Eckersley: Great feeling
- Zach Eckersley praised his side after his Player of the Match performance in Wigan Warriors Reserves Grand Final victory over St Helens Reserves.
- Eckersley: “The lads had to dig in to get the result in tough conditions, but to put 24 points on Saints and to nil them as well makes the victory even better.”
- FT | Wigan Warriors Reserves 24-0 St Helens Reserves.
Zach Eckersley described the ‘great feeling’ as Wigan Warriors Reserves beat St Helens Reserves 24-0 to retain the Reserves League champions crown.
After finishing the regular season unbeaten, the Warriors scored five tries to defeat rivals St Helens to be crowned Reserves League champions for a second season running.
Eckersley scored the Warriors’ third try at the start of the second half, and speaking on the victory, the centre said: “We knew before the game it was going to be tough as Saints are a physical team, but so are we. The lads had to dig in to get the result in tough conditions, but to put 24 points on Saints and to nil them as well makes the victory even better.”
The Warriors won 12 and drew one of their 13 matches to finish top of the table at the end of the regular season, before they saw off Saints in the Grand Final to retain the trophy.
Speaking on the unbeaten year, Eckersley said: “It’s been a really good year for us as we knew we had to back up the success of last season. We made sure we knew what we had to do in each game we played, and even though sometimes things didn’t go our way, everyone stuck together to go unbeaten.”
Eckersley was chosen as the Player of the Match after an impressive performance, and on the award, he said: “It’s a great feeling but you can’t do it without your teammates around you. I’d like to thank the lads for helping me play well and it’s just about doing my bit for them which they would do for me.”
The centre has spent time on loan at Championship sides London Broncos, Widnes Vikings and Barrow Raiders in 2023, and on his own development, Eckersley said: “John Duffy’s really helped me develop this year. Also coming up against men each week while on loan really helped with my physicality and speed in the back end of this year.
“I’m looking forward to next season although this one isn’t done yet. It’s going to be a good week of training before a big game for the lads next weekend.”
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