“Wigan Warriors are just too good”, claims pundit as he declares them League Leaders Shield winners

Wigan Warriors avenged their loss on Good Friday as they beat St Helens in the derby to open up a four-point lead atop Super League and confirm their status as the best team in the land. For one pundit though, Matt Peet’s side are “just too good” with the League Leaders Shield wrapped up.

It wasn’t until the last game of the season that Wigan Warriors secured the League Leaders Shield in 2023 with their victory in ‘The Battle of the Borough’ earning them first place. That victory was in itself controversial as well with Leigh Leopards pushing them all the way and feeling hard done by.

This season it’s a different tale with Wigan Warriors four points clear atop Super League and with a game in hand over all their rivals, whilst Leigh linger outside the playoffs after an injury-riddled second season back in Super League.

Of course, Wigan’s major rivals are St Helens and Matt Peet’s side avenged their Good Friday loss by edging out Saints 16-12 last night in a game that reflected the playoff intensity of Super League. Both teams had multiple players missing and had to resort to square pegs in round holes, Wigan even playing Liam Farrell at hooker, but it was still an absolute epic.

It was an epic that Wigan Warriors won though and that’s led former Wigan star Sam Tomkins to declare the title race over as he’s effectively handed them the League Leaders Shield with 10 rounds of Super League to go.

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Are Wigan Warriors too good?

Sam Tomkins won many plenty of silverware during his time with Wigan Warriors but last night whilst working for Sky Sports, he anointed this current Wigan side as the League Leaders Shield winners.

Responding to the state of the league table and what could change between now and the end of the season, Tomkins bluntly stated: “It’ll be a top one finish for Wigan, I think.

“I think everybody else now is competing for that other spot to have a home semi-final. They’ve got 10 games left, they’ve not lost for the previous 10. They’d have to have a disaster to not win the League Leaders Shield now.

“Matty Peet is a smart bloke, he’s not going to dwell on that fact, and I’m sure some of the players will be saying they’ve got a lot to fight for, which they do, because they want to go into the end of the season with momentum.

“But everyone else is going to second place now, Wigan are just too good.”

They’re four points clear of Warrington Wolves in second, and six clear of both St Helens (3rd) and Hull KR (4th), however, the Robins could leapfrog Warrington if they beat their own derby rivals Hull FC by 25 points or more today. Meanwhile, Salford (22 points) and Catalans Dragons (20 points) also face off this afternoon with the race for second and that crucial home semi-final behind Wigan heating up.

Have St Helens fans become entitled?

In recent weeks, the pressure has been ramped up on Paul Wellens with the loss to Castleford Tigers last week seeing the players booed from the pitch. That 8-6 defeat came just six weeks after the Red Vee had beaten Cas 60-4 on the road, highlighting the sudden drop in form.

Much of that is down to the fact St Helens have been ravaged by injury but during the past 18 months, Wigan Warriors have become the dominant force in Super League and dethroned the Red Vee – something that Saints’ fans cannot accept according to Tomkins.

He explained: “The problem is, they are not the champions of Super League. Their fans have become accustomed to that. They’ve had four years of being the benchmark.

“We’ve said it for years and years, that they’re the benchmark and they’re the best team everybody’s chasing. Well that’s not the case anymore, that’s the problem.

“They’re still a very good team. They’ve got stars across the pitch, they’ve got a great coach, we’ve got a nice stadium, good owner. The problem is, they’re not the champions, they’re not the best team any more.”

The two rivals will meet again at Magic Weekend in Round 22 on August 17th in what is effectively the rubber match with the scores at 1-1 currently for 2024.