THEIR season may have ended with play-off disappointment, but Warrington Wolves’ academy side will reflect upon their 2024 campaign with pride.

The under 18s’ season came to an end on Saturday as they were narrowly beaten 22-16 by Wigan Warriors in their play-off semi-final.

That came after a third consecutive season of placing third in the Academy competition behind established powerhouses Wigan and St Helens, who face Hull FC tonight in the other semi-final to determine who will face the Warriors in the Grand Final.

More pertinently, however, this year has seen five academy graduates make their first-team debuts including Arron Lindop and Cai Taylor-Wray, both of whom featured for Mark Smith’s side this year while making sustained breakthroughs into Sam Burgess’ senior squad.

Jake Thewlis, Nolan Tupaea and Ben Hartill all made their first-team bows during the Round 13 loss to Wigan, and head of youth Ryan O’Brien is confident the conveyor belt will continue turning.

“I am unbelievably proud of our players and their progression across this season, and I am confident that we will see some break into our first team over the next few years,” he said.

“A huge part of this is down to our team of dedicated and selfless staff throughout our pathway, and I am extremely thankful for their tireless work and support.”

Lindop featured in Saturday’s semi-final at Wigan RUFC in a game in which the goal-kicking of Jack Farrimond, who himself has broken into Matt Peet’s first team during this season, proved decisive.

The sides both scored three tries each with James Duffy, Frank Sergent and Zack Gardner touching down for the visitors, but Farrimond’s five goals including two penalties ended up being the difference between the sides.

“As you would expect from a semi-final, it was a really competitive game,” O’Brien said.

“Such games often come down to fine margins and we could have handled a couple of moments better, but credit must also go to Wigan for capitalising on them.

“We now need to reflect on and learn from those moments with our players so that they are better equipped to handle those scenarios in the future.”

Wolves: Zack Gardner; Frank Sergent, James Duffy, Arron Lindop, Lachlan Webster; Pat Irwin, Daniel Regan; Charlie McKler, Oliver Morgan, Tom McKinney, Charlie Walker, James McGuire, Isaac Reid. Subs: Joe Hickey, Alfie Mather, Jake Ramsden, Kian Stanton. 18th: Flynn Holden