Rugby League: Wigan’s Liam Marshall in England Contention as Top Scorer
Wigan Warriors head coach praises in-form winger
Wigan Warriors head coach Matt Peet believes winger Liam Marshall is making a strong case for an England call-up, though he acknowledges the fierce competition for spots in Shaun Wane’s national side.
Marshall has been in scintillating form this Super League season, currently leading the try-scoring charts with 15 tries in just 12 matches. The experienced winger has been a mainstay in the Warriors lineup since his debut in 2017, but is yet to earn his first international cap.
“Liam has been in the mix before and he’s in good form; but there’s some good wingers in Super League and there’s a few you could mention who would be in the mix,” said Peet after Wigan’s hard-fought 10-8 victory over Castleford Tigers. “I’m really happy with how he’s playing, on both ends of the field. To be a top winger these days you have to score tries, work hard out of your own end and you have to chase kicks hard, and I think Liam does all that and more.”
Marshall’s brace of tries against the Tigers proved crucial as the defending champions dug deep to secure the two competition points. Peet acknowledged Castleford’s strong performance, with the visitors leading 8-4 heading into the final quarter before a Marshall try and a Harry Smith penalty sealed the win for Wigan.
“I just think Castleford played really well,” Peet admitted. “They were motivated and energised. You could see they had freshened up last week and trained hard and prepared, they gave us a hell of a game.”
With the absence of star fullback Jai Field, Bevan French shifted to the number one jersey, while Ryan Hampshire came into the halves alongside Harry Smith. Peet stressed that the new combinations will require time to fully develop and improve.
“These combinations will settle and improve,” he continued. “The fact is we came to a tough place on a tough night, there was a lot going on tonight, but we got the win.”
Wigan now turn their attention to a clash with bottom-placed London Broncos next weekend, as they look to build on this hard-fought victory and maintain their push for the Super League title.
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