Super League: Warrington Wolves 44-12 Leigh Centurions - Gareth Widdop shines for Wire

Jake Mamo's stylish score in the corner put Warrington 16-0 up after 26 minutes

Gareth Widdop starred as Warrington Wolves ran in eight tries to completely outclass newly promoted Leigh Centurions at Totally Wicked Stadium.

Tom Lineham, Toby King, Jake Mamo and Widdop all crossed as Leigh failed to cope with Warrington's superior pace and creativity before the interval.

Scores by King, Lineham, Widdop and Ben Currie's smart try added to the lead.

Adam Sidlow and Ryan Brierley did cross for a spirited away side, but they never looked like staging a recovery.

Leigh's second loss in two Super League games was in stark contrast to an encouraging display against Wigan in their season opener, which saw them edged out 20-18.

But worryingly, however, they have now conceded 64 points and scored just 12 in one and a half games having been 18-0 up at the break against the Warriors.

Leigh showed some early promise and had good field position on a couple of occasions after Lineham's score's in the corner, but a couple of sloppy kicks surrendered possession and Warrington soon seized control.

Two tries in four minutes as good as settled the contest, some slick passing freeing up King for a simple score on the left and Josh Charnley then running inside to create space wide on the right for Mamo to cleverly touch down.

More slick handling enabled King to race away down the left and tee up Widdop for the fourth try and Warrington, who were convincingly beaten by Castleford Tigers last weekend, continued to dominate on the resumption.

Currie spun over the line after Widdop's cute kick for the fifth score and although Sidlow's astute close-range try and Brierley's effort brought some cheer, Wire were clinical in the closing stages.

King grabbed his second try of the day, as did Lineham after more smart work by Widdop.

And Widdop's classy performance and impressive support play was also rewarded with a second try - and his team's eighth score - as Wire passed the 40-point mark, with Ratchford slotting his sixth kick off the day to round off the scoring.

All round two fixtures of the Super League are taking place at St Helens' Totally Wicked Stadium because of coronavirus restrictions, while this week's round of games have been dedicated to former Hull KR prop Mose Masoe, who is continuing his recovery from a spinal injury.

Warrington coach Steve Price: "Gaz [Widdop] came up with some very big plays on that left-hand side. He's feeling really good about himself. He's a fantastic guy and a fantastic rugby league player.

"I was looking for a good response [following loss against Castleford] and we got that. It was a big improvement. Defensively we were a lot more solid as a collective and I thought our left side looked potent.

"Scoring eight tries to two is very pleasing, we'll build off that. There's lots of positive stuff and that's the standard as a group, we want to keep improving."

Leigh head coach John Duffy: "We didn't throw anything at them like we practised in the week and I've got to take that on my shoulders.

"When we did in bits in the second half, we created some problems, but we didn't put enough pressure on their pivots.

"The mood is a bit sombre but we've got to stick together. We knew how tough it is going to be this year. It's only round two so there's a long way to go."

Warrington: Ratchford, Lineham, Mamo, King, Charnley, Austin, Widdop, Hill, D. Clark, Cooper, Currie, Hughes, Philbin.

Interchanges: J. Clark, Walker, Mulhern, Butler.

Leigh: Brierley, Tierney, Brand, Thornley, Russell, Reynolds, Wallace, Ioane, Hood, Sidlow, Hellewell, Gee, Thompson.

Interchanges: Wildie, Gerrard, Peteru, McCarthy.

Referee: James Child.

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