Leigh Leopards progressed to the Challenge Cup semi-finals with a 20-12 win over Wakefield Trinity and head coach Adrian Lam has given his verdict, offering high praise to his side’s tough defensive efforts.
After shipping 30 points against Hull KR in Round Five of Super League and a further 40 to Wakefield last week in Round Six, the Leopards fronted up and kept Trinity to just two tries in a gritty Challenge Cup contest.
It was a game where neither team really had the ascendancy but when the momentum shifted late in the second half, it shifted Leigh’s way with the Leopards scoring two quick tries that both came on the back of Trinity errors.
Prior to those errors, Wakefield had missed the chance to go two scores up when David Armstrong made a brilliant read to tackle Oliver Pratt when the centre had Tom Johnstone crying for the ball on his outside.
Thankfully for Adrian Lam, Pratt didn’t make the pass allowing his side to stay in the game and from then on they punished errors to score 14 unanswered points and win 20-12.
“A weird game” – Leigh Leopards boss gives verdict after Challenge Cup win over Wakefield
⏱ 𝗙𝗨𝗟𝗟 𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗘 at DIY Kitchens Belle Vue Stadium and Leopards road to the Challenge Cup continues! pic.twitter.com/acGda7VSkI
— Leigh Leopards (@LeighLeopardsRL) April 4, 2025
The game was aired on Super League+ and Lam spoke post-match to discuss his side’s win, offering praise to Wakefield and speaking about the excitement of Wembley being just 80 minutes away.
“It was a tough win as we anticipated,” Lam stated, clearly still recalling the 40-14 loss from the week before.
“It was a weird game really in the sense, but we got there in the end and showed plenty of courage.
“It was important to bounce back from last week’s result. We were disappointed after obviously being poor in a lot of areas there so there’s a bit of an attitude swing and change tonight.”
He’d again praise the team’s courage, particularly to bounce back after going behind, noting: “I think we needed that connectivity to get through that second half there where they came back and led.
“That takes courage but also with the new group, I’m very proud of them because it takes time to get that combinations to that point so there’s some great lessons today that’ll make us better move forward.”
The Leopards boss gave a verdict of “very pleased” in respect to his side’s defence before offering praise to Wakefield, adding: “It’s always difficult to come up here at any time and they’re a good team.
“Everyone that plays them this year will see that when they get to them. They’ve had 12 months where they’ve been winning and they’ve got some good combinations there so I’m just grateful that we’re through now to the semifinals.”
On those semi-finals, Lam admits his side still need to improve: “I think it’s a week-to-week proposition for us at the moment. There’s a little bit of inconsistency there so at least it’s a couple of weeks to the semi-final and we’ll have some times now, some Super League games to blend together and to join together.
“The thought of even Wembley as another visit is obviously high on the agenda but also exciting times.”
