Maguire ready for testing day

Maguire: Momentous week for Wigan coach

Wigan head coach Michael Maguire admits St Helens are the form side heading into Friday’s Super League derby at the DW Stadium.

Saints go into the game on the back of a five-match winning run – the best in Super League – which has taken them to within a point of leaders Huddersfield.

Maguire watched his side held to a draw by their arch rivals in the opening game of the season in Cardiff and is expecting another difficult test.

“It will be a tough game,” he said. “They are a team that have been bobbing along and playing very well.

“They have blooded a number of youngsters who have come through and performed. It is going to be a good test.

“I’ve seen the rivalry between Saints and Wigan from the day I walked in, they love playing each other and love beating each other.”

It will be Wigan’s first outing since Maguire confirmed he is to leave the club at the end of the season, but Saints coach Royce Simmons is not expecting that announcement to cause any disruption for the champions.

Strong bond

“When you win a premiership as a player or coach, there is a strong bond so I can’t see it making any difference whatsoever,” he said. “I wish it would!

“I have only met him a couple of times but he seems like an impressive bloke to me. When we played him in round one, after I’d been home for my father’s funeral, he went out of his way to come and see me.

“It was a game where he had led 16-0 and it ended 16-16. You could be excused for not looking for the opposition coach because you might have been pretty cranky with the players. But he came out of his way and that shows the good qualities of the man.

“Obviously he is a very good coach and has a lot of discipline about him. That is another good quality. He wins the players’ respect and gets the best out of them at the same time, which is what all good coaches do.”

St Helens have won on each of their last three visits to Wigan, as they look to avenge last November’s Grand Final defeat.