The League Leaders Shield will have to wait for another day as a patched up Saints went down 30-10 at Wigan on Friday night (August 26).
The champions came into this one needing just a point to claim a record 10th top of the table finish of the Super League era. Yet their fifth defeat in 25 league outings saw that party put on hold while Wigan secured a top two finish, a week off in round one of the playoffs and a home semi-final for a place at Old Trafford. But you know, we already have all that.
We also have big problems with this squad right now, and nowhere more so than in the back division. Kristian Woolf was already without Will Hopoate, Mark Percival, Regan Grace and Lewis Dodd when he named his 21-man squad 48 hours before kick-off. Then on game day it was revealed that Tommy Makinson would miss out due to a swollen knee. Josh Simm came in on the wing for Makinson while Joe Batchelor was forced to switch from the back row to left centre as Ben Davies got the nod at stand-off. Woolf chose not to use James Roby in the halves on the day that the skipper announced his decision to play on for another season in 2023 rather than retire.
Batchelor’s place in the back row alongside the returning Curtis Sironen went to James Bell. Morgan Knowles also returned from suspension so Jake Wingfield dropped to the bench. Yet it won’t be long before Wingfield makes another start with both Sironen and Knowles picking up further suspensions and Woolf having made the proverbial raft of changes for Monday’s home date with Wakefield (August 29). Even Mata’utia and James Bentley would blush at the kind of disciplinary record that has seen both Knowles and Sironen banned in their first game since their last spell on the naughty step. In truth having watched the game back in its entirety I still couldn’t tell you what the former Manly man did to upset the Match Review Panel. Whistling on a Tuesday, perhaps.
You don’t have to be Wayne Bennett to recognise that this makeshift Saints backline has a chronic lack of pace. It is as plain as the snout on Morgan Smithies’ face. Contrast that with the blinding speed of Jai Field, Bevan French and Liam Marshall on the Wigan side and you get some clues as to how this game was won and lost.
Of the seven backs who started this one for Saints arguably only Konrad Hurrell and Jonny Lomax were in the positions they would be in if every member of the squad was fit. Woolf favours a conservative style as it is. If you then strip all the pace out of his side he is left with little choice but to try and methodically plod down the field, basing the attack on set completion and cutting out errors. Which is right up the alley of Matty Peet’s Wigan who are nothing if not physically sound in defence.
Saints started well enough and in fact had more than enough territory and possession throughout to have won this one. Knowles went close early on, held up over the Wigan line by Field, Liam Farrell and Cade Cust. Batchelor then broke down the left, halted 10 metres short by Field and French before Matty Lees might have scored but for a suspiciously high challenge which was not penalised by referee Ben Thaler. However the veteran whistler (though never on a Tuesday to my knowledge) did get Wigan for offside on the next play. That allowed Lomax to step up and pop over a simple two points from in front of the sticks. It was the only lead the visitors would have all night.
To this point Wigan had hardly had a touch of the ball. They were gifted a route back in when Hurrell went wandering on the last play of a set, only to be dragged down by Marshall. That gave the home side decent field position. Knowles then went high on the Wigan winger and they were fortunate to get another repeat set when Isa looked to have knocked on, Thaler ruling that a Saints player had got a hand to the ball first.
An offside against Woolf’s side set up the position from where French scored Wigan’s first try. If you don’t have much speed you better have have good discipline. Saints were sorely lacking in either. French didn’t hang around to analyse it, going in at the corner after a good combination from Brad O’Neill, Harry Smith and Field. Thaler saw fit to send it up to Rob Hicks for video review but there was clearly nothing wrong with it. Smith’s conversion saw Wigan lead 6-2.
For all Saints’ possession and territory boyhood Wigan fan and Warriors 2020 Grand Final tormentor Jack Welsby hadn’t had much influence. It’s more difficult to be creative when the only two gears possessed by much of your support cast are SLOW and STOP. Frustration threatened to get the better of the fullback when after his neat kick forced Field into an error he came up with one of his own under pressure from the ex-Eel and Cust. Welsby then needlessly - and probably unwisely for the good of his safety - started a spat with Liam Farrell and the matter was hardly helped by The Usual Shithouses Smithies and Smith. The former rushed over to get in Welsby’s face, grinning at him like a deranged Bond villain while the latter shamefully engaged in the rugby league taboo that is hair-ruffling. This classless nonsense should be an instant red card.
Alas it is not and the only consequence to come from any of it seemed to be that Welsby remained rattled and a little over emotional. That is surprising given how well the 21 year-old has handled every challenge thrown at him since his 2018 first team debut. Even playing against his home town club hasn’t appeared to get to him before now. It was indicative of the fact that all was not well with this Saints 17 which was always going to be up against it.
The situation in the back line was made worse soon after when Hurrell suffered an injury which appeared to be bothering and hindering him throughout the night thereafter. The Tongan centre damaged his left arm in some friendly fire from Lees. The game was halted while he received lengthy treatment from the Saints medical staff. Hurrell did not leave the field, electing instead to soldier on. The mind boggles on what Woolf would have done to fill the hole at right centre if Hurrell had departed. I still wake up screaming when I dream of the days when Keiron Cunningham tried to turn Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook into Valentine Holmes.
A few minutes later Peet’s men increased their lead. O’Neill latched on to an offload by Mike Cooper that was one of the latest ever seen in Super League. The young hooker - standing in for Chief Grub Sam Powell - got far enough outside of Lees to make space for Smith to surge through the gap. Smith found the supporting Field on his inside and the former Parramatta man crossed for his 20th try of the season. Smith’s second conversion increased the Wigan advantage to 12-2 as we entered the second quarter of the game.
Saints threatened a response but again their reliance on power and simplicity over guile and speed proved their undoing. First Lomax - who regularly looked like the only Saint who might create something spectacular - was dragged down just short of the line before Hurrell crashed over on the next play. Thaler was unconvinced and again sought the assistance of Hicks. He was right to be sceptical as it turned out, replays showing that the closest the ball got to the ground was when it hit Marshall’s leg with Farrell also in on the stop.
Still Saints pressed. Simm could have had a walk in to the line had Marshall not got a hand to Welsby’s attempted pass to the winger. From the resultant scrum Welsby came up with an error on the very first play, losing possession in the tackle of Kai Pearce-Paul and Smith. Wigan were then helped down the field by a penalty but Sironen may consider himself unfortunate to have been done for interference at the play the ball. Smithies made little or no attempt to stand up to play it, instead opting for the footballer’s flop as soon as he felt a hand on him. It did not look like Thaler’s best decision of the evening. But that will happen from time to time if you don’t manage to avoid further contact after completing a tackle.
There was a scruffiness to Wigan’s third and probably decisive try. Cust mishandled but it was adjudged to have gone backwards off the ex-Manly Sea Eagle. Smith picked up the loose ball and handed it on to Farrell. He skipped around the admittedly ordinary tackle attempts of Welsby and McCarthy-Scarsbrook before accelerating through the space between Agnatius Paasi and Sironen. Davies gave chase but got there just too late to stop the Warriors back rower touching it down under the posts. It was his 13th of the season. The only forward in Super League who has crossed more often in 2022 is Huddersfield Giants’ prolific whitewash botherer Chris McQueen Try Machine. Another two points from the boot of Smith pushed Wigan 16 points in front at 18-2.
Saints’ last chance of the first 40 minutes was created and ultimately thrown away by Welsby. His astute kick got Marshall into difficulties but then it was the fullback’s error from Knowles’ pass which gifted possession back to the hosts. They couldn’t take advantage of it. They threatened briefly when French was given running room by Field’s pass on half way only to forget to complete the small matter of holding on to the ball. Nevertheless, Wigan went to the break in a commanding position at 18-2 even if the weight of possession and territory was not in their favour. They had taken their chances while the Saints attack had been too pedestrian and predictable and too error prone whenever it tried to cut loose.
That continued early in the second half when Knowles dropped a simple pass from Lomax just 10 metres from the Wigan line, so scuppering another chance to get back in the fight. The Saints stand-off then went close, as did the recently introduced Joey Lussick as Saints again reverted to trying to crash through what was a pretty resolute home defence. Peet’s side can absorb this sort of pressure for as long as it takes. You need more nous and - critically - speed to get around them often enough. Saints just didn’t have it with so many of their strike players looking on from the DW stands.
Farrell’s exit through injury 10 minutes into the second half will be a worry for them. But they can cry me a river given the state of the Saints squad at present. Woolf had by now introduced Wingfield and he won a penalty from O’Neill when the stand-in hooker went high on him. Thaler somehow deemed the challenge unworthy of a yellow card but I’m sure it was reassuring for Wigan fans to see that their back-up 9 has taken the teachings of Powell on board. Peet - for all you can say that you like his honest and respectful interviews (unless you run Warrington’s academy) does not appear to have done much to change the culture of needless violence that has been nurtured so lovingly by Michael Maguire and Shaun Wane.
With some more quality territory Saints threatened - and failed - to barge over again. This time it was Paasi, taking Lussick’s short ball and crashing over. Again it was an unconvincing grounding and again it was handed up to Hicks to decide. He ruled that Paasi had not grounded the ball and he was 100% right. Yet it turned out to be a short reprieve for Wigan as moments later Lussick did manage to ground it after scooting over from dummy half in the face of some questionable first and second marker organisation by Wigan. Davies took over the goal-kicking duties but missed wildly, so the deficit remained 12 points at 18-6.
As with any derby the toil was beginning to show. Simm, who had earlier picked up an arm injury was treated for a head knock but avoided decimating the Saints three-quarter line further by leaving for an HIA. Meanwhile Brad Singleton did have to go after sustaining a nasty looking cut to his head. As they tired Wigan began to push the envelope a little further in defence, giving away back-to-back repeat sets during Saints’ next attacking raid. There is a good case for a yellow card to be shown in such circumstances. Arguably sin bins are a must there if there is any chance of making the 6 again rule work.
Thaler was - to put it politely - an interesting choice of official for a late season derby in which the League Leaders Shield could have been decided. He has missed out on many of the big games in recent seasons and it had felt like the chance to referee the most important matches was unlikely to come around again for him. He didn’t do badly and ref-blaming is not my thing anyway. You always lose because you deserve to and the other team deserves to win. It was just surprising that the authorities would leave themselves and Thaler open to the wrath of the ref bashers when the inevitable 50-50 calls and - yes, dare I say it - mistakes came along.
Sitting comfortably on their lead and probably content that Saints had little of any imagination to throw at them, Wigan attacks were rare in that third quarter of the contest. One such foray ended when Willie Isa’s pass to Marshall travelled forward after Wigan had made it inside Saints 20 metre line.
Woolf had more to worry about when Alex Walmsley left the field with a foot injury. He had only been reintroduced to the action some seven minutes earlier. A last throw of the dice to try and keep Saints camped in Wigan’s half and hope that the home defence would buckle often enough to get the league leaders back into it. Instead Wigan went further ahead, and they did so off the back of another botched Saints attack.
Welsby found Hurrell just inside the Warriors half but the pass somehow slipped from the centre’s grasp and into the waiting arms of Cust. His quick ball out to Marshall sent the winger tearing down the left touchline. He reached the Saints 10 metre line where it looked like he might be halted by Davies after he worked hard to get back. Unfortunately the Saints man missed the tackle, as did a tiring Lomax who had also by now got back to help. Marshall regained his feet having not been held, ducked under Lomax’s challenge and continued before stretching out to score.
Thaler would not have kept up with a break like that in his pomp, so it is understandable that he now turned to Hicks for video confirmation not only of the grounding but also to make certain that Marshall had not put a foot in touch as Davies came across to cover. It was clear he had not and with another Smith conversion this one was basically in the books at 24-6 with not much more than 10 minutes remaining.
At which point Saints put something together and registered their second try. Lomax looked to be moving the ball out to the right but instead he cleverly stepped back to the short left side and found Sironen. He moved it on to Batchelor who was able to reach out and ground the ball despite the best efforts of Field to stop him. It was Batchelor’s third try in the four derby meetings in 2022. The only one in which they managed to keep him out was the Challenge Cup semi-final in early May. He has crossed in all three Super League meetings. And who could forget his dummy on Marshall which created the winner for Lomax at Newcastle in July? If these sides meet again at Old Trafford he will be a factor.
Yet his latest effort carried no such glory. It was mere consolation, especially when Davies again failed to find the middle of the uprights from wide on the left. With around six minutes remaining Wigan led 24-10. Things might have got a tiny bit more interesting had more come of Jon Bennison’s break down the left a few moments later. He was put clear by Davies’ rather expansive wide ball. Where was this style earlier on? Or was it just that both sides were tiring and gaps in the Warriors rearguard were becoming easier to find, even without any genuine pace? It all came to nought anyway as Wingfield’s desperate offload on the last play of the set was intercepted by Pearce-Paul.
Never a side to give up Saints went to the book of tricks. It ended up costing them another six points but it was refreshing to see a little more ingenuity. Welsby’s torrid evening ended when he attempted a chip and chase on the first tackle of Saints’ next possession with little more than a minute left. He was beaten to it by Marshall who batted it back for Bateman to collect. He found Field who made his way - crab-like - all the way over to the Wigan right. On the very last play of the game Pearce-Paul offloaded to Field whose looping pass found French in space on the right. He scorched away from a tiring Saints cover even more easily than he would have done at the start of the game when they were fresh. Smith this time found the extras to complete a 30-10 success for the home side.
If you looked only at the scoreline you might expect the better looking stats to be on the cherry and white side. That is not so. In fact Saints greater weight of possession and territory is reflected in the fact that five of Woolf’s side made it through the 100-metre mark compared with only three on the Wigan side. Hurrell led the way with 144, Welsby managed 126, Lomax 110, Simm 104 and Sironen a round 100. Marshall was Wigan’s best ground gainer with 128 metres. Surprisingly Field was not one of the other two. Bateman managed 124 metres and French had 106 to add to his two tries.
Similarly, the tackle numbers show how much possession Saints had. O’Neill made 50 defensive interventions, Smithies 44 and Bateman 41. Even stand-off Cust was forced into making 32 tackles. Only Sironen (38) and Knowles (33) topped 30 for Saints. Perhaps the missed tackle count is a greater indicator of how the game went. Collectively Saints fell off 40 tackles and Wigan 37. Those are 40 and 37 opportunities to make more metres respectively and if you have more speed then you’ve probably got a better chance of making your opponents pay.
Wigan actually made more errors than Saints (13 to 10) and in truth Saints’ error count on the day is nowhere near extraordinary by the standards of the rest of their campaign. Again, maybe you just don’t get away with them if you haven’t got sufficient strike in your team to keep on making scoring opportunities. The lesson here is that if we have to take on Wigan again - or any of the other playoff sides - without much of our backline then we have to take our chances when they come along.
Breaks were even at four apiece while Wigan edged the penalty count 7-6. The hosts had a clear advantage in the goal-kicking stakes with Smith a faultless five for five and Saints only managing one from three. Lomax made his only attempt with that early penalty while Davies could not convert either of Lussick or Batchelor’s tries. Davies has kicked only one of his four attempts this season while Lomax is a rather healthier seven from nine. It is not clear to me why the responsibility was handed over after that early success. Not that it would have made too much difference.
And so on to the visit of Wakefield on Monday. Saints still need that one more point to secure that record-extending 10th shield. Depressingly - if perhaps understandably - Woolf has selected five potential debutants in his 21 as well as a plethora of sparsely used youngsters. Makinson is included but the next lowest squad number after his 2 is the 14 worn by Lussick. There is a chance some other senior forwards might take part besides Lussick but not any of Walmsley, Lees, Roby or Batchelor. Mata’utia is still injured and there are those suspensions for Sironen and Knowles. A defeat like the one we suffered at Castleford in April is not just possible but arguably likely.
If it happens we still have one more shot at home to Toulouse on Saturday. I couldn’t say with any certainty that we will take that chance. Yet a couple of weeks ago we seemed to be cruising. The injury situation is clearly spooking Woolf and given the way this derby went you can see why.
Wigan: French, Field, Pearce-Paul, Isa, Marshall, French, Cust, Smith, Singleton, O’Neill, Byrne, Farrell, Bateman, Smithies. Interchanges: Mago, Ellis, Cooper, Shorrocks
Saints: Welsby, Simm, Hurrell, Batchelor, Bennison, Davies, Lomax, Walmsley, Roby, Lees, Sironen, Bell, Knowles. Interchanges: Lussick, Paasi, McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Wingfield
Referee: Ben Thaler
Video Referee: Robert Hicks
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