George Williams scored a brilliant hat-trick as champions Wigan got only their second win of the season at Salford to move ahead of Huddersfield and Leeds at the bottom of the table.
MATCH DETAILS
The Warriors went into the game having won just one of their opening six Super League matches, but you would never have guessed that they were level on points with bottom club Leeds before the match.
Fourth-placed Salford started strongly in both halves, but England half-back Williams crossed for three of his side’s five tries to move Wigan above Huddersfield Giants to 10th.
Joe Burgess provided the passes for both of Williams’ second half crossings – the winger was back in action after missing the last 11 months through injury.
With head coach Adrian Lam suggesting earlier this month that speculation about a move to Australia’s NRL was affecting the 24-year-old’s performances, Williams’ form has been a hot topic during Wigan’s shocking start to the 2019 season, but they are expected to kick on from here.
Salford went into the game having made a tremendous start to the campaign and they looked set to move up into third place when Josh Jones collected and grounded Rob Lui’s kick for the opening try of the game.
From then on, the game swung from end to end, with Wigan responding with scores from Williams, Thomas Leuluai and Joe Greenwood before the Red Devils replied with three tries of their own to turn an 18-6 deficit into a four-point lead.
Derrell Olpherts, Niall Evalds and Adam Walker all touched down either side of half-time for the hosts, but Williams proved too good and won it for his side with two further tries to complete his hat-trick.
FOUR POINTERS
Wigan are still capable
Don’t let their start to 2019 fool you – Wigan are very a top side. Finally getting their scoring boots on, this performance was one we are much more used to seeing from them. Although their defence still needs work, they’re heading on the right track.
Salford continue to score big
To score four tries at home and not win the match will be very disappointing for the Red Devils, but the promising signs are still there. They’ve never been ones to have a ridged defence, so they rely heavily on out-scoring the opposition – but they are more than capable of doing that to most sides.
Williams is back
Like the his teammates, George Williams has had an extremely poor start to 2019. With dynamic attacking flair that we saw last season was on show for the first time this and, with the hattrick surely giving his confidence a major boost, we can expect more of the same from Sunday’s Man of the Match.
Wigan will be looking up the table
Two wins from seven at the start of the campaign would have been judged as unacceptable before a ball was kicked this year, but that’s the situation Wigan find themselves in. We all know what Wigan are capable of and, as Catalans, Castleford and Wakefield lie in wait in their next three matches, we will see whether or not they can make the grade in 2019. I’m sure they will.
THE RESULT
Salford Red Devils 22
Tries: Jones, Olpherts, Evalds, Walker
Goals: Chamberlain (3)
Drop Goals: n/a
Wigan Warriors 30
Tries: Williams (3) Leulaui, Greenwood
Goals: Hardaker (5)
Drop Goals:ย n/a
SQUADS
Salford Red Devils:ย Evalds; Olpherts, Chamberlain, Bibby, Sio; Lui, Hastings; Murray, Lussick, Dudson, Jones, Turgut, Flanagan.
Interchanges:ย Griffin, Nakubuwai, Walker, Lawton.
Wigan Warriors:ย Hardaker; Manfredi, Sarginson, Gildart, Burgess; Williams, Sammut; Clubb, Leuluai, Navarrete, Isa, Greenwood, O’Loughlin.
Interchanges:ย Shorrocks, Hamlin, Flower, Bullock.
Referee:ย Chris Kendall
