page_title: Joel Tomkins
section_title: Wigan Warriors (2005–11)
hierarchical_section_title: Joel Tomkins / Rugby league career / Wigan Warriors (2005–11)
caption_attribution_description: English: Joel Tomkins
context_page_description: Joel Andrew Tomkins is an English professional rugby league footballer plays in the second-row forward for the Catalans Dragons in the Betfred Super League, and has played for England at international level.
  He has previously played for the Wigan Warriors and Hull Kingston Rovers in the Super League. He also played professional rugby union for Saracens in the English Rugby Premiership and the England Saxons and England at international level.
context_section_description: In 2005, he was called up into the first-team at the age of 18 and he made his senior début for the Wigan Warriors against the Widnes Vikings in March 2005. During 2005, Joel made another 12 appearances and scoring a total of 3 tries in the process. The talented youngster was given his chance at first-team level under coach Ian Millward, who had become Head Coach of the Wigan Warriors in 2005.
  Tomkins started the first match of the 2006 season at loose forward, in a match against the Catalans Dragons which the Wigan Warriors lost, 38–30. He was demoted to the bench for the second match of the season against the Leeds Rhinos. After 17-minutes he was brought from off the bench and scored a try with his first touch of the ball to give the Wigan Warriors a 4–0 lead. The Wigan Warriors went onto lose the match, 16–24. In February 2006, Tomkins agreed a contract extension with the Wigan Warriors which would keep him at the club until 2008. He started from the bench for the next two matches against the Huddersfield Giants and the Salford City Reds, but he was dropped to the Academy just shortly after.  He later returned to the squad when he was named on the bench for the Challenge Cup fourth round match, against the Wakefield Trinity Wildcats on 2 April 2006.
  He also played in the next couple of Super League matches against the Wakefield Trinity Wildcats and St. Helens, before again being dropped to the Academy. Team Head Coach Ian Millward was sacked in April 2006, because of the poor results from the Wigan Warriors side. He was replaced by Brian Noble on 20 April 2006. The Wigan Warriors were bottom of the Super League and Noble decided to play a more experienced squad, which meant that Tomkins would not make another appearance during 2006.
  Tomkins started the 2007 season in the Wigan Warriors' Senior Academy, where he was in good-form scoring 5 tries in one match against Hull Kingston Rovers' Academy. But despite this he was not called up into the first-team squad until 18 May 2007, for the Super League match against Hull Kingston Rovers. Tomkins suffered an ankle injury during the match and was out for 2-weeks, before returning to the Wigan Warriors' Senior Academy. He then later returned to the Wigan Warriors first-team for the match against the Catalans Dragons on 15 June 2007.
caption: Tomkins playing for the Wigan Warriors during his first-spell at the club
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