UTILITY back Anthony Stewart is likely to be handed the Saints' full-back berth for Saturday's 'battle of the giants' Challenge Cup tie against fierce rivals Wigan Warriors -- provided Paul Wellens isn't given a last-minute reprieve by a specialist.

Wellens suffered a fractured left eye socket in the epic World Club Championship victory over Brisbane Broncos and was originally expected to be out of action for up to a month.

At a press conference at Knowsley Road this week coach Ian Millward said the 20-year-old England star hadn't trained last week and remained "extremely doubtful" for the Wigan clash but he added that the ultimate decision would lie with the specialist.

In the event of Wellens missing out, however, Millward has every confidence in Stewart's ability to successfully step into the breach, describing the 21-year-old Wigan-born player as one of the "outstanding young talents in the game".

The only other likely change to the Saints line-up from that which scaled the heights at the Reebok Stadium would be the inclusion of Steve Hall, meaning no place again for new signings Wayne McDonald and Mick Higham.

Millward, meanwhile, is confident his players can live with the pressure of being world champions and sees no problems with keeping them focused for the Wigan game -- their first home Challenge Cup tie since 1998.

"The players don't need any motivation on a Wigan week", he said, adding: "People will raise their game against us and the world champions tag is something we have to live with".

Wigan, meanwhile are likely to include new signings Adrian Lam, Matthew Johns and David Furner, with Harvey Howard likely to be on the bench. But Francis Stephenson is definitely out injured.

Ground capacity for the game has been set at 17,000 and Saints are hoping for a sell-out.

Meanwhile, St Helens Police have issued a statement advising fans to arrive as early as possible for the game, which kicks off at 3pm. A police spokeswoman said: "A large crowd is expected so fans should arrive early to avoid crowd congestion problems or any possible disappointment that may occur if the match is a sell-out".

Skipper Chris Joynt needs just one try for a century of touchdowns for Saints and would love to get it against his hometown club! The Test forward's 99 tries to date have come in 266 appearances since coming to Knowsley Road from Oldham in 1992 in exchange for Sean Devine and Paul Jones.

Saints Alliance team lost 18-16 to a strong Salford side in a friendly match at Edge Hill College, Ormskirk on Saturday. Mike Bennett and Steve Hall both bagged a brace of tries for Saints for whom Wayne McDonald was outstanding.

Clare Mannion has been appointed Saints' new physiotherapist in succession to Janette Smith who left the club last month. Clare has been physio to the Saints Academy side for the last three seasons and will take up her full-time role at the end of the month when she leaves her present job at Wigan Infirmary.