Wigan Warriors: Three talking points from the Challenge Cup semi-final defeat to Hull KR

Brad Schneider kicked the winning drop-goal in additional time to send the Robins to Wembley, where they will face Leigh Leopards.

The Warriors played the majority of the second half with 12-men after Joe Shorrocks was sent off.

Here are some of the talking points from the game:

Red for Shorrocks

Wigan had their numbers reduced at the start of the second half.

Joe Shorrocks, who had only just come on for Willie Isa, was shown a red card after his shoulder made contact with the head of Mikey Lewis.

The challenge was worthy of a card, but the colour is up for debate.

It was a clumsy shot, but 10 minutes in the bin might’ve been more sufficient.

Of course, when it comes to decisions surrounding contact to the head, referees are quick to make stern decisions.

You can perhaps understand why the call was made, especially with Lewis initially staying down, but it still doesn’t mean it was the right one.

Golden point drama

For the second time this season, Wigan and Hull KR could only be separated by golden point.

After a well contested 80 minutes, additional time was needed.

By that stage it was a big ask for the Warriors, who had played 40 minutes with 12-men.

They had also lost Willie Isa through injury.

Both sides had attempted drop-goals before the full time whistle, but neither could find a clean strike.

In the additional period of play that didn’t prove to be a problem, with Schneider kicking cleanly to send the Robins to the final.

A nip and tuck afternoon

Both teams experienced positive periods and slight dips throughout the game at Headingley.

Of course the conditions were pretty dire, and played its part.

The Warriors made a strong start to the game, and were able to apply plenty of pressure onto the Hull KR line in the early stages.

Momentum shifted after Jai Field gifted possession to the Robins with a mistake while playing the ball- which led to the opening try of the afternoon.

From there, Wigan did lose a little bit of composure in the first, and made a number of mistakes near their own line.

Ultimately, they were still able to defend resolutely to stop Rovers finding their way through before the break.

Losing Shorrocks at the beginning of the second half was a huge blow, but they still showed a lot of grit and determination even with a man down.

In the previous round they overcame Warrington with 12-men, so you certainly can’t question their work ethic in these situations.

For a period of time they were on top, with Hull KR losing Shaun Kenny-Dowall to the sin-bin for 10 minutes.

Once Rovers got their captain back, the man advantage just provided them with enough energy to get their second try of the afternoon to level the scores, and eventually get the win.