Captain’s Challenge decisions, Harry Smith controversy, Hull KR’s worrying stat and more things you may have missed in Wigan Warriors’ Challenge Cup win

Wigan Warriors have claimed their first piece of silverware since the 2024 Grand Final after defeating Hull KR in the Challenge Cup Final.

After a seven-try 40-10 win, the Warriors got revenge on their newest rivals, after they came up short to the Robins at Old Trafford back in October.

Jack Farrimond and Adam Keighran both crossed for doubles, whilst Junior Nsemba, Bevan French and Like Thompson also got on the scoresheet.

It wasn’t the perfect afternoon for the Warriors though, with prop Sam Walters sent off in the 77th minute.

The Robins, just like in Las Vegas, couldn’t quite handle the big stage, which comes as a surprise given how well they did last season and in the World Club Challenge.

Dean Hadley going off injured in the opening three minutes, followed by an injury to Mikey Lewis, hampered KR significantly but overall if was an afternoon to forget for Willie Peters’ side.

Here are some talking points you may have missed from the game, all of which factored into Wigan’s victory.

Things you may have missed in Wigan Warriors’ Challenge Cup victory over Hull KR

Wigan’s decision to kick-off:

Taking things back to before the game even began, the coin toss would prove somewhat influential. Wigan’s Liam Farrell opted to kick off, allowing Hull KR to receive possession first. That allowed the Warriors to set the tone defensively and put a stamp on the opening parts of the game.

The injury to Dean Hadley only helped their chances of doing that, but their ability to dominate territory in the early stages was what gave Jack Farrimond his first try,

Harry Smith avoids card: 

A controversial moment in the first half saw Wigan half-back Harry Smith avoid a card, after he tackled Jack Broadbent high.

It was a decision that BBC Pundit Jon Wilkin labelled as incorrect, saying that Smith would have received the yellow in a regular Super League game.

The decision proved impactful, for no bigger reason than the fact Smith came up with a try-saving tackle on James Batchelor just minutes after the incident.

Early Captain’s Challenge decisions:

The opening moments of the game saw two captain’s challenges take place, and both proved beneficial for Wigan. First, a KR inconclusive challenge went in Wigan’s favour, with a lack of camera angles unable to decide if a ball came loose or not.

Then, a successful challenge saw Wigan earn a penalty after it was revealed that Sam Walters was tackled high. That then allowed the eventual winners to gain valuable field position to put Farrimond over for the first try.

Robins woeful missed tackle stat:

In what is absolutely an afternoon to forget for Willie Peters’ side, one key stat that they will implore to fix in the coming weeks is the missed tackle count.

In Super League, the Robins have averaged just over 30 missed tackles per game, which isn’t exactly good in itself, but a stat on the BBC’s broadcast showed that KR had missed 43 tackles just after the hour mark.

That number would have undoubtedly increased before full-time, but to miss that many tackles in a Challenge Cup Final is completely unacceptable, and that stat is one that largely contributes to their dismal display.