Latest news with #BenCurrie
Yahoo
29-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
KEY STATS: Currie's quiet brilliance and a clear change of tack at dummy-half
Ben Currie was Wire's top tackler and the leading ball-carrier among forwards against Hull FC (Image: Paul Currie/ IT was an excellent collective effort from Warrington Wolves to beat Hull FC on Saturday, but a few individuals have been highlighted post-match. George Williams received Sky Sports' player of the match award while Josh Thewlis was named as the stand-out in-ground, with Matt Dufty's contributions upon his return from injury also highlighted. Advertisement However, a look at the game stats reveals another display of quiet effectiveness from The Wire's 'Mr Consistent' in Ben Currie. The loose forward, who has arguably been Wire's player of the season thus far, achieved the rare double of being the team's top tackler and the leading metre-maker among his colleagues up front. His 38 tackles led the way for his side with Sam Stone (37) and Luke Yates (34) close behind, with Yates completing all of his attempted tackles successfully without a single miss. Across the game as a whole, Currie's tackle number can only be topped by Hull pair Amir Bourouh and Zak Hardaker, both of whom made 41 tackles. Advertisement With the ball, Currie's 12 carries yielded 102 metres at an average of 8.5m per carry – the most of any Wire forward while his number was only topped for forwards on either side by Hull juggernaut Herman Ese'ese, who just edged past him with 103m but from two more carries. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Josh Thewlis was the game's leading metre-maker having racked up 165m from 14 carries – a total boosted by the long-range break he made to score the game's opening try. Williams was just behind him with 164m from 25 carries including two line breaks while Dufty made 130m from 15 carries, including the line break assist for Lachlan Fitzgibbon's try. A change of tack at dummy-half A point of criticism among Warrington fans of late has been the lack of variety from dummy-half of late. Advertisement With Danny Walker injured, Sam Powell and Jordy Crowther have been carrying the weight but with neither a known runner from behind the ruck, their efforts have been subjected to ridicule in some quarters. However, there was a clear change of tack in this game as there was certainly more of an inclination among the team to run straight from the play-the-ball. Indeed, the seven dummy-half runs the team made collectively was their highest total since the Round Nine victory over St Helens which, ironically, was the last game Walker played before succumbing to his knee injury, albeit he was playing in the halves that night. Powell's barge-over from dummy-half is the kind of try Wire have not been scoring in Walker's absence, with his two scoots making 18 metres – more than in his 10 previous Super League games combined. A dummy-half run from Crowther also earned an early penalty while it was a similar carry from Josh Thewlis that got him through the line for the opening try.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Currie for England? The trait that could give Warrington Wolves man the edge
Ben Currie will hope to add to his 10 England caps when Australia arrive this autumn for the Ashes series (Image: Ed Sykes/ BEN Currie's versatility has been increasingly valuable to Warrington Wolves this season – and Sam Burgess has backed him to provide a similar service to his country. And with every England-qualified player vying for national team boss Shaun Wane's attention with a historic Ashes series against Australia on the horizon, he feels Currie's adaptability could work in his favour. Advertisement Currie has been a player transformed under Burgess since he moved to loose forward from the back row but this year, he has been pressed into service in several different positions. At times, he has moved back into the second row and into the centres to cover for injuries, and even did a short stint on the wing during the Challenge Cup win over Widnes Vikings in March. With George Williams and Marc Sneyd spending time out injured, he has also been required to jump into the halves on several occasions and has captained the team in skipper Williams' absence. Wane has shown a liking for Currie and has picked him in squads for the last two season-ending series against Samoa and Tonga – although he did not get onto the field in the former – as well as mid-season Tests against France. Advertisement Ben Currie's last England appearance came against France midway through last year (Image: Alex Whitehead/ And it appears he has no bigger advocate than a man who was an England legend in his playing days in Burgess. 'I think he'd be a great addition to the England squad. He'd be so valuable' he said as Currie bids to add to the 10 caps he has won for his country to date. 'He's an asset because this year for us, he's played centre, wing, his preferred position at 13, back row where he's probably spent most of his career, and at six. 'A bloke who's 105 kilos who can play in all of those positions and is such a quality bloke as well is really valuable. 'I'd be a huge supporter of him being in the England squad for sure. That versatility stands players out and gives them an advantage.'
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Currie to join exclusive Warrington Wolves club as he hits milestone
TOMORROW looks set to be a landmark day in the career of Ben Currie. The forward, who is currently captaining Warrington Wolves in the absence of regular skipper George Williams, is set to join an exclusive list by making his 300th appearance for the club. The Challenge Cup semi-final victory over Leigh Leopards saw him make appearance number 299 in Wire colours, so he would hit the magic number if – as expected – he leads the side out at Wakefield Trinity on Sunday. Whenever he next plays, he will become just the 33rd player in club history to play 300 games for the club. Having progressed through the club's academy, Currie made his first-team debut against Widnes Vikings in April 2012 and has established himself as a key man over time either side of suffering a brace of ACL injuries, first in 2016 and then again in 2018. While the bulk of his career has come in the second row, current head coach Sam Burgess' decision to move him to loose forward has rejuvenated the England international although his versatility has come in handy. As well as brief stints back in the second row, Currie has also turned out in the halves and the centres of late and even did a short stint on the wing during the recent Challenge Cup victory over Widnes. Currie's 299 appearances have yielded 97 tries, making him the third in the highest-scoring Wire forward of all time in terms of tries behind Bob Eccles (119) and Ben Westwood (98). Westwood scored 128 tries for Warrington, but 30 of those came as an outside-back before his move into the pack. And he's not the only Wire player in sight of a record, with Stefan Ratchford and Marc Sneyd also closing in. With 1,020 Super League goals to his name, Sneyd needs just six more to draw level with Andy Farrell in fourth place in the competition's all-time list. Paul Deacon (1,043) and Danny Brough (1,084) are also in sight of the scrum-half although all-time leader Kevin Sinfield is far clear on 1,566. In terms of Super League points in total, Sneyd is currently in seventh place on 2,244 and needs 18 more to overhaul Danny Tickle in sixth spot. He could soon be joined in the top 10 by Ratchford, who is level with Iestyn Harris on 1,674 points so needs just one more to move into standalone 10th spot.
