SAINTS have named their 19-man squad for Friday’s clash at Wigan, but that is subject to change should Luke Walsh and Luke Thompson be banned.

Saints rattled Wigan 23-4 in a stormy game in front of a 20,000 crowd at the DW Stadium four weeks ago in a match that gave them the fillip they needed to hit the Super 8s.

But Saints are braced for a backlash from that defeat and Warriors’ subsequent Challenge Cup knockout and another feisty encounter is on the cards.

Saints boss Keiron Cunningham expects Wigan to come out firing.

He said: “Waney will be stinging from the Challenge Cup loss and now he knows he has got to bring this season home.

“Wigan are a great side, winning a lot of games with injuries.

“They fight hard and this time have players who did not play last time out.

“It is going to be a tough game, but both sides are playing well.

“It’s evenly matched but the best team will win.”

Cunningham also revealed that Wane had been supportive of him when Saints hit a difficult losing patch in the late spring.

“Waney is a champion fella – and he has been quite supportive of me.

“He told me, when we were going through our tough spot, that we were two or three wins away from them.

“Wigan got those when they scrapped out games by two or three points. We lost by a similar margin.”

There will be a few eyes focused on Wigan scrum half Matty Smith, who has been linked with a move back to his hometown club.

For weeks the speculation has mounted in both towns, but Cunningham said there was nothing on signings to report yet.

“We are in the market looking hard and once they are done we will put those names out. Matty Smith is not done and is contracted at Wigan,” he said.

Saints: Lomax, Turner, Swift, Walsh, Walmsley, Roby, Amor, Vea, Wilkin, McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Tasi, Richards, Thompson, Peyroux, Greenwood, Owens, McDonnell, Fleming, Knowles.

Wigan: Tomkins, Charnley, Gelling, Sarginson, Williams, Smith, Crosby, Flower, Farrell, Bateman, Powell, Tautai, Gildart, Sutton, Tierney, Nuuausala, Isa, Shorrocks, Bretherton.

The game kicks off at 8pm and the referee is Ben Thaler.