Super League insider explains the massive risk Wigan Warriors are about to take

It wouldn’t be a Challenge Cup Final without some team selection drama, but it’s hard to think of one as seismic as Bevan French ahead of the 2026 instalment.

Wigan shocked everyone by naming French in their 21-man squad, and there is a feeling he could well take to the hallowed Wembley turf in what would be his first appearance in almost three months.

French suffered a torn hamstring in the victory over Toulouse Olympique on March 7th. He required surgery and with that, he was expected to miss 16 weeks of action.

Saturday’s Final will be exactly 12 weeks on from the injury. His return date, on the provision of a standard rehabilitation for this type of injury, should have seen him return in the final week of June.

Inevitably, with that, there appears to be huge risk, and one Super League expert agreed. In an interview provided on the grounds of anonymity, a physiotherapist active within Super League right now provided better understanding of French’s injury, and the risks that are attached.

“If Bevan does play it will be remarkable, but it will also be a massive risk,” they said.

“Inevitably, the biggest risk is a reoccurrence of the injury and another prolonged spell on the sidelines, that’s the same with any muscular injury that isn’t allowed to fully recover.

“When you set out timescales for a return from injury, it’s generally broken down into healing, strength development, training load and fitness.

“With an injury like this, the likelihood is that Bevan will have been unable to get proper training load into his hamstring. By now you would expect him to be on feet and have started activation in his hamstring, building motion in that area.

“But you’d only now really be expecting him to start running, so I would expect that the medical staff have not been able to get the workload and reps into him that they would want before wanting to clear him to play.

“In essence, you’re trying to cut a quarter of the injury time off, so there is greater risk involved. The back end of the recovery is where you develop strength and increase volume and that’s the bit he will be missing.”

It is top be expected that French will be given plenty of support to ensure he can take to the field, if he does.

“You’d expect the physio to heavily strap it to limit motion, while would reduce the chance of exposing his body to movements that would put extra stress on the hamstring. They’ll do anything they can to minimise risk.

“But there’s no doubt if he plays there is risk, he won’t be as strong as he would have been if given another four weeks. That’s a decision and the discussion they have to have, whether it is worth the risk.”