Warrington V St Helens - Preview

Former St Helens favourite Martin Gleeson will be the centre of attention at Warrington?s Halliwell Jones Stadium on Friday night.

The Great Britain three-quarter will be facing his old team-mates in the Engage Super League for the first time since his move from Knowsley Road last summer, when he joined his younger brother Mark at the Wolves on a four-year deal.

Gleeson said: ?I?ve settled in at Warrington really well. The lads are a great bunch and have made me feel part of it. It helps with having our kid here as well.

?I can?t wait for this match. I?m still good mates with the lads at Saints and I see them regularly, although not this week.

?We?ve only one win in three so we need another win and we are looking at this game as a good opportunity to get our second win of the year.?

Warrington?s chances have been boosted by the loss of Saints? Great Britain duo Paul Sculthorpe and Long, who have leg injuries, in addition to the continuing absence of Jason Hooper.

Hooker Keiron Cunningham will lead the side while Mick Higham and James Roby form an untried half-back pairing and the goalkicking duties will be shared between Ian Hardman and Paul Wellens.

?It?s disappointing,? said Gleeson. ?I wanted them both to play. You want to play against the best possible team they can put out.?

Saints coach Ian Millward sees the match as an opportunity to gauge his team?s ability to cope without their two chief play-makers but he is wary of the threat posed by the talented Gleeson.

It was Millward who helped propel the Wigan-born Gleeson onto the big stage, plucking him from Huddersfield?s relegated team in 2001, and he makes no secret of the fact that the player was sold against his wishes.

?Martin is a fantastic player and I love him as a person,? said Millward. ?He didn?t want to leave and I didn?t want him to leave but there are some things you don?t have control of.?

Millward?s disappointment was tempered by his success in persuading Australia Test centre Jamie Lyon to plug the gap and he will make his fourth appearance for the club on Friday.

Lyon has made an encouraging start to his Engage Super League career but Gleeson is more concerned about facing his former team-mate Willie Talau.

?Willie was always a tough opponent in training when we played lefts versus rights,? said Gleeson. ?We?re going to be gunning for each other.

?He?s a quality player who has played for New Zealand I don?t know how many times. He has come back from injury and is just getting into his stride.?

Warrington v St Helens, Friday March 4, The Halliwell Jones Stadium

Warrington 18-man squad: Stevens, Swann, Clarke, Martin Gleeson, Briers, Wainwright, Faa?fili, Westwood, Leikvoll, Mark Gleeson, Lima, Grose, Gaskell, Pickersgill, Bracek, Kohe-Love, Hilton, Appo.

St Helens 18-man squad: Wellens, Albert, Lyon, Talau, Gardner, Higham, Roby, Fozzard, Cunningham, Anderson, Bennett, Gilmour, Wilkin, Edmondson, Fa?asavalu, Hardman, Viane, Graham.

Thanks to: http://www.superleague.co.uk for another excellent article.