Wigan Warriors boss Matt Peet believes his side were below their best despite the 18-4 win they picked up against local rivals St Helens on Friday night.
The Cherry and Whites had to come from behind at the Totally Wicked Stadium to pick up the two points they needed to keep their hunt for the League Leaders’ Shield alive and strengthen their grip on a top two spot.
Deon Cross was the man who scored for St Helens, but after being second best for much of the first half, Wigan made Saints pay with a clinical spell just before the interval.
Tries came from Jake Wardle and Liam Marshall to give the Warriors a lead at the break and Jai Field’s opportunistic 90 metre finish in the second wrapped up what felt like a comfortable win in the end.
Ultimately, then, Peet knew his Wigan side weren’t firing on all cylinders against the Saints, but he was delighted with how his side pulled together and dug deep.
Matt Peet on Wigan Warriors’ win over St Helens
“An important win,” Peet told Sky. “It’s always a tough game coming here and Saints have got so many quality players and so much pride as well. I’m proud.
“What pleased me most was that we were some way off our standard but defensively we kept turning up for each other and we looked very comfortable defensively for most of the game. The errors and the penalties, we can’t continue to do that and we haven’t been doing that for a couple of weeks now but we still found a way.”
Asked about Field, who was awarded the man of the match award, Peet added: “The more intense the games get and the quicker the rucks get hopefully, the more you see those kind of players.
“He took his opportunities really well and he had to field some really tough physical kicks. I’m really proud of him but I thought there was some quality performances across the field. Harry (Smith) did well, Ethan Havard and Sam Walters were very good.”
Wigan Warriors play Castleford Tigers next week before hosting Leeds Rhinos on the final day of the Super League season. And, looking ahead to that fixture, which could very well decide who finishes second in the table, Peet said: “It always is, they’re an outstanding team.
“Brad’s done a great job, they’ve been a sleeping giant for a while but they’ve always had that quality and he’s pointing them in the right direction. Hopefully we can have at least one great contest this year but we’ll worry about Castleford at the moment.”
