Wigan Warriors: The 18th Man - 'We have got ourselves one helluva pack leader...'

Our panel of Warriors experts run the rule over last week’s win over St Helens, the standout performers in the derby victory and this Friday’s trip across the borough to Leigh Leopards...

David Bailey:

That was a little underwhelming for a derby, if I am honest. The Warriors came home with a wet sail after an understrength and newly 'coachless' St Helens threatened a bit of an upset in the first half. It just didn’t feel as highly charged as normal.

Wigan put the cue on the rack once they completed their scoring. Bevan French and Brad O'Neill took the applause and earned a well-deserved rest. French returned with a magnificent cameo. One try scored and a hand in four others. It's good to have him back, and he certainly takes the Warriors to another level both in attack and defence.

Zach Eckersley will be thrilled to have French back, too. His sublime left-to-right passing was a key component when the previous number two incumbent Abbas Miski topped the scoring charts. With Maika Sivo sidelined until round 27, both Eckersley and former Warrior Josh Charnley will be hoping to make up some ground in the charts.

Speaking of Charnley, I sincerely hope the Warriors make a fuss of the winger following his elevation to the top of the summer era try-scoring charts. Not enough has been made of this achievement, considering the fanfare afforded to his predecessor.

That takes us nicely to this week’s Battle of the Borough. Leigh, along with Wigan, are one of the form teams of the competition, along with leaders Leeds and second-placed Wakefield. A win for either team this week not only takes some heat off their race for the top-two but could also drag the losers back into the mix with Warrington.

Wigan will have the luxury of an unchanged side, should they wish. Despite the absences of Liam Farrell and Junior Nsemba, the pack looks in rude health. Sam Eseh Jr can't get a look in at the moment as Matt Peet looks towards the future.

Despite only being 18, Shea O'Connor hasn't looked out of place. The Warriors have deployed Kaide Ellis and Ollie Partington in unfamiliar roles, but both have held up well.

I hope Ellis is restored to the middle now that Sam Walters has got through his first game. He has been impeccable at prop, but I just feel he was a little exposed in the back-row last week.

Partington, meanwhile, what more can you say? The lad bleeds cherry and white, and we have got ourselves one helluva pack leader, hungry for success. If there were any doubts over the decision to part ways with Kruise Leeming to bring Partington back early, they have well and truly been answered. That and the emergence of Taylor Kerr have shown that Kris Radlinski and Peet have got it right.

Finally, it would be remiss of me not to mention the passing of Lady Joan Boston. Behind every good man is a good woman, and Joan was one of the best. I thought the decision to include Frank Barrow in the minute’s silence last week was both commendable and perfectly measured. The silence for both showed the true mutual respect that stands the Wigan-St Helens fixture above all others. My thoughts go out to Sir Billy and his loved ones.

Now, let's hunt down the Rhinos, lads!

Darren Wrudd:

Another two points under our belt last week, which is always pleasing when you take them from St Helens. It’s like they are almost sugar-coated as they are so sweet!

Yes, they had a few youngsters thrown in at the deep end, but here is where Wigan really lead the way. We have recently had the same prospect with many injuries and Peet having to ask our young guns to step in. They have come in, done a job and never looked out of place. With the greatest respect to the efforts of the Saints youngsters, they mostly looked slightly out of their depth.

The game itself was a good one to watch. A great atmosphere for starters, but the lads knew how important those points were.

For the main part, we stayed with the game plan and handled the defence well, but it amazes me that as soon as one player gets a decent offload away, they all seem to want one. A little discipline in this and general choices of when to pass and when to hold would go a long way to stabilising the error count, but the game control was good overall, and Harry Smith is the pivot on which the whole team plays off.

It was really good to have some players return from injury, and with Walters adding some beef in the line, it helped give our backs room to terrorise the opposition.

I think I was more pleased to see the return of Liam Marshall than French, as he adds so very much to yardage after the Saints kick chase. I must admit that he continues to be one of my favourite players.

Then up steps French. I was only looking at photos the other day of a fresh-faced 23-year-old as French joined Wigan, looking like he couldn’t knock the skin off a riced pudding, but that has certainly changed. The lad is as strong as an ox and has obviously put so much into his development as a player.

The danger is always possibly losing what helps make him special by bulking up, but that is no danger as he can outturn a housefly whilst at full pace. He will no doubt be better for the run out, and it was a good move to limit his exposure at the end, although we did look very loose on the ball when he and O’Neill left the field of play.

This week, of course, we head up the road to Leigh. They put on a score on against Warrington last week, but nothing they did made me feel like they are a top-six side. They will no doubt raise their game against us - they need to or we will wipe the floor with them, but they do have some good quality players.

I suspect our forwards will be too much for them, and with game time under our belts for the returning players, we are only getting better each week.