Warriors Wheelchair lose to Leeds

• Match Report as Warriors Wheelchair fall to late defeat against Leeds Rhinos Wheelchair.
• Scores were tied until the final 5 minutes as the 2022 Grand Finalists broke away to take the win.
• FT | Wigan Warriors Wheelchair 38-50 Leeds Rhinos Wheelchair.

Wigan Warriors Wheelchair fell to a late defeat in an end-to-end tie against 2022 Grand Finalists, Leeds Rhinos.

Leeds came flying out of the blocks and opened up a 10-0 lead, with tries through Jodie Boyd-Ward and Nathan Mulhall, plus a conversion from Nathan Collins.

That early shock woke Wigan from their slumber and a double from Matt Wooloff, one of which was converted by Dec Roberts, tied the scores. A third try put the Warriors in front by 6 points when a reverse pass from Roberts put Adam Rigby through a huge hole. The extras were again added by Roberts.

Each side contained two World Cup winners apiece, and having this talent on show helped make the game a thrilling encounter. Levelling the scores once more, an angled run by Josh Butler saw him cross the line after being supplied by Tom Halliwell. Collins converted.

Having had an early advantage, Leeds were back in front when a Halliwell kick from half way was collected by Collins and he was able to touchdown in the left corner. This time, Halliwell obliged from the kicking tee to make it 22-16.

Not to be outdone, Phil Roberts put a neat little grubber kick in that bounced up nicely for Dec Roberts to catch and score. Another successful conversion tied the scores yet again.

What a tense 40 minutes of Rugby League, but it wasn’t over yet. In the dying seconds, Dec Roberts attempted a drop goal, but it missed the target and kept the scores 22-22 at the break.

The crowd of 100 or so spectators were being treated to one hell of a game. The skill, the aggression, the unbearable tension was a great advert for the sport and will surely have them banging down the doors at the next meeting.

In a similar vein to the first half, it was Leeds who got the scoring underway. A kick through from Collins was chased down by Mulhall who then crossed the line to score his second of the day.

Adding to his tally, Wooloff completed his hat trick when he crashed through the Rhinos defence in his usual aggressive manner. With Roberts hitting the mark from the tee, the Warriors now had a 2 point lead.

Extending that lead further, Dec Roberts scored his second when he was able to reach for the line, despite being stopped just short, and place the ball down. He was again successful with the conversion to make the score 34-26.

As we hit the hour mark, it was still impossible to tell who would take the spoils. Keeping his team within touching distance, Halliwell was able to reach through the defensive line and pass the ball around the back of the would be defender to release Collins in the left corner. Converting his own try, Collins narrowed the gap back to just 2 points.

Looking to keep his team on the right side of the scoreline, Dec Roberts was the benefactor after some quick hands put him and Martin Norris in a 2 on 1 situation, with Norris supplying the final pass to allow his Captain to score out wide.

With Roberts missing the last conversion, he knew any extras points could be vital. Setting up for another drop goal attempt, he was unable to get the ball high enough to evade the charging defenders. Then, immediately following this, the Rhinos went down the other end and scored through Butler. Another Collins conversion tied the scores for the third time, this time at 38 each.

Neither team wanted to settle for the draw, but it was Leeds who took advantage when Collins become the third player to complete his hat trick. The try and conversion put Leeds 44-38 up with only 5 minutes to go.

Sealing the victory, Halliwell got in on the try scoring when the defenders failed to collect either of his tags on the line and so was able to get the ball down. The final action of the game saw Collins slot the ball between the uprights and take the score to 50-38.

Gallery:

Head Coach Phil Roberts said: “It’s been a tough start to the season playing both Grand Finalist from 2022, but with a couple of key players unavailable, we can’t be too disappointed with how close the game was until the final minutes. I’m really proud of the effort, we kept our composure in the face of adversity, and we now move on the next match”.

Wigan Warriors: Martin Norris, Lenny Izzard, Declan Roberts, Adam Rigby, Matt Wooloff.

Interchanges: Nathan Roberts, Phil Roberts.

Tries: Wooloff (3), Rigby, D.Roberts (3).

Goals: D.Roberts (5/7).

Leeds Rhinos: Nathan Collins, Josh Butler, Nathan Mulhall, Tom Halliwell, Jodie Boyd-Ward.

Interchanges: Daniel Cutts, Ewan Clibbens, Paul Horrobin, Verity Smith.

Tries: Boyd-Ward, Mulhall (2), Butler (2), Collins (3), Halliwell.

Goals: Collins (6/8), Halliwell (1/1).

Wigan Warriors will face Halifax Panthers for the second time this season on Saturday 15th April, when Birmingham University hosts the first of four Magic Rounds in the Wheelchair Super League. The other fixtures will see London Roosters vs Leeds Rhinos and Warrington Wolves vs Hull FC.