The Liam Farrell column: '˜What I'll miss about Sam... and what I won't'

Now the news is out, it will all settle down and Sam’s focus, I know, will be on the rest of the season here.

He told me before he signed he was going. He wanted to try something new, his partner did, and they felt it was a good adventure for their kids.

Good luck to him.

I’m sure he’ll be an asset for them – you can’t find many players who can organise teams as well as he does. His determination and competitiveness are second-to-none.

Is there anything I won’t miss?

I’m pretty sure he’s behind the fake Twitter account in my name! If that goes, I won’t miss it... but knowing him, he’ll do it from abroad!

As I said, he’s a big part of this team and the focus is on finishing this season well.

We’ve seen several times this year just how big an influence he has on the team.

On Sunday, at Hull KR, he scored the try which put us back in front after they had battled back.

We came off the field feeling happy we’re through to the next round, but not really thrilled with our performance.

It was scrappy. But I’ve been to Hull KR a few times when that happens, they made it hard work for us and when they went down to 12-men, the pressure was off them - it felt like we were chasing the game.

In the final quarter we improved, posted some points and are glad to be through to the quarter-finals.

I’m a fan of the Magic Weekend concept.

I would like to see it somewhere else but the fact that all the teams can be there in one place is great – you wouldn’t get many other sports doing it – and Newcastle is a good venue.

Warrington are in really good form and my former team-mate Josh Charnley has been great since his return from rugby union.

He will be on our edge, and we know what to expect. His try-scoring record is second-to-none and if we give him an opportunity he will take it.

There’s a lot riding on it, from a league point of view, because if we win it gives us a bit of a breathing space – if they win, they’ll be level on points with us.

Our record in the Magic Weekend is pretty good, which is impressive, especially when you think that we always get tough opposition. It’s Warrington this year, and in the past it’s been Leeds and St Helens.

To be honest I’d rather play against one of the better sides because they’re marquee fixtures, everyone will stay and watch it – they know it will be entertaining. I think this could be the fixture of the round.

Tony Clubb celebrates his 100th game for Wigan this weekend – he will be proud, and rightly so.

He’s worked his way up to where he is at here, one of the first-picks on our teamsheet.

When players sign for Wigan, they don’t always fit in. A lot of players come and don’t see out their time here – maybe it’s the standards expected here.

But there are some who come and thrive in the environment here and Clubby is one of them.

He leads from the front and he’s aggressive but, off-the-field, he’s a friendly bloke and he’s good around the young players.

Congratulations to my mate Dom Crosby and wife Megan on the birth of their son, Oscar.

It’s been a tough time for them over the last few months and I’m made up for them.