Warrington returned to winning ways with a comfortable win over struggling Salford. Toby King and Matty Ashton scored five of the hosts six tries, with the former grabbing a hat-trick. It was a tough night for Salford who would have fancied their chances prior to the game, but it was the Wolves night a relieving win for Daryl Powell.
Highlights
Ken Sio can’t stop scoring: There is no denying that the electric winger knows where the try line is and after scoring the most tries in Super League in 2021, he has continued in the same in vain in 2022 as he currently leads the competition with his try in this game taking his season tally to 11. His try was in a losing effort but the fact that Sio continues to find the try line in a struggling Salford side makes his numbers even more impressive.
Toby King with an impressive hat-trick: A player who often seems to be overlooked when people discuss the best centres in the Super League, Toby King continues to be a key player in this Warrington team and proved so tonight as he scored his first hat-trick in the league as the Wolves got back to winning ways. With the World Cup approaching at the end of the year, King will be hoping to produce more performances like this one as he looks to make Shaun Wane’s squad in a position which will be hotly contested
Match Report
Warrington Wolves and Daryl Powell got a much-needed win at the Halliwell Jones Stadium as they proved too good for the Salford Red Devils.
After losing four straight games in the league, Warrington were in desperate need of a win going into a tough Easter period to stop their downward spiral in the table.
They got off to the perfect start as they opened the scoring in the eighth minute through the impressive Toby King as he scored the first of his hat-trick.
King didn’t take long to double his tally as he was the quickest to react to a loose ball and pushed Warrington out to a 12-0 lead after only 20 minutes.
Salford also came into this game looking to get their season back on track after a topsy-turvy start, but after conceding two early tries their task became even harder as Ryan Brierley was sent to the sin-bin for holding down at the ruck.
The Wolves didn’t need a second invitation to make their man advantage count as the speedster Matty Ashton scored out wide in a dominant first half display for the Wire.
A try on the stroke of half-time for Ken Sio meant Salford only went into half time 12 points down in a match where they had been clearly second best.
The pattern of the game continued after the restart as Warrington got an early try in the second half as Prop Joe Philbin crashed under the sticks to restore his sides 16-point advantage.
The Red Devils definitely improved as the second half progressed and a scoot from dummy half by Andy Ackers gave them their second try of the night.
But they struggled to put any sustained pressure on Warrington as the home team put the game to bed with tries from Ashton and King – the latter scoring his first hat-trick in Super League.
A late Salford try from Brierley brought the final score closer but Warrington were deserved winners and have put points on the board in Super League for the first time since February.