Timing is everything in sport, and how Wigan Warriors are once again proving they are the masters of peaking when it matters. While Matt Peet’s side have been in and among the frontrunners for most of this year, they have never really stood out: until now.
This is now six consecutive league wins for the Warriors with the playoffs fast approaching, and with Catalans losing at Hull Kingston Rovers elsewhere on Friday night, they are now top of the league. All of a sudden, a side that have not really had much said about them this season are the team on everyone’s lips.
This latest performance, a commanding victory against a Salford side whose own participation in the playoffs is now in doubt, was another underlining of Wigan’s title credentials. The very fact Salford’s only try came nine minutes from time, by which point Wigan were 26-4 ahead and in complete control, emphasised the gulf between the sides.
“We looked like a tired team,” Salford’s coach, Paul Rowley, admitted. He was right, but his side were also up against a Wigan group in sparkling form. The opening half-hour was tense and tight, with two Ryan Brierley penalties cancelling out a Liam Farrell try to make it 4-4, but a blistering passage of play in the 10 minutes to half-time swung it decisively Wigan’s way.
There were three tries, the first to Abbas Miski, before Jake Wardle finished to make it 14-4. Then, the game’s decisive moment. Salford had a penalty with the final play of the half and opted to hoist a high kick up and test Wigan’s full-back, Jai Field. Field collected superbly before racing away to go the length of the field. “It took the wind out of my sails,” Rowley said of Field’s try.
Suddenly, Wigan led by 16 at half-time, and there was really no way back for the jaded Red Devils, who fell out of the top six with this defeat and results elsewhere. Wigan look imperious but their coach Peet is ultra-demanding. “I’m glad we’re top of the league but there’s things we need to improve, so we’re not where we want to be, but I would have taken it at the outset.”
If there is improvement in this Wigan side, it is a worrying thought for their nearest challengers. Salford had to score first after half-time to stand any chance but when Toby King finished another great Warriors move, this time with a superb Bevan French assist, the result was in effect decided with half an hour still to go.
That afforded everyone a moment to ponder how the final three rounds of the season could play out. For Wigan, win their remaining games and they are likely league leaders, barring a swing in points difference. Salford’s task is much trickier, with the Red Devils now seventh and in need of favours elsewhere. Ken Sio’s late try added some respectability to the final score but these two sides are on different trajectories.
