Warriors defeat Dragons

• Match Report as Wigan Warriors take victory against Catalans Dragons at the DW Stadium.
• Harry Smith converted five Warriors tries including one of his own, as the Warriors got back to winning ways with an emphatic second half performance.
• FT | Wigan Warriors 30-8 Catalans Dragons.

Match Report as Wigan Warriors defeat Catalans Dragons at the DW STADIUM.

Despite falling behind after half-time, a super second half performance for the Warriors saw them total five converted tries on the night to take victory against Catalans Dragons in Round 10 of Betfred Super League.

Harry Smith, Adam Keighran, and Abbas Miski all scored tries, with Luke Thompson scoring his first try for the club. Liam Farrell also crossed for his 150th career try, with Smith converting all five from the tee.

Report

A cagey first 15 minutes saw neither side take an early foothold in the game, with Catalans arguably coming closest in the opening stages. Mike McMeeken offloaded to Fouad Yaha in the corner, who knocked on under some strong goal-line defence from Liam Marshall.

Around a quarter of the way through the affair, Catalans would open the scoring. Jordan Abdull kicked the Dragons deep into Warriors territory, where an offside call allowed the Dragons to opt for a two point attempt, which Arthur Mourgue converted.

Moments later, the Dragons added six more to their tally. A fresh set of six in Wigan’s half allowed Steve McNamara’s side a few bites of the cherry by the posts, before Alrix Da Costa fired a quick pass from dummy-half into Julian Bousqet to spin and touch down for the first try of the match. Mourgue once again kicked successfully, giving Catalans an 8-0 lead.

Momentum was beginning to shift, and with the fresh legs of Kruise Leeming proving too quick for the Dragons defence, the Warriors carved a response. The hooker started the attack by finding Bevan French 20-metres out from Catalans’ try-line, who then moved the ball on to Kaide Ellis. He then passed left to Luke Thompson, who powered through two defenders to slide over with momentum and score his first try for the Cherry and Whites. Harry Smith converted from the left of the posts to cut the deficit by six.

Matt Peet’s side were growing into the half as it went on, and came close to taking the lead just before the break. Leeming was once again involved, sending a grubber kick into the path of Patrick Mago, who’s attempt to ground the ball under pressure from Jayden Nikorima was ruled a no try by referee Jack Smith. As a result, the sides went into the dressing rooms at 6-8 in favour of the Dragons after a tense first 40 minutes.

The Warriors momentum would continue into the second half, as they took the lead just six minutes after the break through a sensational try from Harry Smith. The Wigan number seven spotted space behind the Dragons’ line 20 metres-out, chipping over a kick towards the posts which he would also chase down. He collected the ball to score in front of the South Stand, before converting to make it 12-8 to the Warriors.

The Cherry and Whites were finding their rythm, crossing again just three minutes later. Jai Field sent an audacious looping pass towards the right wing, where Adam Keighran arrived with pace to catch and score in the corner. Smith remained perfect from the tee, this time with a fantastic touchline conversion.

Despite the Dragons looking to to strike back in the game, the Warriors defence was proving well up to the task. McMeeken wrestled his way into a dangerous position before offloading to Nikorima, who was held up by a number of Warriors as he attempted to crash over. The following Catalans attack was again thwarted, with Yaha dragged into touch in the right corner.

With the contest beginning to settle down around 15 minutes from it’s end, the Warriors gave themselves some breathing room with a great team effort. An attack started by a powerful Junior Nsemba carry found it’s way to Field on the left-hand side, with his pass finding Wardle to break the line. He then cleverly passed back inside to Liam Farrell, who scored his 150th career try. Smith’s kick was good again, taking the Warriors total to 24.

Some more strong Warriors defence set up a fantastic final action to the game. With a Catalans kick finding the back of the Warriors’ in-goal area, French quickly brought out the 20-metre restart. He spotted space in behind the Dragons defence, sending a powerful kick forwards for Field to chase. The Australian was tackled upon gathering the ball 10-metres out, but Abbas Miski was on hand to take the ball from dummy-half and crash under the posts to score. Harry Smith completed a perfect night from the tee on the hooter, making the final score 30-8 to the Warriors.

Gallery:

Wigan Warriors: Jai Field, Abbas Miski, Adam Keighran, Jake Wardle, Liam Marshall, Bevan French, Harry Smith, Liam Byrne, Brad O’Neill, Luke Thompson, Junior Nsemba, Liam Farrell, Kaide Ellis.

Interchange: Ethan Havard, Patrick Mago, Kruise Leeming, Tyler Dupree.

18th Player: Harvie Hill.

Tries: Thompson (27′), Smith (45′), Keighran (48′), Farrell (64′), Miski (79′).

Goals: Smith (5/5).

Catalans Dragons: Arthur Mourgue, Fouad Yaha, Matthieu Laguerre, Arthur Romano, Tom Johnstone, Jayden Nikorima, Jordan Abdull, Julian Bousquet, Alrix Da Costa, Romain Navarrete, Tariq Sims, Mike McMeeken, Benjamin Garcia.

Interchange: Paul Séguier, Bayley Sironen, César Rougé, Chris Satae.

18th Player: Franck Maria.

Tries: Bousquet (22′).

Goals: Mourgue (2/2).

Referee: Jack Smith

Attendance: 14,481.

By Harvey Orgill