxes or tables in the executive room on match days. Merchandise sales are also doing well alongside record sales of season tickets,
A credit card with the club’s logo is also planned.
12th February 2002 Steve Anderson will be drawing inspiration from Leeds' recent win over Bradford after being drawn to face St Helens in the Challenge Cup. It is 33 years since the Wire last defeated holders Saints in the competition. He said: "To win a Challenge Cup you have to beat strong sides, which Leeds had to do against Bradford (17-4)." I'm afraid Warrington will have to pull a performance out of the top drawer if they are to beat a Saints side that seems to be in quite good form ,Sean Long's return has added a new dimension to their game ,judging by recent performances the Wire do not instill any confidence in their ability to put one over the Saints but we can live in hope.The game it is reported will be televised live on Saturday 23rd February.
11th February 2002 Warrington draw St Helens in Challenge Cup, tie to be played week ending 23/24 February.
10thFebruary 2002 It took the Wire 52 minutes to break the resolve of Barrow in the Challenge Cup fourth round. On a quagmire of a pitch, Barrow covered themselves in mud and glory in a scoreless first half as the Wolves threw everything at them. But the home side could not prevent Darren Burns chipping through the Barrow cover and won the race to score.The Lee Briers fed Dave Kidwell to go over for the try,it's all very well for coach Anderson to say they will not be fully ready before Super League starts but I would have thought taking Barrow out would have been less hard work than they made of it.Let's hope that they are a bit nearer ready for the next round ,they may come up against Leigh.Final Score Barrow 0 Warrington 10
7th February 2002. Lee Briers stand off? There is a possibility that Lee Briers will start as stand off against Barrow on Sunday, Briers has not played at half back in any of the clubs preseason games but he could get the nod if Tommy O’Reilly is not fit after injuring a hamstring during the clubs defeat by Salford recently. Although Steve Maden, Leon Felton and Dale Cardoza are also carrying injuries they are in the provisional team line up , but will have to prove themselves fully fit to get into Anderson’s line up. Sid Domic started the last two trial games at stand off alongside Matt Rodwell,Briers spent most of his time at full back where he will play on Sunday should O’Reilly be fit to play, Briers at stand off would leave the full back spot open for Lee Penny , David Alstead or Leon Felton.
Winger Rob Smyth is expected to figure after returning to the squad after surgery on a shoulder problem, If a fit squad is available the team is expected to be ;Lee Briers; Leon Felton; Steve Maden; Dale Cardoza ; Rob Smyth; Tommy O’Reilly; Matt Rodwell; Mark Hilton; Jon Clarke; Dale Laughton; Darren Burns; Jerome Guisset; Sid Domic; Subs to be announced.
The week spent at Lilleshall was worthwhile said Anderson, “Refinement on defensive work has been a priority and we have been developing our defensive strategies.The camp was also an alcohol free zone.
Sid Domic is expected to make a big impression on the Wire fans over the coming season, he has really impressed in the pre season games he has played in. Expected to be another hit is the new alternative strip which is predominantly yellow or primrose as it is known, it is the first strip to be mainly primrose since the 1970’s,The shirt will go on sale on February 26th when the Wire will officially hand the squad their jerseys and squad numbers for the coming campaign at a special event.