Smith: Reputations are on the line

Wigan, St Helens and Leeds take on NRL opposition in the World Club Series.

Last year, the Australian clubs won all three matches and there is the danger another whitewash will be another blow to Super League’s stature.

Smith said: “Every time you come up against the Aussies - for country or club - you want to beat them.

“They’re renowned for having the best competition and having the best players in the world, and so you do want to do well against them and prove you’re on the same level.

“Some of the things you hear (about Super League), it is frustrating because we have players in our competition who are just as good as theirs.

“There’s no doubt the NRL is a great competition - but I think we’ve got a pretty good competition here as well.”

For that reason, he says it will be “easy” for him to support old club St Helens and champions Leeds in their games, against Sydney Roosters and North Queensland respectively.

Those two matches sandwich Wigan’s showdown with Brisbane on Saturday night in front of an expected- bumper DW Stadium crowd.

Shaun Wane’s men head into the showcase encounter on the back of two Super League victories, with Friday’s 18-13 win at Huddersfield following the opening day triumph against Catalans.

Smith added: “In both games we haven’t been clinical enough in our attack - but when you don’t play to your potential and you still win games, I think you can take a lot from that.

“We’ve got a lot to fix but I’m sure we will do. We’ll be confident coming off the back of two wins.

We’ve not been beaten at home since they beat us last year, and we’re all looking forward to it.”