Grand final glory for Wigan after taking out the Super League title, Vodafone Warriors signing Sam Tomkins right in the centre of it holding the trophy with Josh Charnley. Photo: Photosport
Wigan took out a dramatic contest in the English Super League grand final to win the first of four premierships to be decided in the space of about 15 hours today.
In front of more than 66,000 fans at Old Trafford, Warrington had Wigan under real pressure through much of the first half, scoring three tries in rapid succession to take a 16-2 lead close to halftime.
The Warriors werent without opportunities but they failed to cash in on them until the final moments of the half. After a lengthy stoppage for an injury which ended the match for Warrington winger Joel Monaghan, Wigan finally made it over with Vodafone Warriors-bound Sam Tomkins providing the final pass to put centre Darrell Goulding through.
At 6-16 the Warriors were far from out of it and they quickly changed the momentum of the game from the opening stages of the second spell.
The Wolves were struggling without Monaghan on the right wing and needed to shuffle there resources again when they also lost fullback Stefan Ratchford to injury.
Wigan seized on the openings provided against a patched up opposition by working its way to an 18-16 win and then finishing the match off with two more tries to win by 14 points.
If Warrington was impressive in the first half, Wigan was quite exceptional in the second half.
Hero of the day was Australian Blake Green. The Wigan standoff was the victim of an ugly incident early in the match when he was punched by Warringtons Ben Westwood in a tackle leaving him with a cheekbone injury. He played on, though, and came back to direct proceedings expertly as well as also scoring a superb try when he stepped through Warringtons defensive line from close range. His display earned him the Harry Sunderland Trophy as the man of the match.
Also outstanding was Tomkins in his last game for Wigan. He was heavily involved throughout as he provided any number of quality moments in underlining what an asset hell be for the Vodafone Warriors in the NRL next year.
While he didnt add to his try tally Tomkins was given the ultimate farewell with the title victory.
Match details:
At Old Trafford, Manchester
Warrington Wolves 16 (Joel Monaghan, Simon Grix, Ben Westwood tries; Stefan Ratchford 2 goals).
Wigan Warriors 30 (Darrell Goulding, Michael McIlorum, Josh Charnley, Blake Green, Pat Richards tries; Pat Richards 5 goals)
Halftime: 16-6 Wolves.
Referee: Richard Silverwood.
Crowd: 66,281.
Wigan took out a dramatic contest in the English Super League grand final to win the first of four premierships to be decided in the space of about 15 hours today.
In front of more than 66,000 fans at Old Trafford, Warrington had Wigan under real pressure through much of the first half, scoring three tries in rapid succession to take a 16-2 lead close to halftime.
The Warriors werent without opportunities but they failed to cash in on them until the final moments of the half. After a lengthy stoppage for an injury which ended the match for Warrington winger Joel Monaghan, Wigan finally made it over with Vodafone Warriors-bound Sam Tomkins providing the final pass to put centre Darrell Goulding through.
At 6-16 the Warriors were far from out of it and they quickly changed the momentum of the game from the opening stages of the second spell.
The Wolves were struggling without Monaghan on the right wing and needed to shuffle there resources again when they also lost fullback Stefan Ratchford to injury.
Wigan seized on the openings provided against a patched up opposition by working its way to an 18-16 win and then finishing the match off with two more tries to win by 14 points.
If Warrington was impressive in the first half, Wigan was quite exceptional in the second half.
Hero of the day was Australian Blake Green. The Wigan standoff was the victim of an ugly incident early in the match when he was punched by Warringtons Ben Westwood in a tackle leaving him with a cheekbone injury. He played on, though, and came back to direct proceedings expertly as well as also scoring a superb try when he stepped through Warringtons defensive line from close range. His display earned him the Harry Sunderland Trophy as the man of the match.
Also outstanding was Tomkins in his last game for Wigan. He was heavily involved throughout as he provided any number of quality moments in underlining what an asset hell be for the Vodafone Warriors in the NRL next year.
While he didnt add to his try tally Tomkins was given the ultimate farewell with the title victory.
Match details:
At Old Trafford, Manchester
Warrington Wolves 16 (Joel Monaghan, Simon Grix, Ben Westwood tries; Stefan Ratchford 2 goals).
Wigan Warriors 30 (Darrell Goulding, Michael McIlorum, Josh Charnley, Blake Green, Pat Richards tries; Pat Richards 5 goals)
Halftime: 16-6 Wolves.
Referee: Richard Silverwood.
Crowd: 66,281.
