“I didn’t ever think it was going to be a card” – Matt Peet on Morgan Smithies tackle and “interesting” Ian Watson comments

Today Matt Peet wrote his name into the history of Wigan Warriors forever as he led his side to their 20th Challenge Cup trophy with a dramatic 16-14 win over Huddersfield decided by a late Liam Marshall try.

After the game, Peet reflected on his emotions:

“It hasn’t sunk in but I’m looking forward to it sinking in and the players, the staff, the town celebrating it.

“As for how I feel now: delighted, proud.

“I can sit here and be proud that people are happy that we’ve played a part in them having a great weekend.”

He believed that the game wasn’t just won in the big moment at the end but rather in the player’s commitment: “In the player’s commitment to one another, handling certain moments well and at certain times still being prepared to play.”

He also credited opponents Huddersfield who were exceptional on the day: “Exceptionally tough, you can see what they’re building, I think Ian’s teams are so resilient and well structured with the ball. You know you have to be 100% right to defend the shapes they have.

“They completed well and executed for most of the game the perfect game plan but where they were particularly impressive was their scramble efforts. We have players that you can’t give them an inch so I think if you look at the game as a whole, they’ll take a lot of pride in their commitment to stop that.”

There was a controversial moment in the final when Morgan Smithies gave away a second penalty for a head high tackle with many believing a yellow card should have been shown. None was forthcoming and Peet believed this was correct: “I didn’t ever think it was going to be a card but you never know.”

That’s where he and Ian Watson disagree with Watson saying the opposite as well as claiming his side were the better team.

Peet responded to these claims after the game: “It’s interesting that he’s said that. There’s a lot of markers that can be signals of winning a game but at the end of it it’s who stays in the fight for longer.

“They completed high and didn’t give many penalties away but we scored more points.”