Warriors Wheelchair beaten at Leeds
- Match Report as Wigan Warriors Wheelchair fall to defeat away to Leeds Rhinos Wheelchair.
- Wigan scored seven tries in the defeat including doubles from Roberts, Wooloff and Heggie.
- FT | Leeds Rhinos Wheelchair 68-36 Wigan Warriors Wheelchair.
Match Report as Wigan Warriors Wheelchair are beaten by a strong Leeds Rhinos Wheelchair side away from home.
The game was in the balance for the first quarter, with both sides exchanging tries and the lead swinging from one side to the other. First over the line for the Rhinos was Josh Butler, but a perfect angled run from Matt Wooloff around the back of Jack Heggie saw him score and get his side off the mark.
Following on from that, Dec Roberts carried the ball strongly from centre court to the left edge and was able to touch down in the corner. Two uncharacteristic misses from the tee by Roberts left the Warriors only 8-4 in front.
Regaining the lead, the Rhinos hit back through Halliwell, allowed too much space close to the line, before extending it further with a try from Collins. Adding their extras, Leeds now put themselves back in the driving seat.
Brief respite for Wigan came when Chris Greenhalgh was able to crash over for a try. A successful conversion from Roberts helped narrow the gap, but this wasn’t to last.
Finishing the half stronger, Leeds rolled in three more tries, two from Collins to complete his hat trick and a second for Butler. This gave them a commanding 34-14 lead going into the break.
Looking to start the half on the front foot, Wigan were in again within minutes. Wooloff doubling his tally with a try in the right corner. Heggie took over the kicking duties with Roberts off the field, but he too was having issues.
On the back of some strong carries from Leeds, Ewan Clibbens spotted a gap in the defence and was able top place the ball down on the line. He then converted his own try to make it 40-18.
After a flurry of tries, a tight period followed with defences on top. Both sides were working hard to cover the court and minimise any space for the attacking team. It took an off the cuff play from Heggie, with a little kick through close to the line that he chased himself, that helped break the deadlock.
On the hour mark, Leeds were back on the attack and used some slick handling to release Nathan Mulhall down the left flank. With his team’s handling creating an overlap, Mulhall was in to score his first try of the afternoon.
Two quick fire tries followed, a second from Halliwell and a third from Butler, this was enough to put the game out of reach for the travelling side. With both tries converted by Collins, the Rhinos were now 58-24 up, with 15 minutes to play.
Despite this, Wigan still fought until the end and were able to add to their tally. Having taken the ball into the line, Roberts was able evade being tagged and reach out to score. Matching his teammates with a brace, Heggie scored a seventh try for the Warriors, but it wouldn’t be enough.
A try by Jodie Boyd-Ward was sandwiched by the last two Wigan tries, set up by a long pass by Clibbens. He then finished the scoring with his second, this after a mazy run by Collins. Adding the extras, Clibbens sealed a 68-36 win for Leeds, and likely top spot in the table with one round remaining.
Gallery:
Leeds Rhinos: Josh Butler, Nathan Mulhall, Tom Halliwell, Paul Horrobin, Jody Boyd-Ward.
Interchanges: Ewan Clibbens, Nathan Collins, Verity Smith
Tries: Butler (3), Halliwell (2), Collins (3), Clibbens (2), Mulhall, Boyd-Ward
Goals: Halliwell (4/4), Collins (4/6), Clibbens (2/2)
Wigan Warriors: Chris Greenhalgh, Jack Heggie, Dec Roberts, Adam Rigby, Matt Wooloff,
Interchanges: Nathan Roberts, Mark Williams
Tries: Wooloff (2), D. Roberts (2), Greenhalgh, Heggie (2)
Goals: D. Roberts (3/5), Heggie (1/2)
Wigan’s final regular round fixture will be on Saturday 23rd September when we host Hull FC.
