Super League test for Widnes Vikings

Dec 24 2008 by Paul Glynn, Runcorn and Widnes Weekly News

NEW-LOOK Widnes Vikings face their first real test against St Helens at GPW Recruitment Stadium on Saturday.

Steve McCormack’s men, who have endured a rigorous pre-season campaign so far, will get the chance to measure themselves against Super League opposition at the old Knowsley Road.

Coach McCormack, who recently returned from World Cup duty in Australia with Scotland, is promising Vikings fans they will see a galvanised and much less predictable Widnes line-up, as of this Saturday.

He said: “We’ve purposely done a different pre-season to ensure that we’re in decent nick, as it’s going to be a big year for us.

“We’ve got a new bunch of players this season and so have changed the way that we play a bit, which you have to, because you can’t stand still in this game.

“Last year at times we were possibly a bit predictable going forward, so we’ve been doing a lot of pattern play, working with our pivots and we have a lot of options now in most positions.”

He added: “There’s still two months to go until the start of the season, which is a long way off, but all of the hard conditioning work has been done and it’s about getting match fitness now.

“St Helens is always a difficult game, but we’ve got a good working relationship with them and we will be taking this game very seriously.

“We appreciate our fans spending their time and money on coming to watch us over the Christmas period and so we want to put on a performance to match their support.”

Widnes are expected to be without two of their ‘new’ signings Toa Kohe-Love and Lee Doran, who have rejoined the Vikings for 2009, for the weekend’s friendly.

Kohe-Love definitely misses the game after returning to his native New Zealand for Christmas – as agreed when he re-signed in the close season.

Meanwhile, Ireland international Doran’s partner is expecting to have the couple’s baby on Saturday and therefore he is unlikely to feature.

Injured duo Lee Paterson and Steve Bannister are the only other absentees from Vikings’ squad to face Saints.

New boy Bannister broke his left leg during a training accident last week, while Scotland international Paterson is recovering from a serious knee injury received at the World Cup.

Widnes squad: Wildbore, Gaskell, Varkulis, Mills, Thackeray, Webster, Morrison, Smith, Gannon, Fletcher, Duffy, Hartley, Dodd, Kavanagh, Strong, Ostick, Thompson, Yates, Flynn, Grady, Simm, Mullally and Robinson.