Adrian Lam says Wigan Warriors won't even think about 'safety net' play-offs route

Victory against Salford would propel the defending champions to within 80 minutes of the Grand Final.

But Friday’s match is not sudden-death, and the losers have the luxury of a second bite against the victors of tomorrow’s clash between Warrington and Castleford.

Lam, though, wants his players to treat their play-offs opener as a must-win encounter.

And he reckons their surge up the table into second spot has ensured they go into the post-season battle-hardened to the demands they will face.

Asked about the safety net, Lam said: “I’m not going to mention that this week.

“I don’t even want to think about that as an option. It’s been week to week for us since I don’t know when – round 13 or 14 – and since then, it’s felt must-win.

“I used the term, ‘We’ve been tippy-toing on the tightrope for a long time’, but it’s true, because if we’d fallen at any stage we may have finished fourth, fifth, or missed out altogether.

“So it’s been must-win for several weeks, the players are used to that, and it will put us in good stead.”

He will today name his 19-man squad, with Liam Farrell set to replace Oli Partington, Chris Hankinson on stand-by for injured Dan Sarginson and Liam Marshall back in the mix.