If there is an alluring presence you can feel marching over the horizon, be in no doubt: that is the unmistakable sound of the back-to-back Super League champions in pursuit of a third successive Grand Final in the coming weeks.
There were murmurings, perhaps even suggestions, that Wigan were drifting in the race for Old Trafford over the summer months. But now, as the nights draw in and the real stuff gets under way, it should come as no surprise that a team which won every single trophy on offer last season are beginning to stir into life as September begins.
For 25 minutes here, you wondered if they would potentially succumb to their great rivals and leave the door ajar for someone to overhaul them and secure a top-two finish before the playoffs. But when the chips are down and the stakes are at their highest, this team ultimately delivers.
Trailing 4-0 midway through the first half, by the break they had surged into an eight-point lead with two wonderful tries before striking a decisive blow six minutes after the restart with a third. Suddenly, a game in which St Helens were well on top had transformed decisively into a one-sided Wigan Warriors win – and their head coach’s summation of how the final half-hour played out felt apt.
“I thought we were comfortable,” Matt Peet said. He wasn’t wrong. This contest proved two things, one being that the Warriors are now warming up for the business end of the season. But the other thing we learned was that this Saints side are a level below the elite teams in Super League.
They started with promise here but their shortcomings against the best sides came to the fore again – namely their ability to score points when it really matters. Their spine changes on a weekly basis, and Paul Wellens simply does not know his best side.
That is a huge worry when the playoffs begin in three weeks. After this defeat, the Saints will now probably finish fifth, meaning they will have to win back-to-back away games just to make Old Trafford.
“I understand the narrative of can’t beat Hull KR and Wigan but that’s got to change at some point,” Wellens admitted. “It’s a frustrating evening. We started well but too many times we go off-script and that hurts you in games like tonight.” Wellens is correct about one thing: his side did start well here in a ferocious atmosphere.
They took a deserved lead, too. Wellens’ big gamble was to move the England full-back Jack Welsby to loose forward in a bid to perk up their attack and the early signs were it would work, as Welsby’s superb pass sent Deon Cross over for the opening try. But from there, the Saints simply couldn’t add any more points despite plenty of pressure.
And when Wigan replied through Jake Wardle’s try, the balance of power shifted their way. By half-time they had scored again when Liam Marshall added a second and Harry Smith kicked a penalty to make it 12-4. The Saints were stunned, but what came next floored them completely.
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Six minutes after the restart, Bevan French collected a stray kick and sent Jai Field into open air. The electrifying full-back did the rest to make it 18-4 and even that early on, put the result to bed. As Peet said, Wigan were comfortable. St Helens tried: you cannot fault their effort. But they lacked the quality to trouble the champions.
That meant Wigan could close it out with minimal fuss. Derbies shouldn’t be this straightforward: but right now, the Warriors are on a different level to their great rivals.
St Helens Sailor; Feldt, Percival, Robertson, Cross; Lomax, Mbye; Walmsley, Lees, Clark, Batchelor, Whitley, Welsby. Interchange Paasi, Sironen, Burns, Bell. Wigan Field; Eckersley, Keighran, Wardle, Marshall; French, Smith; Hill, O’Neill, Byrne, Walters, Farrell, Ellis. Interchange Nsemba, Thompson, Havard, Leeming. Referee Jack Smith.
