Wigan 20 – 16 Salford

Two tries from Bevan French and one from Toby King gave the Warriors victory in a seesaw clash at DW Stadium; Harry Smith kicked three conversions and a penalty; the Red Devils scores came via two tries from Ken Sio, and two conversions and two penalties from Marc Sneyd

Bevan French’s brace and Toby King’s try seven minutes from time saw Wigan Warriors snatch a 20-16 win in an upside-down Betfred Super League clash with Salford Red Devils on Friday.

Harry Smith had kicked the Warriors in front with an early penalty but Ken Sio’s converted try saw the Red Devils take the lead before the home side hit back with a converted score from the Frenchman .

Marc Sneyd’s penalty took Salford level at half-time at 8-8, and they regained the lead after surviving early pressure from Wigan after the restart through winger Sio’s second and another Sneyd penalty.

French, moved to the back after starting on the wing, brought the Warriors back into the competition as the game progressed into the final 10 minutes and victory was assured three minutes later as center King completed another attack fluid.

Game history

Two penalties in quick succession put the Warriors on the front foot, but they opted to take the two points offered with the conversion of halfback Smith after Adam Sidlow was penalized for a high tackle.

Wigan had plenty of possession in Salford’s half without creating many chances, although Jake Wardle was stopped inches away as he tried to force his way in on the final tackle.

Salford seemed to handle everything Wigan threw at them, and they managed to pay them off on the first try of the game. First, Joe Burgess closed in on the left following a kick from Sneyd, before Ryan Brierley tried his luck on the right and found Sio in the corner. Sneyd converted for a 6-2 advantage.

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Ken Sio got a superb kick from Ryan Brierley as Salford took a 6-2 lead over Wigan Warriors

The Warriors got their first try of the night with a moment of magic from French. He collected the ball on the right wing after Field’s pass missed everyone. He then returned to the field and threw an outrageous dummy to clear himself. Smith converted as Wigan now led 8-6.

A penalty in front of the posts allowed England international Sneyd to take the deuce and level matters before half-time, although he tried to sneak past the lead with a long-range drop-goal attempt that did not achieve its goal.

Field caused a host of problems early in the second half as he danced past a number of defenders, but opted to offload on Wardle, who was knocked down. Wigan then received a penalty as Sneyd was penalized for an apparent elbow on French.

Just like in the first half, Salford soaked up whatever Wigan could throw at them before scoring points themselves. Sneyd, Brierley and Man of Steel Brodie Croft were all calling and it was a long ball from the latter that gave Sio his second of the night. Sneyd converted for a 14-8 lead.

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Toby King completed Wigan Warriors’ sensational comeback in thrilling Super League clash with Salford

Wigan continued to have plenty of ball in the Salford half, but their attack was out of sync and excellent defending on their Salford line kept them in front. They extended their lead to eight runs after Sneyd passed on a late Morgan Smithies hit on Chris Atkin.

Wigan gave themselves a chance before the final 11 minutes when French grabbed his second as he finally found space in the Salford defense and drove through it. Smith’s conversion cut the gap to just two points with 10 minutes left.

The Warriors looked on the other side now and they could smell the victory. Farrell went close again before the ball swung to the right and Field tossed a few dummies before sending King into the corner, Smith converting to secure the victory.

what they said

Matt Peet, Wigan Warriors head coach:

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Wigan Warriors head coach Matt Peet insists his side were not at their best but praised their team spirit after their late win against the Salford Red Devils.

“I think we found a way to win, but we can definitely improve on the ball. I think a combination of team spirit in defense and individual brilliance in attack won us this game.

“A lot of teams are built on that, but there’s more of us than you saw tonight. We have to find our rhythm with the ball and when we do that we’ll be a decent team, but… still once a resilient performance.”

Salford Red Devils head coach Paul Rowley:

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Salford Red Devils manager Paul Rowley admits his side ‘have been short on troops’ and thinks they can’t complain after their late collapse against Wigan as they suffered a 20-16 defeat .

“I can’t complain; everyone knows we can play rugby, but I thought they had learned that we were a pretty tough and resilient team too. Resources ran out at the end and a team like Wigan will have you.

“Some of the players were doing too many minutes and standing there. We will probably have at least three players from tonight’s squad unavailable next week.”

Player of the Match Bevan French:

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Wigan Warriors’ Bevan French was player of the match and looks back on their hard-fought win over Salford Red Devils as Wigan’s late comeback gave them a 20-16 home win

“It was very back and forth, and I think they had a good share of possession in the first half, which got us pumped.

“Every game this year we’ve let the teams pick up the pace. Although it’s fun to be part of it, we don’t want to play like that in the future and we want to be very disciplined because that’s us. almost hurt.”

And after?

Wigan are back in action on Sky Sports on Thursday March 30 when they travel to nearby neighbors Leigh Leopards for the ‘Battle of the Bourg’ (8 p.m.). Salford now faces former head coach Ian Watson Huddersfield Giants Sunday April 2.