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| MATCH NOTES : Match played at the Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington |
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MATCH REPORT |
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MATCH REPORT : Saints lost Captain Matty Lees to injury with the first contact of the contest. Five minutes in, Saints had the first opening. After a dominant start, Saints began a set inside the Wigan half. A few tackles in, Jack Welsby offloaded to Daryl Clark and Saints moved it from right to left. Lewis Murphy was unable to collect a pass though as the Red V looked to create an overlap. Despite the early Saints dominance, it was Wigan who took the lead. Brad O’Neill and Jai Field combined down the middle breaking through the Saints defence and the Wigan #9 found Jack Farrimond with an offload down the right edge and he scored from close range. Adam Keighran added the conversion, 0-6 we trailed. Four minutes later, Wigan had a prime chance to increase their lead. Harry Smith’s kick went straight into Tristan Sailor’s arms but the referee ruled a Wigan man was taking out during it. The Warriors opted for two points from in front of the sticks which Keighran converted, 0-8. The Red V then had a penalty ten metres from the Wigan line but opted to run it. Alex Walmsley went close before Jack Welsby who met with a firm shot on the last tackle to force a turnover. Another chance followed for the Saints. The Red V did well to keep the ball alive on the last down the left edge. Murphy tried offloading back inside but a Wigan player got to the loose ball first. Then we had our first video referee decision. Saints opted to go down the short-side via Daryl Clark who tried to spin his way over under pressure from close range. The on-field verdict was no try and after a lengthy check, it was agreed with. The second video referee trip came just after the half-hour mark. A penalty pushed Wigan into Saints territory. Farrimond spotted space early in the tackle count and kicked it, Saints couldn’t deal with it and Zach Eckersley grounded the loose ball to score. Keighran missed the conversion attempt, 0-12. Five minutes later, we had another trip upstairs. Wigan shifted the ball through the hands down their right edge with it eventually finding Eckersley who finished acrobatically in the corner. The on-field verdict of try soon agreed with. Smith took over the kicking duties but missed, 0-16. On the half-time hooter we had another video referee decision. Joe Shorrocks’ pass was intercepted near halfway by Jake Wardle who ran the other way to score under the sticks. After a check, the on-field verdict of try was agreed with. Smith added a simple conversion with the final kick of the first half, 0-22 Saints trailed at the break. Saints had the first chance to apply pressure of the second half. Field spilled a high kick inside his own twenty, giving Saints a set in good field position. Deon Cross was held up agonisingly short of the line, before Jackson Hastings’ kick on the last tackled was gobbled up by Farrimond. We continued to apply pressure. A penalty pushed the Red V into the Wigan half but they again held firm before Hastings put in a low kick on the last which forced Field to concede a dropout. More pressure came but Saints still couldn’t find a way through. First, Harry Robertson forced Noah Hodkinson to concede a dropout before Welsby’s low kick on the last tackle was collected by Farrimond. Just after the hour-mark, Saints were reduced to twelve men for ten minutes. The Red V challenged a decision and it went the way of our opponents. Welsby saw yellow following the incident. Wigan looked to make the most of their extra man with a set on Saints’ line. They tried moving the ball both ways before Liam Farrell was tackled on the last, forcing a turnover. The Cherry & Whites had a fifth try with five minutes to go. A penalty pushed Wigan into the Saints half, a few tackles in Farrimond collected the ball, stepped inside onto his left foot and worked his way over underneath the sticks. Smith converted, 0-28. They thought they had another try with 90 seconds remaining but Brad O’Neill was held up over the line. A final try did come in the last minute though. Smith’s high kick wasn’t dealt with by Saints and Keighran collected it on the bounce to score. They opted not to kick the goal. That was the final play of the game. Saints knocked out of the Challenge Cup after a 0-32 defeat to Wigan Warriors at the Halliwell Jones Stadium. Match Summary Saints Team: Tristan Sailor, Lewis Murphy, Deon Cross, Harry Robertson, Owen Dagnall, Jack Welsby, Jackson Hastings, David Klemmer, Daryl Clark, Matty Lees, Matt Whitley, Shane Wright, Joe Shorrocks. Interchanges: Jonny Lomax, Alex Walmsley, George Delaney, Noah Stephens. 18th Man: Jake Davies. Sin Bin: Jack Welsby (65) Wigan Warriors Team: Jai Field, Zach Eckersley, Adam Keighran, Jake Wardle, Noah Hodkinson, Jack Farrimond, Harry Smith, Sam Walters, Brad O’Neill, Luke Thompson, Junior Nsemba, Liam Farrell, Oliver Partington. Interchanges: Kaide Ellis, Patrick Mago, Sam Eseh Jr, Taylor Kerr. 18th Man: Kian McDermott. Tries: Jack Farrimond (9, 76), Zach Eckersley (31, 36), Jake Wardle (40), Adam Keighran (80) Conversions: Adam Keighran (1 from 2), Harry Smith (2 from 3) Penalties: Adam Keighran (1 from 1) |
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