2009 Wigan Warriors Season - Pre-season

Pre-season

Following their knock-out at the hands of Leeds, the task of acquiring new players began. 2008 was influential stand-off Trent Barrett's last season for the Warriors, after he signed for the Cronulla Sharks for the 2009 National Rugby League (NRL) season; Barrett himself insisted that Tim Smith could replace him, after Smith was released by Parramatta Eels following an episode of bipolar disorder. It was also to be the last season for Liam Colbon and Mark Calderwood, who both transferred away from the club. An attempt to sign the Canberra Raiders' Todd Carney ended after Huddersfield Giants signed him instead. The club prevented a possible cross-code transfer with George Carmont to rugby union by extending his contract. Wigan eventually signed their first new player with former Sydney Roosters player Amos Roberts, who was released from his contract a year prematurely, but lost another player to the Warrington Wolves in Mickey Higham. Joel Tomkins, a Wigan Warriors Youth Development product, also extended his contract until the end of the 2011 season. Rumours about a move for Ryan McGoldrick ended after he publicly ruled out any possible transfer. The question over Barrett's successor in the stand-off position was again raised when Tim Smith, who was on holiday in his native Australia at the time, approached the Cronulla Sharks seeking a return to the NRL, although the club did not pursue any deal with Smith and he therefore stayed at Wigan for the 2009 season. Greg Bird, who had been suspended by Cronulla Sharks for an alleged assault on his girlfriend was also cited by The Independent as a target for the Warriors, but any plans of a transfer were initially denied by the club's chairman, Ian Lenagan. On 30 January 2009, Lenagan confirmed it was unlikely there would be any more signings for the new season, having acquired two new players (Amos Roberts and Mark Riddell), after attempts to sign Richard Moore from Wakefield Trinity Wildcats failed.

The 2008 Rugby League World Cup was held in Australia during the off-season, and several Wigan players from the 2008 season were involved in matches concerning their own international teams. Pat Richards, Eamon O'Carroll and Michael McIlorum were called by the Irish team, with Paul Prescott missing out due to a back injury. Carmont and Harrison Hansen were selected for the Samoan national team. Stuart Fielden was omitted from the England squad but Calderwood, Higham and Gareth Hock all received places. Thomas Leuluai became the only Super League player from the 2008 season to win the World Cup when the New Zealand team he played hooker for defeated the Australian team 20–34 in the final.

Wigan played three friendly matches after the World Cup, the first being a 4–44 victory over Warrington Wolves at the Halliwell Jones Stadium during the traditional festive season, in which Riddell and Karl Pryce both made their first-team debuts. The Warriors played in a changed pink and black-hooped jersey in support of a local hospice, as Sam Tomkins completed a twenty minute hat-trick, Richard Mathers and Pryce scored a double each, and Shaun Ainscough and Joel Tomkins also picked up one try apiece. The next match against Huddersfield Giants proved to be more difficult, as Carmont scored a last-minute try to hand Wigan a narrow victory at the Galpharm Stadium, with Riddell scoring two tries and Fielden being sin-binned in the first half. On the official opening on the new Leigh Sports Village and a week before the new Super League season began, the Warriors whitewashed their local rivals Leigh Centurions by 0–32 with a squad in which both new signings, Roberts and Riddell, were left out of.