THE LOWDOWN: GIANTS VS WAKEFIELD TRINITY

Everything you need to know as the Giants and Wakefield Trinity clash at Belle Vue tomorrow night.

The Brief:

Huddersfield Giants are aiming to clinch a third consecutive win after back-to-back wins against Hull KR and London Broncos, meanwhile, Wakefield will want to secure back-to-back wins after beating Salford Red Devils last week.

Both teams go to battle on Friday 5^th April at the Mobile Rocket Stadium.

Team News:

Wakefield recall skipper Danny Kirmond after he missed their last two games through suspension. Kirmond comes in for Bill Tupou, who is ruled out with a groin injury suffered in Sunday's win over Salford.

Simon Woolford makes one change Oliver Russell replaces Louis Senior.

Wakefield (from): Arona, Arundel, Ashurst, Brough, Crowther, England, Fifita, Hampshire, Hirst, Horo, Jones-Bishop, Jowitt, King, Kirmond, Kopczak, Lyne, Miller, Pauli, Wood.

Huddersfield (from): McIntosh, McGillvary, Turner, Uate, Gaskell, Frawley, Leeming, Matagi, Mellor, Lawrence, O'Brien, Roberts, Ta'ai, English, Russell, Ikahihifo, Hewitt, Senior, Wardle

The Opposition:

In 2018, Wakefield finished 7^th in Super League, and finished the Super 8’s in 5^th place.

They Liam Finn, Scott Grix and Lee Kershaw in the offseason. But recruited strongly for the 2019 season, bringing in George King, Craig Kopczak, Ben Reynolds and Danny Brough.

Form:

The Giants clinched their first home win of the season two weeks ago with a 42-8 win against Hull KR. A dominant performance saw Roberts, McIntosh, Matagi score as well a brace from Leeming and McGillvary.

They then recorded a 26-38 win against London Broncos thanks from tries from Wardle, Turner, McGillvary, Ikahihifo, Mellor and two from Uate.

Wakefield have won two lost two in the last four games. They narrowly lost to Hull KR 6-10 before beating Hull FC away 12-32. They then lost to Warrington Wolves 32-34 before beating Salford Red Devils 33-22.

Key Players:

Danny Brough

The former Giant will be one to watch on Friday night. The 36-year old has shown no stages of slowing down and still is instrumental to Wakefield. He brings a wealth of experience having played over 500 games for York, Hull FC, Castleford Tigers, Huddersfield and Wakefield and the Giants must limit his time on the ball if they want to record their third consecutive victory.

David Fifita

Another key player for the Wakefield is the powerful prop David Fifita. The former Cronulla forward has been a nuisance all season for opposition defenders and Giants will want to stop him before he gets into full flow on Friday night. He has 56 tackle busts so far, two off 1^st place and has made 936 metres so far.

Key Battles:

Ben Jones-Bishop Vs Akuila Uate

Uate had probably his best game of the season last week against the Broncos and will be hoping to continue the momentum against a good Wakefield side. He scored two tries, made 2 offloads and ran for 90 metres in 16 carries and the powerful winger will be wanting to outmuscle and outscore his opposite number on Friday night. Ben Jones-Bishop has 0 tries to his name this year and has ran 579 metres in 87 carries. Who will come out on top when the two teams go to battle?

Jacob Miller Vs Lee Gaskell

The halfbacks will be pivotal in deciding who will win the game Jacob Miller and Danny Brough will go against Lee Gaskell and Matt Frawley and each halfback will want to lay the platform for the pack.

Miller has seven try assists in eight games this year and has made 420 metres including 27 tackle busts. Gaskell has three try assists and has made 361 metres so far. Who will guide their team to victory on Sunday?

Previous Meeting:

Wakefield comfortably beat Huddersfield in the previous meeting 16-42 in September 2018. Tries from McGillvary and Ta’ai wasn’t enough as Trinity secured victory. However, Brough did become the fourth highest points scorer in Super League history with his first conversion of the night.

Tickets:

You can be the 18th man and help the Giants clinch three consecutive wins. You can get your tickets in numerous ways. You visit the Giants Club Store in person, call 01484 484159 or book online here.