Brian Carney makes passionate Wigan Warriors plea following unprecedented quadruple

Matt Peet’s Cherry and Whites became the first side of the modern era to claim a quadruple in a calendar year, winning every trophy on offer, including a record-equalling fifth World Club Challenge title with a 16-12 result over NRL kings Penrith Panthers.

They also picked up a record-extending 21st Challenge Cup trophy with a win over Warrington Wolves at Wembley, as well as defending their Super League title with a 9-2 result at Old Trafford against Hull KR.

Wigan also claimed back-to-back League Leaders’ Shields for the first time in their Super League history, winning 22 of 27 games of the regular season.

The Warriors will kick-start the 2025 Super League campaign on Thursday, February 13, against local rivals Leigh Leopards, live on Sky Sports, while former dual-code international Carney hopes the club’s success can continue to spread wide and far before then.

Appearing on Sky Sports following Thursday morning’s 2025 fixture release and asked if anyone could stop the Cherry and Whites in 2025, the 48-year-old responded: “I would say can anyone stop them being the sports team of the year?

“They haven’t needed to recruit for next year so good is their side. They will make some minor adjustments to their playing roster, but this is a side that swept the board last year.

"They won the Challenge Cup, they won the League Leaders’ Shield, they won the World Club Challenge against Penrith Panthers and they went to Old Trafford, with huge pressure on them to try to defend the title for the first time in their Super League history, and they came up trumps.

“This is a class outfit. More of the country should know of what Wigan Warriors achieved last year, and I hope between now and the start of the season, that will happen.

“This is a formidable side. What they’ve created at Wigan is a blueprint maybe for success not just in rugby league, but in other sporting environments.”