Warrington captain George Williams has declared himself fit for Saturday’s Betfred Challenge Cup final against Hull KR at Wembley.
The 30-year-old has been on a fast-track to recovery since he suffered an ankle injury in early April that required surgery.
With Matty Ashton and Danny Walker already sidelined, the return of Williams will be a huge boost to Warrington’s hopes of erasing the memory of last year’s final loss to Wigan.
Williams said: “When you get the injury it’s an eight to 10 week lay-off and it’ll be seven weeks and two days post-op. So it’s really not miles faster.
“But it’s been easy for me because I’ve done everything I can, because the goal was always to play at Wembley.
“I could have played last week but it was a bit of a risk and we were always chasing this week.”
Meanwhile Rovers also hope for welcome news on the injury front with hooker Michael McIlorum set to be named in Willie Peters’ final squad.
Like Williams, McIlorum also required surgery on a bicep injury he sustained in April, and it was initially feared he would be ruled out for three months.
But the 37-year-old has made good progress in training and Peters is cautiously optimistic that he can play some part in the Robins’ bid to end their 40-year trophy drought.
Peters said: “He’ll be named, but the odds of him playing, I’m not sure yet. He’s got to get through some things.
“The thing with Mickey is he’s built differently. It should still be a while really, so that’s why we’ve got to look at the pros and cons and weigh it all up.
“There’s obviously risk and a lot of factors are involved. Mickey will make a decision, and I’ll take his word if he can take to the field.”
