Wigan Warriors column: Bevan French's underrated key trait that nobody talks about

I think it is safe to say that every single Wigan fan was over the moon at 1:30pm on Sunday afternoon when the line-ups were announced, which included star man French in the halves alongside Harry Smith.

It had been just over two months since the Australian playmaker last played, but he didn’t play like it was. He was, arguably, the best player on the park as Wigan ran in eight tries to inflict a 44-2 demolition of play-off hopefuls Wakefield.

French played a role in six of Wigan’s eight tries against Trinity, whilst getting on the scoresheet from a cheeky solo effort as he darted onto his own grubber.

It was a lively return from French, who carried the ball 16 times, registering three tackle busts in the process.

The 29-year-old regularly scoops the Player of the Match awards and gets his name in the headlines for his flashes of skill and flair, and rightly so, but he offers so much more than that.

His short kicking game is excellent, his communication is good, and his side’s overall attack looks far more fluid and balanced when he is on the field.

But the area of his game that goes under the radar? Defence.

There aren’t many half-backs in the competition who I’d be backing to make a one-on-one tackle or execute shift defence more than French. He seems to get that shift defence exactly right 95 per cent of the time.

French produced a try-saving tackle on Wakefield prop Mathieu Cozza in the second half. It has not been talked about much by fans or the media because the Warriors already had the two points wrapped up by that point, but for a halfback to stop a front-rower in his tracks and force the error is some effort.

Yeah, a halfback’s job is not primarily based around their defence, but defence ultimately wins you games, so it is just another string to his bow.

If you haven’t noticed French’s defence yet, just pay close attention to it whenever Wigan are defending, and you’ll see the value he brings. There isn’t much that gets past him.

Speaking in his post-match press conference, Wigan coach Matt Peet admitted he thought French had probably exceeded his expectations on his return, and that would be a fair assessment. French was subbed off with 10 minutes remaining as a precaution to a standing ovation at the Brick Community Stadium, which was fully deserved.

But it was far from a one-man performance against Wakefield. It was a collective effort, the attack was fluid, and the defence, again, was ruthless and physical. The Warriors have only conceded one try over the last two games, which will stand them in good stead as Super League enters the business end of the season.

It would be remiss of me not to give a mention to Sam Walters, too. The towering forward played 80 minutes in the middle and back-row, making 17 carries and 42 tackles. He just seems to be getting better with every game that he plays.

Onto this week’s game, which is another trip to the south of France to face Catalans Dragons, who have shown some improvement over the last month or so under new coach Joel Tomkins, so it will be a tougher test than the 48-0 win Wigan picked up in Perpignan back in May, you suspect.

But, if Wigan produce a professional 80-minute display like they did against Trinity, then you would back the Warriors to return to these shores with the two points.

Peet’s side will be without key prop Ethan Havard for the trip, with the England international set to serve a one-match ban. But if there was any position that Wigan are blessed in this year, it is in the middle. Tyler Dupree was 18th man for the Wakefield game, so he would be the most obvious replacement, but there are even Kian McDermott and Harvey Makin waiting in the wings, both of whom have made their first-team debuts this year.