Wigan Warriors new recruit ‘hungry to impress’ following first outing for reigning champions

The 23-year-old was named to start at back-row against his former club, having signed with Wigan from the Roughyeds on a two-year deal at the end of 2024.

With assistant coach Thomas Leuluai having taken charge for the match, Wigan ran in six tries for a 28-16 result at Boundary Park as Hirst faced many of his former team-mates, crowned League 1 champions together in 2024 and winning promotion to the second tier.

Tyler Dupree, Jacob Douglas, Liam Byrne and Tom Forber all crossed in the opening 40, before academy duo Josh Cartwright and Finlay Yeomans added further points against Sean Long’s outfit.

“Before the game, Owen Farnworth said to me, ‘Oh, have you gotten a bit smaller?!’, to try to get in my head a bit,” Hirst laughed. “But that was it, I didn’t expect much.

“It was good, I enjoyed it a lot.

“There’s a lot of touch ups, but there’s a lot of good things that we can take out of that game for next week [against Leeds Rhinos].

“You can do the training, but it’s not the same as the game, it’s not the same as match fitness.”

Having been a part of the first group to report to pre-season training at Robin Park Arena back in November, Hirst admits he has been ‘hungry to impress’ - with the potential of facing Super League opponents for the first time this weekend, as Wigan Warriors travel to Leeds Rhinos on Sunday for Ash Handley’s testimonial match.

The Batley-born forward continued: “As soon as I stepped on the field [against Oldham], I wanted to stay out. You just want the ball; I know it doesn’t work that way all the time, but I want to get my hands on the ball and play. I’m hungry to impress.

“Hopefully I can take the next step against my first Super League side.

“It’ll be a big step up for me. Hopefully I’m trusted enough now after this [Oldham game], but it’s out of my hands.”