That is the view of head coach Sam Burgess, who has opted to give his star winger at least another fortnight’s worth of load-building before sending him back onto the field.

After his 2025 campaign was cut short by an ACL injury last May, Ashton has been targeting the Round One blockbuster against St Helens for his return but will now miss the game having been left out of The Wire’s 21-man squad.

When asked about the England international’s condition at his pre-match press conference, Burgess insisted it was not a case of his recovery having been set back but more a case of assessing the situation in the round.

With Warrington not having a game next week, Ashton is now expected to be back in contention for Wakefield Trinity’s visit in Round Three on February 28.

Matty Ashton has scored nine tries in his last seven appearances against St Helens – all of which have contributed to Warrington Wolves wins – but he will be missing from the Round One team on Friday (Image: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)

“He was actually really close,” Burgess told the Warrington Guardian.

“With the fixtures and the week off next week, it was a “risk-reward” thing.

“He’ll get an extra two weeks of recovery in and all the numbers and statistics will say that gives him a greater chance of staying fit so the longer we leave it, the better.

“We’ve talked about just being smart there, not letting emotions dictate our decision-making and being balanced.

“We all wanted Matty to play and we were very close, but we felt just another couple of weeks – and perhaps longer – would do him good.

“There’s been no problems and nothing untoward, but it was a bit of a gut feeling – if we played him and something would have gone wrong, I wouldn’t have been able to live with myself.

“We had third-party medical people come in about it and we’ve made a calculated decision that I think is very intelligent on Matty’s behalf.”

Another player who will miss the game is new signing James Bentley, with Burgess confirming the second-rower will have further treatment on the back injury he suffered on his competitive debut for the club.

Bentley suffered a back spasm in the first minute of Friday’s Challenge Cup victory over Sheffield Eagles and his head coach admits he continues to struggle with the issue.

“James is seeing a specialist today,” he said.

“It was a really awkward tackle and we can’t be too careful, but he hasn’t improved a great deal through the week so he had no chance of playing.

“Whether he frees up in a couple of weeks will be a different story – the medical team are working hard on him but he’s pretty sore.

“It’s one of those niggly things that sometimes disappear overnight, but we’re getting some extra advice and guidance on it.”

James Bentley is treated having suffered a back spasm against Sheffield Eagles in the Challenge Cup (Image: Neil Ashurst/P&B Pictures)

There is better news in that Warrington will once again have the services of a quartet of senior players who have played little to no part in matches before the Super League campaign.

Hooker Sam Powell has recovered from undergoing shoulder surgery while Burgess’ middle unit will be boosted by the returns of Luke Yates (concussion) and James Harrison (calf) from injury as well as new arrival Toafofoa Sipley after the New Zealander completed an outstanding four-match suspension.

Sipley picked up his ban while playing for Manly Sea Eagles in the NRL and missed their last game of 2025, both of Warrington’s pre-season friendlies and the Challenge Cup third-round tie as a result.

“Toff’s ready to play – I think he’s glad he’s not just doing conditioning and extras anymore,” he said.

“He’s a great character, has a great deal of experience and knows how to get himself around the field.

“We’ll see him out there at the weekend, which will be nice.

“Sam’s done well to get himself into a position to play, Jimmy’s fully recovered and Yatesy is fine after getting a bang on the head from the week before.”

Having been forced to sit out Warrington’s three matches so far this year through suspension, new signing Toafofoa Sipley will make his debut against St Helens (Image: Joe Richardson)