Wigan bounced back from their first loss of the season with a 32-22 victory, but Castleford pushed them all the way in a thrilling encounter.
The Warriors were beaten 28-0 by the Catalans last weekend, but immediately got back on track as a pair of tries from Liam Farrell and touchdowns from Zak Hardaker, Ethan Havard and Jai Field secured the win.
Wigan led 10-6 at half-time and the turning point came when Castleford sent Mahe Fonua into the sin bin late in the first half.
Wigan made the most of the extra man as they scored two tries with Fonua off the pitch through Havard and Field and Farrell’s second try then seemed to have ended the game, but Castleford had other ideas.
Three attempts by George Griffin, Jake Trueman and Jake Mamo put the Tigers within six points of the Warriors, but a red card to Brad Martin for a high tackle on Willie Isa ended their hopes of winning and Hardaker kicked two penalties in the last 10. to secure victory.
Gareth O’Brien put the Tigers ahead after Wigan was penalized for offside, but Wigan responded perfectly when Cade Cust sent a clipped pass to Hardaker to score in the corner in the 12th minute.
The home team extended their lead with an absolutely nothing attempt when Field took the Castleford line down the left and beat a Paul McShane tackle attempt. He passed fast and sent the ball inside for Farrell to score under the posts and Hardaker converted for a 10-2 lead.
Castleford wasn’t going away and they forced two quick DNFs after camping at the Wigan line before getting their pressure deservedly rewarded when Greg Eden took a commanding pass from Jake Trueman to score into the corner.
Eden thought he had taken a second when he picked up a loose ball, but referee Chris Kendall called the play back for an apparent late strike by Fonua on Field, which saw the Castleford man sent to the sin bin.
Wigan took advantage of having the extra man when Havard scored on his return from back surgery after receiving a pass from Oliver Partington. Minutes later, they ended the game with Field again showing the class of him when he again broke through the Tigers’ defense without a hand on him to run 65 meters to score. and Hardaker’s goal made it 22-6.
Wigan dominated the entire field now and Farrell grabbed his second when he dived after a ball from Cust. Hardaker converted and they were out of reach at 28-6.
The Tigers didn’t go down as Griffin dived in from close range before Trueman crossed after the Tigers were handed a scrum when Faraimo appeared to have gone into touch before his inside ball bounced off a Wigan man. The Tigers were now down 28-18 and had their tails up.
Mamo capitalized on Castleford’s third try in nine minutes to trail just six points, but Castleford’s comeback was ruined by a red card for Martin for his high shot on Isa.
Wigan: Field, Hardaker, Pearce-Paul, Halsall, Marshall, Cust, Leuluai, Smithies, Powell, Byrne, Farrell, Bateman, Isa. Substitutes: Wizard, Smith, Partington, Havard.
Castleford: O’Brien, Olpherts, Mamo, Fonua, Eden, Trueman, McShane, Griffin, Lawler, Smith, Edwards, Blair, Westerman. Substitutes: Faraimo, Hepi, Matagi, Martin.
Referee: Chris Kendall (RFL).
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Source: www.yorkshirepost.co.uk
This notice was published: 2022-03-17 22:58:06
