RYAN Brierley will return to action ahead of schedule when he plays against Warrington in Simon Grix’s Testimonial at the Halliwell Jones Stadium on Sunday.

Leigh’s mercurial scrum half suffered ankle trouble at the start of last month and potentially faced up to three months on the sidelines.

But Centurions coach Paul Rowley confirmed his Kingstone Press Championship game changer is now ready to go.

“Ryan is two or three weeks ahead of schedule,” said Rowley, expected to name a similar squad to the one that achieved a 26-20 ‘Battle of the Borough’ win over Wigan last Sunday.

“He has been brilliant in how he has worked hard and reacted to treatment. From my point of view, I take my lead from the physios.

“When they say he is fit, he is fit. There is no rush. But again when he is fit there’s no point saying ‘the doctor says six weeks if he is ready in four.

“We will get clearance from the specialists but he will get game time against Warrington. He did a session after the Wigan game. So, he is fine.”

Rowley reported a clean bill of health after the Wigan game. Half back Martyn Ridyard suffered a “bumped thumb and bruising” but will be fit to face Wire.

“The squad won’t be too dissimilar to what we went with against Wigan though we had three hookers and four centres which was hard to manage. Whether we reduce that, I am not sure yet,” added the Leigh boss.

Rowley’s main concern will be the availability of Reni Maitua; the only close season capture not to feature against the Warriors.

Named on the team sheet, the former Featherstone and Salford star was ultimately unavailable due to visa issues expected to be resolved before the season’s league opener at Batley on February 7.

Refusing to go overboard by what he saw against Wigan, Rowley was suitably impressed by some performances.

“Cory Paterson offered what I knew he would,” he said. “He is that third middle who has got a pass and good vision.

“He is a bit more than your bog standard prop; no disrespect to bog standard props.

“H (man of the match, Harrison Hansen) gave us what we expect. He has no handbrake or reverse gear. He just goes hard.

“And Fui looks a different animal this year. He looks far fitter.”

Hansen, who enjoyed his Centurions debut, said: “It was great to get the boots back on, it was a long time since I last played so I was happy. We were rusty in places along with Wigan.

“But we have got a good team and if we keep everyone fit, we will go a long way.”

n Leigh fans can boost club revenue by buying tickets for Sunday’s game from Leigh Sports Village. Centurions will keep all proceeds from any of the 1,135 tickets sold. However, money from tickets bought at the gate will go into Grix’s testimonial fund.

The match also marks captain Micky Higham’s first return to Warrington as a player following his controversial mid-season switch to his home town club.

n Leigh’s Championship game against Sheffield Eagles at Hallam University Sports Park has been switched from July 17 to July 15 with a 7.45pm kick-off.