Warrington Wolves boss Sam Burgess has shared a mixed injury report ahead of tomorrow night’s clash against St Helens, though there is hope that two young talents who haven’t featured all year will return this month.
Wire can move top of Super League with a victory over fourth-placed St Helens but they’ll have to win on the road, something very few top six sides have done against fellow top six clubs in 2026.
Hampering their chances is confirmation that Cai Taylor-Wray will not be back whilst stand-in full-back Josh Thewlis is also a doubt, meaning Lachlan Webster could start again.
Others who are fresh blows are Joe Philbin and Toby King, with Sam Burgess confirming to BBC Radio Merseyside: “Toby (King) is going to miss. He’ll be out for four to six weeks. He had a syndesmosis that doesn’t quite require surgery but he’ll be out for four to six weeks.
“Unfortunately, we lost Joe Philbin in training yesterday so he’s going to be out for an extended period as well. He had a calf strain when warming up.”
As for recent absentees Thewlis and Taylor-Wray, he said: “I’d say Josh is one foot in at the minute and Cai, his ankle is not quite recovering. He’s already over the given time frame so there must be a bit of an issue there as he’s not fully recovered yet.”
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Warrington Wolves turn to youth amid injuries
Burgess admitted that the news was ‘probably not as positive’ as he’d expected but he did confirm that James Harrison would be fit to play, whilst James Bentley is also set to return from suspension.
That duo will help replace forward Philbin and centre Toby King will be replaced by young gun Zack Gardner, who featured a fair bit at the back end of the 2025 season.
Burgess confirmed: “Zack Gardner will come in, it will be good to see him back in the first team. We’ve not seen him since the end of last year, he’s had a bit of a jagged year with injuries as well but he’s been fit for about six weeks and we’ve been cautious with him to let his body develop and strengthen.
“He’s had a couple of reserve games and looked good so he’ll jump straight in there and we’re looking forward to see him play.”
Other young talents who could return in the coming weeks are centre Arron Lindop and prop Adam Holroyd, with both men yet to feature this year. Lindop suffered an ACL injury in 2025 whilst Holroyd suffered complications after off-season surgery but both could feature soon.
On Lindop, Burgess explained: “He’s been given the all clear to go. There’s a reserve game this week but we’re not going to play him then they don’t have a game for a week so we’ll play him in the following reserve grade game, about two or three weeks.”
He added: “It’s the same with Adam Holroyd, he’s been given the all clear as well to go which is great news.
“Whether we see Adam this week in the reserves, I’m not sure, but I guess maybe Lindop and Holroyd might get a run (in the reserves) on the week when we play Catalans. I think that’s two or three weeks away.
“Seeing them back on the field is going to bolster us, two great lads and I’m looking forward to seeing them both back on the field.”
