Hull KR 10-24 Wigan Warriors: Player ratings and major talking points

An electric atmosphere welcomed the players at Sewell Group Craven Park as Hull KR and Wigan Warriors played out an entertaining contest in Round One of the Betfred Super League. Classy tries, robust defending and plenty of huge hits were on show as Wigan journeyed across the Pennines and silenced a packed-out home crowd with an emphatic 24-10 victory.

Talking Points

1. Wigan getting ‘back to their best’?

It is very early days but Wigan produced some off-the-cuff rugby league in their impressive win tonight which was something that they lacked last year in what turned out to be a very disappointing campaign. Perhaps the key to changing that tonight was Jai Field. Freshly fit and raring to go, he scored a superb try from the scrum base whilst Liam Marshall caught the eye finishing off a 100-metre effort helping the visitors into an unassailable lead and they never looked back.

2. Slow start for Hull KR

The home side looked exciting in stages, with home grown hero Mikey Lewis scoring a fantastic individual try. However, perhaps too many handling errors or being caught unawares proved to be the decisive factor on a disappointing night where they just could not get going.

3. Jai Field stealing the show?

All the hype going into Wigan’s season has centred around star signing Cade Cust. The former Manly man was one of the bookies’ pre-season favourites for the Man of Steel. But perhaps full-back Jai Field is the man to watch. True, he missed several attempts at goal but his try was sensational. He was faultless under the high ball and chimed into the line to help catch an unwitting KR defence off guard at times. Cust will still be key but Field should raise more than a few eyebrows, should he stay injury free. After a difficult debut season in Super League and losing the number six shirt to Cust being moved to 23 himself, Field has something to prove and tonight he started doing just that.

Hull KR
1. Lachlan Coote – 6
24. Sam Wood – 5
3. Brad Takairangi – 6
4. Shaun Kenny-Dowall – 6
5. Ryan Hall – 6
20. Mikey Lewis – 7
7. Jordan Abdull – 7
8. Albert Vete – 6
14. Jez Litten – 7
10. George King – 6
12. Kane Linnett – 7
13. Matty Storton – 6
16. Korbin Sims – 7
Substitutes
9. Matt Parcell – 7
18. Jimmy Keinhorst – 6
25. Greg Richards – 6
27. Frankie Halton – 6

Wigan Warriors
23. Jai Field – 8
5. Liam Marshall – 8
21. Kai Pearce-Paul – 7
4. Iain Thornley – 5
2. Jake Bibby – 8
6. Cade Cust – 8
7. Thomas Leuluai – 7
8. Brad Singleton – 7
9. Sam Powell – 7
15. Kaide Ellis – 6
12. Liam Farrell – 7
13. John Bateman – 7
11. Willie Isa – 7
Substitutes
3. Zak Hardaker – 7
10. Patrick Mago – 6
14. Morgan Smithies – 7
20. Liam Byrne – 7