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Reigning NRL premiers the Sydney Roosters face their first real hit-out of the pre-season when they host Super League champions the Wigan Warriors in the annual World Club Challenge.
Join us for live scores and commentary from 8.00pm AEDT.
The World Club Challenge returns to Australia for the first time in many years, with a crowd of up to 25,000 expected to watch the Roosters play Wigan at Allianz Stadium.
Trent Robinson’s men are coming off a 32-4 trial victory over the Newcastle Knights last week and should be primed for a strong performance in front of their home fans.
The Roosters are expected to field a full strength line-up for the clash against Wigan, with Sonny Bill Williams, Michael Jennings, James Maloney and Mitchell Pearce all expected to line-up against the Super League champions.
Wigan has also named a very strong squad for the clash against Sydney, with England Test stars Sean O’Loughlin, Josh Charnley, Michael McIlorum and Liam Farrell all expected to feature tonight.
Former NRL stars Matt Bowen, Eddy Pettybourne and Blake Green should also find themselves playing plenty of minute against the tricolours.
Tonight’s match represents a great opportunity for the Roosters to really hit their stride heading into the new NRL season.
Wigan prides itself on its physicality upfront and they will be looking forward to going toe to toe with a very strong Roosters pack.
Jared Waerea Hargreaves, Sam Moa and Sonny Bill Williams have all had shortened pre-seasons due to their involvement in last year’s Rugby League World Cup.
Given their strong performance in the trial against Newcastle however, the preceding players all appear in good enough shape to meet Wigan’s physical challenge.
Given that its only the second match of the pre-season, it should come as no surprise if the Roosters struggle to produce the intense performances that led them to becoming NRL premiers last year.
In saying that, a fit Roosters outfit at home possesses enough class across the board to win their second World Club Challenge trophy.
Roosters by 8.