Marshall: Good to be back
- Liam Marshall looks ahead to tonight’s game against Wakefield Trinity.
- Marshall: “Hopefully I can build as each week goes and get back into form after a run of games.”
- Wakefield Trinity v Wigan Warriors, Thursday 24th June, Mobile Rocket Stadium, 7:45pm K.O.
Liam Marshall says he is looking to build confidence and help Wigan return to winning ways as they take on Wakefield Trinity at the Mobile Rocket Stadium this evening (K.O. 7:45pm).
The 25-year-old winger returned to action last week against Hull KR, in his first game for over ten months after suffering an ACL injury back in September.
After his lengthy spell on the sidelines, Marshall is delighted to be playing rugby again.
He said: “It was good to get back out on the field, even though it wasn’t the result we wanted. I was a bit rusty, but I think that’s to be expected after such a long time out. Hopefully I can build as each week goes and get back into form after a run of games.
“I just want a few games under my belt and build up some confidence because I’m not quite up to speed yet. It will be tough but it’s something I knew was coming. Hopefully I can contribute to the team getting back to winning ways and help us go on a good run.”
Marshall knows he has to take things one step at a time as he looks to get back to his best.
“I’m taking things week by week, game by game. It’s hard to ease yourself back in with because of the intensity of Super League. With the schedule I need to make sure my body is right going into each game to give myself the best chance of performing.”
With back-to-back defeats in the last two games for Wigan, Marshall believes they need to focus on doing the simple things right in order to get back on the right track.
“It seems like we haven’t had a win for such a long time because of how the schedule has worked out. As a team we need to nail down the basic thing and hopefully we will get the results off the back of that.
“It’s tough to play yourself out of a bad run of form, but we can’t force it by doing more than we usually would. We need to strip things back in attack to cut out errors, whilst making sure we do our jobs in defence by being solid. Doing that will give us a good foundation to build on, where we can add a bit more flare.”
Despite losing to Hull KR last time out, Marshall was pleased to see a crowd back inside the DW Stadium.
“It’s a lot better with fans. Without them it’s strange and a different challenge because it doesn’t have the same intensity or atmosphere that gives you that little bit of an extra drive. Hopefully as the season progresses, we will be able to get more people in to return to a bit of normality.”
Marshall is expecting a tough clash against tonight’s opponents Wakefield, with previous encounters showing that they’re not to be underestimated.
“Wakefield is renowned for being a tough place to go, but it is a challenge we are looking forward to. They have a big pack of forwards as well as some threats out wide. As a team we know what we need to do to right some wrongs.”
With England taking on a Combined Nations All Stars side on Friday night, Wigan will be without some key personal in tonight’s game.
Marshall said: “It has affected us because we’ve got lads in new positions moving around, but apart from that we have trained pretty well. We knew in advance we’d be missing a few so geared our training, and so far, people have slotted in well.”
As a fan, Marshall states he is looking forward to seeing England in action, with John Bateman and Liam Farrell in Shaun Wane’s squad, whilst Jackson Hastings is co-captain of the All Stars.
“It’s an exciting concept and it will be good to see a high standard game. It will be good prep to see what our lads have got. I will be watching it and cheering on the boys.”
By Amos Wynn
