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Thursday night sees a North-West derby reignited as Leigh Leopards take on Wigan Warriors in a battle of the Borough at Leigh Sports Village.
It’s the first time since 2021 that the sides have met following Leigh spending last year in the second division in what proved to be a remarkable campaign for the then Centurions.
But now known as the Leopards, a new era is well and truly underway at LSV and the former Wigan manager and player Adrian Lam is thriving under the new regime.
Most teams who are promoted to Super League are tipped to return straight back to the Championship. But for some, there was a slightly different feel around this Leopards side. Bringing in double figures worth of Super League experience in the off-season just added to their chances of staying in Super League and they seem to be looking upwards rather than over their shoulder.
They’ve already shocked the league with a 50% win percentage so far including a historic win over World Champions St Helens, and now with another opportunity to cause an upset, they’ll be raring to go on Thursday night.
As for the Warriors, it’s not been a quite perfect start to the season. But in saying that, it’s far from panic stations just yet for Matty Peet.
The cherry and whites have won four of their opening six games with defeats coming against Hull KR and Catalans and whilst performances haven’t quite reached the heights of last year, Wigan have the quality within their ranks to turn the style on whenever they wish.
Their last outing saw a stern test against Paul Rowley’s Salford Red Devils. Salford lead with 20 minutes to go at the D.W. Stadium but with plenty of tired legs, the Devils crumbled as Wigan and in particular Bevan French turned on the pace and saw Wigan run out 20-16 winners.
You can read our Match report from that game here: http://prostinternational.com2023/03/25/wigan-leave-it-late-against-a-tired-looking-salford-side/
But Leigh also come into this fiery encounter off the back of a win following a win against Hull FC at the MKM Stadium. Whilst the score line suggests a tight affair, Leigh absolutely stormed the early stages of the match, scoring three tries in the opening 13 minutes in Yorkshire.
So, with both sides full of confidence, the action on the pitch may well live up to the atmosphere expected off the pitch. It’ll be a very near sell-out at the LSV as local band Lottery Winners will be providing some pre-match entertainment to continue Leigh’s recent revamp which has seen some incredible scenes prior to Super League matches.
Here are the two teams ahead of Thursday night’s match up:
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Adrian Lam has named his twenty-one man squad to face @WiganWarriorsRL in the Battle of the Borough. ?#BeTheRoar pic.twitter.com/bbX0O14Oq3
— Leigh Leopards (@LeighLeopardsRL) March 28, 2023
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Matt Peet has made one change to his 21-man squad for Thursday's @SuperLeague Round 7 visit to @LeighLeopardsRL!
? Read more ? https://t.co/OMURbRw9CZ#WWRL pic.twitter.com/iQnVrV0E6Z
— Wigan Warriors ?⚪️ (@WiganWarriorsRL) March 28, 2023
With the game live on Sky Sports with an 8pm kick off, the battle of the Borough will be one to watch as we see a rivalry reignited and some brilliant scenes both on and off the pitch.
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