Adrian Lam opens up on recruitment plans

Wigan have been doing it tough with injuries at the moment and that has prompted calls for new blood, something which head coach Adrian Lam has not ruled out.

“We’re sitting tight and being patient; there’s always an opportunity to pick up a front-rower or an outside back during the season and that’s something the club will take a look at,” Lam said.

“You want to make sure you’re better than anyone else at picking up those players during the season like we did with Brad Singleton last year who helped turn us around and get us to the Grand Final.

“We’re going ok at the moment – our young players in the front-row are certainly doing a good job.

“It’s a week to week thing is this recruitment and retention.”

For Lam, precaution is the name of the game for the likes of Bevan French that are currently sat on the sidelines.

“He’s (French) a little bit better off than when he was a couple of weeks ago and we’ll give him the rest of the week and then we’ll make the decision at the end of it but he’ll probably be in and around the squad.

“He’s on that fringe area, we’re just taking a precautionary route at the moment. There’s a lot of soft tissue injuries around at the moment – in the NRL as well as Super League so we’re going to give Bevan as much time as possible.”

Lam also gave an update on Dom Manfredi, Liam Marshall and Oliver Gildart.

“They’re not back for another week or two, but the boys are playing great; Zak Hardaker has played superb for us and Willie Isa in the centres too.

“It’s just a week-to-week proposition to be honest, we can’t get ahead of ourselves – we need to take it a week at a time.

“Dom (Manfredi) gets his hand out of his cast in two days time, but his physical side is bang on – he’s still able to run and do everything else.

“It’s a different injury to Gildart’s and French’s who have been behind on the running.

“Liam (Marshall) is still 5 or 6 weeks away, theres always hiccups with the ACL and it’s not usually a smooth run but he needs to keep working hard. He still hasn’t got complete flexion in the knee but that will come in the next few weeks.”

In the absence of French, Zak Hardaker has deputised at fullback and Lam has been full of praise.

“Zak is a strong personality and a great leader at our club. I know he loves playing fullback but whether he plays fullback, centre or on the wing, he’s a competitor.

“That’s why he’s a Wigan player and we love him the way he is. Zak’s been consistent throughout the past few weeks and we’re really proud of him.”