Wigan Warriors became the latest Super League club to confirm their squad numbers ahead of the new season this morning.
Matt Peet hasn’t made too many changes, with a majority of his starting numbers remaining unchanged from last season. However, the reveal has thrown up a number of talking points.
And, with that in mind, here’s a look at the winners and losers of Wigan’s 2026 squad numbers.
Winners
Zach Eckersley
Eckersley is the clear winner as he jumps up the squad list from 22 to two, replacing Abbas Miski in what can deemed to be the first choice XIII. Whether Eckersley will start the season in Peet’s starting line-up remains to be seen, but the decision is a clear indication of a change at the Brick Community Stadium.
The outside back is highly rated at Wigan and he showed why in the 22 appearances he made last season, scoring 13 tries and establishing himself as a Super League-level performer. He’ll be looking to take the next steps in hi career this season and on the face of it, he has been given the platform to do it.
Youngsters
Eckersley isn’t the only youngster going into the new season optimistic of playing a key role at Wigan in 2026, with almost all of the names outside the top 17 being considered homegrown youngsters. That starts with Jack Farrimond, who is at 19 this year, and progresses with Tom Forber (22), Kian McDermott (23), Harvey Makin (24), Taylor Kerr (25), Nathan Lowe (26), Lukas Mason (27) and so on.
Wigan rate their crop of youngsters coming through right now very highly with Peet outlining his faith recently in the press release to confirm the signing of Finn McMillan, who gets the number 35 jersey. The head coach said at the time: “He joins a group of strong and determined group of young forwards at our club whom we expect to dominate for many years to come.”
Sam Eseh
Eseh finally looks set to get a chance in cherry and white after impressing while on loan at Hull FC last season. The forward has got the number 20, and that makes him the fourth specialist prop down the squad list, or fifth if you include the versatile Sam Walters.
He can expect to get plenty of minutes for the Warriors this season then and he’ll be pushing to show that he’s worth keeping on beyond the end of the year, with his contract due to expire at the end of the campaign.
Losers
Abbas Miski
Miski struggled with injuries last season, making just 12 appearances all year and as Wigan step into the 2026 campaign, it seems he has fallen down the pecking order. The 30-year-old did showcase his ability to make an impact with 10 tries coming last season and he will have to rise to the challenge and prove a point over the next month if he is to start against Castleford Tigers in round one.
Oliver Wilson
While nothing has been confirmed by the club, it has been reported that Wilson has picked up a serious injury in training and him taking the number 21 shirt might just point to that. The prop made the move from Huddersfield Giants over the off-season, with the club paying a fee to take him across the Pennines.
What role he has to play in 2026 though remains to be seen.
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