Wigan Warriors forward could make timely comeback in Grand Final after Catalans Dragons star receives all-clear
The 22-year-old, who made his England debut in April, has been out with a hamstring injury since early July but is set to make a timely return after replacing Cade Cust in the only change to Peet’s squad.
“He’s fit,” Peet stated during the Grand Final press conference on Thursday at Old Trafford.
“There’s always some risk when a player returns from injury, but we wouldn’t put him in there if he hadn’t gone through all the necessary checks.”
“He’s been training at high speeds all week.” The physios are experienced in rehabilitating injured players, so he’s ready to go.”
Catalans head coach Steve McNamara will also make his selection from a strong team after Mitchell Pearce survived an injury scare to guide the Dragons to a thrilling semi-final triumph over St Helens.
Following the Old Trafford decider, the Australian half-back will retire from the game.
“He’s been fine and is in a great place,” McNamara explained.
“There was some damage done in the Salford game.” We were lucky to have a week off after that, which allowed him to play in the semi-final.
“He’s done well in that regard.” He’s better this week than previous, and he’s ready.”
Pearce, who won a Grand Final with the Sydney Roosters during his NRL career, will retire on the same night as former England captain Sam Tomkins.
Tomkins, 34, is playing his final game against the club where he earned his reputation after breaking onto the scene as a teenager.
During his two stints at Wigan, Tomkins won three Grand Finals and the Challenge Cup thrice.
After scoring the winning try against Saints, the full-back set up a fairytale finish, but McNamara believes the attention should be on Catalans’ homegrown stars in the club’s drive for its first Super League title.
“There’s a lot of talk around Sam, his connection with Wigan, and his last game – and rightly so,” added McNamara, whose side lost the 2021 decider to St Helens.
