Wigan Warriors 30

Warrington Wolves 12

WHAT a disaster that Challenge Cup quarter-final defeat at Hull Kingston Rovers continues to be.

Not only did that humiliating loss destroy Warrington's confidence but it also raised the hopes of future opponents, who would otherwise have been in fear of a side that had destroyed top guns Leeds and Bradford earlier this season.

That was obvious in Wolves' subsequent defeats against lower-placed sides Harlequins and Wakefield, while Paul Cullen's men had further mountains to climb against bottom of the table Wigan.

Wigan's shock signing of Great Britain prop Stuart Fielden from Bradford for a world-record transfer fee just 36 hours before Friday's kick-off was a psychological masterstroke by the JJB Stadium string pullers.

Every Wigan player and fan suddenly felt like a world beater and Wolves knew it in the opening 11 minutes as the home side went 12-0 ahead thanks to converted tries by Iafeta Palea'aesina and Nathan McAvoy.

But Wolves, with a new-look back line because of the absence of injured Martin Gleeson and Henry Fa'afili, fought back well and completed one of the hardest tasks by silencing the majority of the 16,000 crowd for the next 45 minutes.

Wolves got on top with the help of inspired substitute performances from young props Andy Bracek and Steve Pickersgill, as well as fit-again Rob Parker.

They reduced the arrears to 14-12 with Lee Briers' craftsmanship leading the way, setting up tries for Simon Grix and Toa Kohe-Love.

Wolves would have had a half-time lead had Stuart Reardon not had the ball illegally ripped out of his hands while attempting to touch down under heavy pressure.

And a chance to go ahead early in the second half was missed when Richie Barnett made a mess of an attempt to get on the end of an awkward Briers kick.

All of the momentum was going Warrington's way until their defence was penalised for offside in the 47th minute.

From that point, Wolves lost their way and it was all Wigan. They crossed the line three minutes later and rarely looked in trouble again.

Wolves probably produced their best 45 minutes since their last win against Castleford on May 28 but they need to learn how to win games again quickly if they are to stay in the top six.

Match fatcs

engage Super League

Round 18, June 23, 2006

Wigan Warriors 30

Warrington Wolves 12

Warriors: Chris Ashton; Mark Calderwood, Nathan McAvoy, David Vaealiki, Brett Dallas; Danny Orr, Michael Dobson; Iafeta Palea'aesina, Mickey Higham, Stuart Fielden, Gareth Hock, Bryan Fletcher, Sean O'Loughlin. Subs used: Jerry Seuseu, Kevin Brown, Harrison Hansen, Danny Tickle.

Wolves: Stuart Reardon; Richie Barnett, Toa Kohe-Love, Chris Bridge, Brent Grose; Lee Briers, Simon Grix; Chris Leikvoll, Jon Clarke, Paul Wood, Ben Westwood, Mike Wainwright, Paul Noone. Subs used: Michael Sullivan, Rob Parker, Andy Bracek, Steve Pickersgill.

Referee: Richard Silverwood

Scoring: Palea'aesina crashes on to Dobson's delayed pass and spins out of tackles from Westwood and Reardon to touch down, 6mins, Dobson goals, 6-0; Calderwood slips Briers' attempted tackle and after exchanging passes with Orr the winger feeds McAvoy for a 70m try, 11mins, Dobson hits the target, 12-0; Grix collects Briers' pass and shows a dummy before darting for the line, 20mins, Briers does the business with the boot, 12-6; Briers is penalised for a high tackle on Fielden and Dobson kicks the 18m penalty goal, 23mins, 14-6; Briers finds Kohe-Love hitting a hole from a scrum and he shakes off Dobson to cross, 33mins, Briers converts, 14-12; Ashton's angled run from deep paves the way for Dallas to speed over, 50mins, Dobson goals from the touchline, 20-12; O'Loughlin hares to the line from a smart Higham offload, 59mins, Dobson adds the extras, 26-12; Fletcher gets the touch from Orr's grubber, 79mins, 30-12.

Pens: Warriors 5 Wolves 7

Scrums: Warriors 8 Wolves 9

Attendance: 16,103

Warrington Guardian top men: Bracek 3pts, Briers 2pts, Pickersgill 1pt.

Interesting note: Wigan's win was only their third at home this season but it was their biggest.