Abbas Miski reveals a good book keeps him ready to write Wigan’s next chapter

ABBAS Miski is hoping to book a place at Wembley after revealing how he keeps his cool when not playing rugby league – by reading.

The Wigan winger is one of the authors of the Warriors’ quadruple bid – after winning the World Club Challenge, they can take a huge step up to the second stage, the Challenge Cup.

And one of the secrets behind his success is how he spends his time away from the pitch. While many sports stars are found on the golf course, Miski is likely to be in the coffee shop of a major bookshop in his adopted city of Manchester.

It also makes him think a little more deeply, as evidenced by his current reading – Conversations with God by Neale Donald Walsch.

The Lebanese international said: “I love to read but I don’t know where the love came from. I guess I was a pretty curious kid and it stuck with me.

“I find a little solace in reading a good book sometimes.

“It’s good to relax and forget about everything. There’s a lot going on in rugby league, it’s an emotional rollercoaster.

“A lot of the guys are playing golf, but I find a comfortable spot and relax. You don’t see many people you know and it’s very quiet.

“Coffee and reading, it’s good to get away from it all. Doing that is great for my mindset and Conversations With God is a philosophy book and I love it.

“Philosophy is a subject that interests me. I gave our coach Matt Peet the same book, but I’m not sure he’s read it yet!

“You learn different opinions. I don’t read to form my own opinion, I just read to see what others think and to learn about history. I don’t do it for an end goal, I just do it for fun.

“I also read a lot of fiction – 1984 is one of my favorite books – but I’ve slacked off a bit recently. Things have been busy so I haven’t read as much as I want to!

“And you’d be surprised that some players like to read, not just at Wigan but at other clubs as well.”

Miski and Wigan’s trip to Doncaster today to face Hull KR could see them write the next chapter, a redemption story.

At their Robin Park training ground, an image showing the devastation of last year’s 11-10 defeat to Gold is almost as prominent as those lifting the silverware.

And Miski, 28, believes remembering the pain is just as important as reliving the glory.

He added: “I think that picture is still there. We at Wigan enjoy competing in the big games. These are the ones you want to play for and this club is about winning silverware.

“And the lows lead us to that glory. It’s not all smooth sailing in rugby league, you get highs, you get lows and you learn a lot from them. We are better for all our defeats as well as for our victories.

“It’s quite fitting that it’s Hull KR, especially after they kicked us out last year.

“That can play on us a little bit emotionally, wanting that little bit of redemption, but you can’t let those things get to you. It’s just another game and we’re ready to do what we do best.”