Wigan Warriors v Huddersfield Giants verdict as Warriors’ champion mentality shows

Wigan Warriors came from behind to thump Huddersfield Giants 44-18 at the Brick Community Stadium.

Here’s our verdict.

Action

Huddersfield had been without Adam Clune since last season but it didn’t take the scrum-half long to underline his importance on his return to the side. Having a hand in almost everything the Giants did on the day, Clune set up the Yorkshire side’s first of the afternoon with a looping pass over the top to Adam Swift.

Swift still had plenty to do, but the prolific winger had enough about to beat Zach Eckersley and Bevan French to the corner.

Wigan hit back through Liam Farrell, who finished a fine play, which saw Eckersley get away from his man and feed the skipper. The youngster was then rewarded with a try of his own to put the home side ahead with a switch of play from Harry Smith and a change of pace from French opening up the space for him to touch down.

Huddersfield rallied to prevent the home side from taking control of the contest, though, with Clune claiming a second assist, putting Sam Hewitt over the line with a flat pass.

And, just before the break, the Giants landed another blow on the Warriors as George Flanagan touched down to send the visitors in with a lead.

Wigan came out for the second half in a determined mood, though, with Farrell grabbing a second shortly after the restart, following a error from Swift, who made a mess of his attempt to collect a kick.

The Warriors hit the front once more through Liam Marshall who managed to squeeze home in the corner after some quick hands from Smith, Jai Field and Jake Wardle. And, the home side really seized control after a superb Smith 40/20 provided the platform for French to force his way over the line from the restart.

Wigan were denied two tries by the video referee, but with six minutes remaining they finally got the job done, through Jake Wardle, touching down after Field’s cut out pass. That assist came just a minute after Field produced a try-saving tackle to deny Swift in the corner.

Field got his rewards as he latched onto a Junior Nsemba offload, beat the Jacob Gagai and touched down. And, Kruise Leeming rounded off what turned out to be a comfortable victory, with French and Adam Keighran combining to set the hooker away.

Star man

Harry Smith. Had a hand in almost everything Wigan did well on the day. His superb kicking helped to change the game and he showed every facet of his game.

Good day for…

Wigan Warriors. Matt Peet won’t have been happy with the way his side performed in the first half at the Brick Community Stadium, but they shook off their Las Vegas hangover to rise to the challenge and hammer Huddersfield in the second half.

Bad day for…

Tui Lolohea. Dropped out of the starting line-up in the build up to kick off after falling unwell, meaning Luke Robinson will have to wait another week at least to see his first choice half-back pairing in action together.

Bigger picture

The scoreline might be a little harsh on Huddersfield, who turned in their best 40 minutes of the season so far in the first half, but they couldn’t live with Wigan in the second half who claimed their third win of the season.

The Warriors‘ champion mentality really came to the fore and with the intensity they showed in the second half, they’ll take some stopping.

Teams

Wigan Warriors: Jai Field; Zach Eckersley, Adam Keighran, Jake Wardle, Liam Marshall; Bevan French, Harry Smith; Liam Byrne, Kruise Leeming, Luke Thompson; Junior Nsemba, Liam Farrell, Kaide Ellis.

Bench: Tyler Dupree, Harvie Hill, Sam Walters, Tom Forber.

Huddersfield Giants: Jacob Gagai; Adam Swift, Liam Sutcliffe, Jake Bibby, Aidan McGowan; George Flanagan, Adam Clune; Fenton Rogers, Ashton Golding, Oliver Wilson; Sam Hewitt, Jack Murchie; Leroy Cudjoe.

Bench: Tom Deakin, Tom Burgess, Harry Rushton, Taane Milne.