Warrington coach delivers passionate call for calmness ahead of crunch Hull KR clash

Sam Burgess insists Warrington Wolves must remain calm and says the mood in the camp ahead of this weekend’s crunch clash against Hull KR remains a good one.

Midway through June, Wire sat top of the Super League ladder and had won four games in a row.

But since then, as injuries have started to hit and take their toll, Burgess’ side have lost three of their last four matches.

That run includes defeat to Leigh Leopards at Magic Weekend and away against a depleted Wigan Warriors side last weekend, with the Wolves now having slipped down to fourth spot.

But the call from Burgess is still one for calm, with fifth-placed Hull KR visiting the Halliwell Jones Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

‘It’s learning for our group, costly learning. But honestly, it’s been a normal few weeks or us here, the boys are in a good place’

The external reaction to last weekend’s 30-18 defeat at Wigan has been a ferocious one, with many now wondering whether Wire will get sucked into a battle to even finish in the top six.

Fifth-placed KR, sixth-placed Leigh Leopards and seventh-placed St Helens are just two competition points behind them heading into Round 19.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon, head coach Burgess detailed: “”e’ve been very balanced.

“We’ve reviewed parts of the (Wigan) game we thought we were pretty good in and that we dominated, and we’ve looked at the areas where we can be better.

“I feel it’s a game we should’ve won, we got ourselves in a position to do so, we just didn’t go on with our plan.

“It’s learning for our group, costly learning. But honestly, it’s been a normal few weeks or us here, the boys are in a good place.

“It comes down to a bit of individual stuff now, getting jobs done, but the mood in the camp is great.

‘It’s not time for me to jump up and down, we’ve got a very honest group of players and they appreciate the truth’

It is not all bad news for Wire, who could see Cai Taylor-Wray, Jordy Crowther and Joe Philbin return this weekend as they host Rovers.

Burgess’ side also have a game-in-hand on most of the sides around them. Coincidentally, that comes against KR at Craven Park midway through next month.

The Wolves boss continued: “I can’t fault the boys, they’re very honest and they’ve taken accountability.

“That gives me great confidence that when we get one or two (lads) going, momentum will turn our way.

“We’re always pretty honest within the group, it’s not tough. We all need the truth and the players can handle that.

“It’s not time for me to jump up and down, we’ve got a very honest group of players and they appreciate the truth.

“There’s not been a lot of frustration, really, from my point of view.

“The frustration with the group isn’t there, sometimes I expect a little bit more, but it’s not frustration because I know they’re working their backsides off.”

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