LIAM 200 NOT OUT
Faz is happy to fit in at Wigan
LIAM FARRELL’S dedication to fitness has seen him reach tonight’s landmark of 200 games for champions Wigan.
But Warriors’ ‘Ginger Pearl’ also reveals it earned him the hair dryer treatment from coach Shaun Wane.
Some players have been on the receiving end of Wane’s wrath for turning up late to training, ‘Faz’ copped stick for being caught in a gym!
“There are times when you can be very pally with Waney,” said back-rower Farrell, 26, ahead of his milestone march at Hull, the first of three successive away trips for Wigan.
“The next minute he’ll pull you into the office and there is a different side to him. You have got to cop a seeing to.
“He and Mark Bitcon (director of performance) got their heads around the fact I like to do stuff in the off-season and they used to ® catch me in the gym. They are not overly bothered but sometimes they make an issue of it.
“I am not as bad for it now and try not to do too much. But I am still a member of the DW gym and will go every now and again.
“It is to never show off it, just because I set myself a standard. I thought if I wasn’t doing that standard week in, week out, I am not living up to what I want to be.
Happier
“It’s the way I have done my career – try to improve and do a bit different than I did before.
“Physically I have to be on my game because I am a bit smaller than your usual back-rower.”
Farrell, who agreed a new fiveyear contract, added: “I am very proud to play 200 games and some of the things I have achieved I couldn’t be happier with.
“That’s why I signed a new deal. Hopefully we have got some more trophies in the bag over the next few years.
“I would love to get to another 200 games. The body feels alright but another 200 down the line… I wouldn’t like to think what I will be like.”
England international Farrell made a try-scoring debut in a 54-14 win at Wakefield in 2011 and has been a mainstay ever since.
That know-how is needed now more than ever, with last year’s Grand Final winners on a run of five games without victory and a team full of talented but inexperienced youngsters.
“We need a win at the moment because we are doing it tough,” said Farrell. “There is a lot of pressure on the youngsters now to perform.
“When I first came into the team, I had more experienced players around me. But we’ve got a good record at Hull and hopefully that can continue.”
Hull, who have lost their last three games, could hand a debut to centre Connor Bower.