Michael Maguire may have been 12,000 miles away but Wigan Warriors turned in a top draw performance their coach would have been proud of against Hull FC
writes James Chestney.
Shaun Wane took over the resins but nothing changed as the Warriors put in their biggest ever win, 46-0, at the KC Stadium. It was an all round team performance but winger Pat Richards took the man of the match award with a 26 point haul.
Hull were missing a vast array of experience in Sean Long, Craig Fitzgibbon and Mark O’Meley to name three but they were no match for a Warriors side heading for the League Leaders trophy. The home side made far too many mistakes and paid the price.
With just ten minutes on the watch Richards scored his side’s opening try taking a Paul Deacon cross field kick to score. It gave him his 100th try in the English game and he complimented it with the touchline conversion.
Three minutes later another of the Wigan young guns Sam Tomkins started off a move finished by other Liam Farrell. Tomkins, in at full back, combined with George Carmont for Richards to race down the wing. He again found centre Carmont who found Farrell in support and who twisted out of an Epalahame Lauaki attempted tackle to dive over. Richards was again successful with the conversion for a 12-0 lead.
Hull had a chance to put Wigan under pressure when a Shaun Berrigan kick through was put dead by Darrell Goulding. But any chance Hull had wilted when Craig Hall knocked on; on the half way line and when both Sam Moa and Richard Horne both went through gaps without support it possibly wasn’t going to be Hull’s night.
A further two tries in as many minutes for Wigan saw them open up a 22-0 lead by half-time with Goulding and Tomkins both going in. Goulding took a great Sean O’Loughlin pass before Tomkins pinched the ball of Jordan Turner off a high kick to send in the full back.
Richards tagged on the conversion to the Tomkins try and to have a chance Hull needed to break down the Wigan defence early in the second half. It didn’t happen as Richards ran down the wing to chip inside for Tomkins to collect and score.
Wigan born Deacon then put in another high kick which ended with Harrison Hansen sending Richards in for his second try. He added another conversion off the touchline before having a third try chalked off for knocking the ball on.
Just after an hour Farrell added his second when Tomkins raced through and found the second row forward in support. This time, as the week before, Tom Briscoe was unable to pull off a try saving tackle but it mattered not at 40-0.
Hull’s game was summed up when Willie Manu, last week chosen in the England squad, was pulled for obstruction whilst in possession. It saw Deacon set up Richards for his third try in the corner and the winger put over his seventh goal for good measure.
