To be a champion side requires many attributes – some of which Wigan have looked shorn of on occasions this year. But when it matters, you can always rely on Shaun Wane’s Warriors – a moniker they have lived up again. That is the thing about the new Super League champions: they just do not know when they are beaten. Battered, bruised and injury-depleted all year – but once again they are the kings of British rugby league – this time against all the odds.
Even here, in a pulsating Grand Final between two of the game’s heavyweights, the right to be called champions looked beyond them at one stage. Wigan were toiling under the bright lights, errors aplenty creeping into their play as the hour mark and a telling moment approached.
Warrington looked as if they were finally about to punish Wigan and strike what would have been a telling blow when Ryan Atkins appeared to have scored, opening up a two-try lead and surely ending Warrington’s winless run at Old Trafford. A knock-on from Atkins, however, saved Wigan and within a minute they were level. Soon after they were ahead.
Wigan would not let a winning position slip when it mattered: just like so many times this season.
Conversely, it is more Grand Final heartbreak for Warrington after another desperate defeat on the game’s biggest stage. Of the three showpiece finals they have now lost here, this one will be the most frustrating. For large periods they appeared in control. They led at half-time on merit but could not find that decisive play to put Wigan away – and they were punished. The gamble on Chris Sandow, named on the bench for his first appearance since the Challenge Cup final, which Warrington also lost, backfired.
Wigan’s only points in the first half put them into an early 2-0 lead. After back-to-back penalties on the Warrington line, the Warriors opted for the measured approach via the boot of Matty Smith, but from there, it was Warrington who grew stronger as the half wore on.
Wigan were the brighter side in the opening 15 minutes but when they had a try ruled out for a forward pass that allowed Josh Charnley to touch down it stunted their momentum.
An error from the Warriors on their own line afforded Warrington a chance they would not squander. Declan Patton showed, dummied and darted over for the half’s only try, the Warrington-born half-back converting for a 6-2 lead.
The first 40 minutes was bruising, chaotic and, for the most part, breathless viewing. However, the nervous tension inside the stadium was palpable and it was transferring on to the pitch. Mistakes had plagued both sides on a night where conditions were perfect for fast, flowing play and as Wigan began to look increasingly sloppy they looked to have finally been put away.
Atkins appeared to touch down in the left corner – so much so that the referee, Robert Hicks, sent the decision upstairs to the video referee as a try. But the discovery of a knock-on from the centre in the act of scoring meant the decision was overturned and it soon became clear how crucial that was.
With 60 seconds Wigan sprung downfield and levelled. A wonderful break from Liam Farrell, awarded the Harry Sunderland Trophy as man of the match, pierced the Warrington defence and he had Oliver Gildart in support to score the 100th try in Grand Final history.
With Smith’s conversion going wide, it meant the game remained level at 6-6: but with momentum now on their side once again, it was not long before Wigan went ahead.
Dan Sarginson and Charnley, their two departing heroes, had experienced indifferent nights up until now, but when the full-back kicked through for the Sale-bound winger to touch down – just – in the corner, it completed a remarkable turnaround.
Smith would miss the conversion again, but with Warrington panicking and becoming increasingly desperate, he would not pass up the chance to extend the lead to six in the dying moments with another penalty.
Warrington had their chances late on, but they could not break down the Wigan defence. If ever there is a lesson on what it takes to be champions, this Wigan side – written off time and time again in 2016 – are the perfect example.
