After lifting his first Grand Final, Kruise Leeming has touted Wigan Warriors for more success in 2025 as he revealed the club’s motivation.
Leeming had made the Grand Final before, captaining Leeds Rhinos in the 2022 edition when they lost to St Helens but his experience last night was vastly different with Wigan Warriors coming through victorious against Hull KR.
The 9-2 win means that Wigan defend their Super League crown for the first time in their history but even more incredibly, the Warriors have won every trophy on offer in 2024 and for Leeming, it’s clear to see how that success has come.
“I think the way that we’ve worked as a team, we’ve got 30 lads there in the stand and the town, and we’ve all got a common goal that’s driven by Matty (Peet)”, Leeming explained as he spoke on Sky Sports after the game.
“When everybody knows why we’re getting out of bed every morning, the pre-season days, the dark day, everybody has that common goal, then you can achieve special things and that’s what we’ve done today.”
Wigan’s achievement was indeed very special with the club becoming the first to lift all four trophies in the same year during the summer era, and the first since Wigan Warriors back in 1994.
“The standards are so high” – Leeming explains why he signed for Wigan Warriors
It also marked a sixth straight piece of silverware, dating back to last season’s League Leaders Shield which Leeming obviously wasn’t present for after heading down under to join Gold Coast Titans after his shock Leeds Rhinos release.
He would become one of the smartest signings of the 2024 campaign, providing excellent cover after young star Brad O’Neill suffered his season-ending injury and Leeming would speak to what comes next, and ultimately what drives the team.
“We’ll look to continue our success for the people of Wigan,” he explained.
“When pre-season rolls around next year, they’re going to be expecting the same and nothing less. That’s why I’ve come to a club like Wigan because the standards are so high.
“It’s not okay to just win one, we need to win again and again and again. It’s about evolving, just like they evolved from last year to this year to win more trophies. It’s about evolving and making ourselves better people and a better team.”
With the hard work done, it was time for Wigan Warriors to reap the rewards but Leeming was keen to underpin who the victory was for.
“I think we’ve got a bit of a party at Old Trafford, then we’re going to get the bus back to Wigan and celebrate with the Wigan people. We couldn’t have done it without them. There are so many moving parts going into what it takes to win and we appreciate everyone that’s helped us along the way.
“So we’ll go back to Wigan, celebrate with them, celebrate with our family and then like I say, bask in this glory for a little bit and then we’ll be back to work.”