Warriors get the better of Salford at the DW with second half comeback as they bid farewell to Manfredi

Wigan Warriors ran out 16-6 winners at home to Salford Red Devils, though had to complete a comeback in the second half having trailed at the break following a tense opening 40 minutes.

On what was an evening to pay tribute and bid farewell to Warriors’ legend Dom Manfredi following his immediate retirement earlier in the week through injury, his teammates drew first blood on the scoreboard after a cagey opening ten minutes.

Having shifted the ball neatly across the line to the right, Jackson Hastings provided a killer pass for 19-year-old Sam Halsall to dive in at the corner and touch the ball down for the first try of the night. Harry Smith’s attempted conversion from the wide angle ricocheted off the posts and away, leaving the Warriors 4-0 up.

That kick costly in terms of their own scoring, but another one from Smith ten minutes later saw Salford register their first points of the evening with a try of their own. Smith hammered the ball out on the full, so the Red Devils started their set 35 metres out.

Very similarly to Wigan’s opener, Salford shifted the ball well out wide and there was Joe Burgess to dive over acrobatically at the corner out on the left wing. Burgess had haunted his former employers but again – like Smith – Harvey Livett’s conversion didn’t quite make it over the posts.

Livett not Salford’s usual goal-kicker, but filling in at the DW stadium amidst 11 Red Devils’ absentees due to either COVID isolation or injury including Krisnan Inu.

As both sides pushed to edge in front prior to the interval, disciplinary issues started creeping in. Josh Johnson of the Red Devils and Morgan Smithies of Wigan both got ten minutes in the sin-bin after a minor scuffle, while Wigan were awarded a penalty for what looked like a trip on John Bateman but couldn’t take advantage.

The same can’t be said about Salford though, who seized their opportunity in the closing seconds of the first half. Dissent towards the referee by Sam Powell contesting a decision saw Richard Marshall’s men awarded a penalty 30 metres out.

Livett opted to take the two, composed himself, and slotted a conversion between the posts after the hooter had sounded to give his team a 4-6 lead at half-time.

Just after the restart, Johnson and Smithies returned to the field having completed their time in the bin, but discipline still lacked on both sides.

No sooner did they return than another scuffle broke out, this time on the floor, and while nobody received any cards, that incident was put on report. More importantly though, Wigan were awarded a penalty as a result and 10 metres out, opted to level things up through the boot of Smith.

Their second half points tally doubled soon after too, and again it was Smith with the boot to add another two after a high tackle. 8-6 in favour of the hosts.

Danny Addy did come close to powering over the line for Salford but was held up before a moment of desperation from Ata Hingano cost Marshall’s side dearly.

Recent signing Hingano made a poor attempt at stopping an onrushing Hastings 15 metres out and hit the Wigan man with a high tackle. Not only did the Warriors use the opportunity to add yet another two points with the boot of Smith – done with ease, but Hingano also saw a yellow card come his way.

With the man advantage and now four points to the good, Adrian Lam’s Wigan knew that they were in a good position which only became stronger with their second and final try of the night on 68 minutes.

After Hastings was pulled down inches away from the line, the Warriors shifted the ball to Bateman who completed a magnificent offload leaving Sam Powell the simple job of tapping the ball down across that all-important white line. With that, and a successful conversion from close range by Smith, the game was wrapped up.

16-6 the final score with little action of note in the closing stages. A scoreline which probably reflects harshly on Salford who competed well for large parts of the game despite being ravaged with missing members of the squad.

Again though, Marshall’s men were undone by poor discipline as has been the case in numerous matches across the 2021 Super League campaign to date.

As for Wigan, it’s five wins from six and as players return from injuries respectively in the coming weeks, a continuation of this form could see them push the top three before the regular season draws to a close.

Regardless of what happens in the coming weeks though, it was good to see the fond farewell for Dom Manfredi at the DW. This was his night, and the Cherry and White army showed their appreciation for his efforts over the years both pre and post-match.

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