Wakefield Trinity boss Daryl Powell couldn’t be happier with his side as they continue to create history, thumping Wigan Warriors in their Super League play-off semi-final contest yesterday evening (Saturday).
The 33-6 result extends what is already a very memorable season for Trinity, who secured their highest-ever Super League position of fourth before reaching the last four of the play-offs with victory over Leigh Leopards.
Old Trafford now awaits after a dominant performance over treble-chasing Wigan, in a game that will see Wakefield play in their first-ever Super League Grand Final. The Warriors were left shell-shocked as Trin ran in four unanswered tries in a blistering 13-minute spell at the start of the second half, which largely contributed to their incredible success.
“Delighted,” Powell said in his post-match press conference. “The performance was exceptional. We knew we had to play that well to beat Wigan. They are unbelievable here.
“For us to come here and do what we did is an awesome feeling. We don’t get too carried away with it. We celebrate it and it is only right you celebrate it but then we just focus on next week.
“But wow, what a performance from the boys.”
Trinity topped the Warriors at the Brick Community Stadium for the first time since 2017, putting an end to Wigan’s treble hopes after already securing the Challenge Cup and League Leaders’ Shield in 2026.
Despite taking an early lead through Man of Steel nominee Brad O’Neill, the home side struggled to match Trinity’s defensive physicality and attacking prowess throughout.
“I thought it would be a tight game,” Powell admitted. “The first half looked that way. We were just in front at half-time. The second half performance was exceptional. They go down to 12, like we did in the first half, and I thought Truey (Jake Trueman) was phenomenal in the second half. He came up with some real quality plays there.
“That period, down to 12, we executed really well. The way we played, how disciplined we were, we put the ball where we wanted to put it with our kicking game and then defensively we fronted up everywhere.
“Every player had an outstanding defensive performance today and that’s what you need to do against Wigan.”
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Trinity pounced on Wigan’s second-half yellow card, but they themselves were down a man in the opening 40, with a trip from Jazz Tevaga seeing him sat down for 10 minutes.
“I thought it was harsh, it is not a genuine trip really,” Powell said on the incident. “These things happen. We handled it all right.
“We have had a bit of practice with 12 men recently, so it probably helped us. We conceded one try, but we worked really hard in the remainder of those ten minutes because it can be really dangerous when teams are playing against 12, as we showed in the second half.”
Former club Warrington now awaits for Powell, in a game that is guaranteed to see a new name on the Super League title.
Detailing his plan for the coming week, the experienced head coach said: “I’ve got a fair bit to do in terms of the media stuff, but the boys are tuned in at the moment.
“We haven’t been chasing that much practice. We’ll have a couple of sessions next week, we’ll recover on Monday, train Wednesday, Friday and play Saturday. They are tuned in, and we don’t need to change too much.
“The boys are in a good place. They are nice, calm and relaxed.”
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