Smith: We've got a lot of depth this year

Monday 15th March 2010

Warrington are expected to still be without former skipper Lee Briers for their visit to his old club St Helens on Friday night but coach Tony Smith insists the Wolves have learned to win without him.

The former Wales stand-off has been something of a talismanic figure for Warrington since joining them from Saints in 1996 but they have won all three matches since he damaged an ankle in the home defeat by Wigan last month.

"I haven't ruled him out but he'd have to improve drastically between now and Friday," said Smith. "We'd love to have Lee there - he's a quality player and he'd add strength to our team - but I'm glad we're past all that 'you can't win without Lee Briers' talk. It's no good for the team and we're far from that."

He added: "That's long gone. I think we've got a lot of quality players and a lot of depth this year.

"When we do get an injury or two, we can quite adequately replace them."

Full-back Richard Mathers is in the reckoning for a recall after being 18th man for Saturday's win over Bradford.