Scholars end season with win over Bulls
- Match Report as Wigan Warriors Scholars end their season with a win away at Bradford Bulls.
- Bobby Hughes scored three of 10 Warriors tries in the victory.
- FT | Bradford Bulls 20-54 Wigan Warriors.
Wigan Warriors Scholars ended the season with an emphatic away win at Bradford Bulls which saw bobby hughes score a hat-trick of tries.
Report
A strong defensive start from Wigan saw Bradford forced into touch from kick off which started the attacking set deep inside the Bulls half. The Warriors switched play to the left side mid-way through the set as Hughes weaved through mutiple tackles to score with Alex Carlile adding the extras.
The home side responded nine minutes later when pressure following a drop out forced the Warriors into defending their own line. Despite keeping Joseph Gill’s close range drive out, the Warriors were unable to prevent Nathan Ewan from grounding in the corner with Ellis Singer levelling from the tee.
After an evenly contested 15 minutes, the Warriors regained their lead with 23 minutes on the clock when a short pass send Davies through a gap to accelerate more than 40m to score. An accurate kick widened the points difference by a further two points.
A strong set from the restart saw the Warriors add a third try when Kian Norman played an outside pass to Santus, who showed enough pace to evade the tackle. Carlile added the extras once more to make the score 18-6.
The Warriors reapplied extensive pressure to the Bradford defence, who knocked on 20m from their own line before conceding a high tackle. Wigan made the most of the attack as a pass to Hughes saw the full-back dummy through for his second to make the score 22-6 with the kick sailing just wide.
Bradford reduced the points difference before the break when a move out a scrum led to Dexter Hood diving over in the right corner. Singer was unable to add the extras from the touchline as the Warriors led 22-10 at the interval.
A strong restart from the Warriors almost saw Davies stretch over for his second before Ollie Wright scooted through from the play the ball. Carlile made no mistake with the kick to make the score 28-10 after 44 minutes.
An excellent attack on the last tackle saw Alex Higham evade the tackle to release the ball to XX, who sent Makhaza racing clear on the right wing to score a sixth try. Carlile added the extras from in front of the sticks for a 34-10 lead.
After a spell of pressure inside the Warriors defensive half, the Bulls reduced the points difference when Will Simpson broke through two tacklers to score behind the posts. Singer added the extras to make the score 34-16 on the hour.
The Warriors crossed for a seventh try minutes later when Hughes dummied his way through the Bradford defence to complete his hat-trick in the left corner. The touchline conversion dropped just short as Wigan remained 38-16 ahead.
The points continued to fall in West Yorkshire as the home side added a fourth try when Singer’s crossfield kick was fumbled by the Warriors and gathered by Simpson for his second of the match. Singer’s conversion rebounded off the post which kept the score at 38-20.
The Warriors finished strongly as Asher Keta first scored in the corner before a deep kick from Carlile was fumbled by the Bradford full-back which allowed Alfie Allender to kick further downfield, which he grounded. Tommy O’Connor added the extras to make the score 48-20.
Wigan finished the campaign with a final try in the closing seconds when Santus bounced off the attempted tackle before bursting through for a second. O’Connor successfully added the extras to give the Warriors a 54-20 win.
Gallery (Darren Greenhalgh):
Bradford Bulls: Lucas Murray, Isaac Graham, Will Simpson, Dylan Keenan, Nathan Ewen, Elliott Dennison, Ellis Singer, Joseph Gill, Sam Brearley, Daniel Daugela, Josh Huby, Alfie Foyle, Riley Gelder.
Interchange: Aiden Brown, Dexter Hood, Scott Hewitt, Harrison Hogg, Dylan O’Brien, Jesse Boothroyd.
Tries: Ewen (9′), Hood (39′), Simpson (59′, 68′),
Goals: Singer (2/3).
Wigan Warriors: Bobby Hughes, Isaac Makhaza, Liam Cartwright, Kian Norman, Owen Santus, Alex Higham, Alex Carlile, Callum Holmes, Paddy Burrows, Jude Rowe, Lucas Read, Finlay Davies, Finlay Grant.
Interchange: Tommy O’Connor, Ollie Wright, Aiden Wright, Alfie Allender, Asher Keta, Lucas Fetherston.
Tries: Hughes (1′, 33′, 62′), (Davies (23′), Santus (28′, 79′), O. Wright (42′), Makhaza (51′), Keta (73), Allender (76′).
Goals: Carlile (5/8), O’Connor 14 (2/2).
