After a build-up rendered bizarre even by rugby league’s often baffling standards, neighbours Wigan and Leigh are set to do battle in the first Betfred Super League play-off semi-final at the Brick Community Stadium on Friday night.
Leigh’s relatively serene progress into the last four for a second straight season was spectacularly interrupted on Tuesday night by a threat from their owner Derek Beaumont, relayed in a series of late-night emails to Wigan chief executive Kris Radlinski, to withdraw from the fixture over a relatively minor ticketing issue.
