Wigan Warriors are hosting Salford Red Devils tonight with the Warriors knowing that a win could send them top of the table following last week’s impressive victory over Catalans Dragons.
The game is currently 4-2 to Wigan after just twenty two minutes and it’s been a game of very few chances, as the score would suggest.
At the first chance of territory Salford earned a penalty through a controversial tip tackle by Bevan French, the penalty then converted by Ryan Brierley.
It was a tackle that divided the opinion of the Sky Sports commentators with Phil Clarke initially claiming it to be a brilliant shot, before then erring on the side of caution, as the officials did.
“Some people say that Bevan French can’t defend, try telling Chris Atkin that. He sent him down under with that,” Clarke exclaimed following French’s heavy hit on Atkin.
Atkin had come on just minutes earlier for Marc Sneyd who was nursing a back injury, but upon video replays the decision was made to award a penalty which was something Clarke could sympathise with despite his earlier comments.
“We do want to avoid serious injury, I guess the message is that if it had been a little bit worse there could have been serious injury.”
Salford’s talisman Marc Sneyd had earlier left the field with sideline reporter Jenna Brooks explaining the situation.
“Before I could catch a word with the physio he went straight into the dressing room, he was holding his lower back.”
Just minutes after Brierley’s penalty Liam Farrell danced through to score but Harry Smith failed to convert.
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