Super League: Wigan Warriors 30-16 Huddersfield Giants - Hat-trick for Liam Marshall
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Betfred Super League |
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Wigan (18) 30 |
Tries: Marshall 3, French, Dupree Goals: Smith 5 |
Huddersfield (4) 16 |
Tries: Wallis, Swift, Murchie Goals: Russell 2 |
Liam Marshall scored a hat-trick as world club champions Wigan Warriors made it two Super League wins from two with victory over Huddersfield Giants.
Wigan suffered no hangover from their win over Penrith Panthers last weekend.
They were 18-0 up in the first quarter of the game as Marshall (2) and Bevan French went over.
Huddersfield hit back through Elliot Wallis, Adam Swift and Jack Murchie, but Marshall and Tyler Dupree kept Wigan noses in front.
The visitors were seeking to bounce back from being nilled and thoroughly schooled by St Helens last week, and probably hoping Wigan would still be feeling the effects of their tremendous World Club Challenge effort last week - and the ensuing celebrations.
That illusion was quickly dispelled with three quick tries, starting with Marshall's opener after rapid passing resulted in Jake Wardle freeing the winger, who stepped inside two tacklers to go over.
Wigan then oozed class as French's pass sent Jai Field bursting through the line, and he flipped a pass back inside for French to finish.
With Adam Milner sin-binned for a swinging arm, Marshall was in at the corner again, with Harry Smith impeccable in his kicking.
Huddersfield managed to galvanise themselves before half-time and, after Wallis had taken Adam Clune's delightful pass to score in the corner, Wigan's Adam Keighran was sin-binned for throwing the ball away.
The Giants took advantage in the second half as Esan Marsters somehow offloaded while surrounded by four tacklers and Swift's try gave the game a different complexion.
Marshall's third try allowed the home fans to breathe again and Smith converted a penalty kick, but the Giants claimed the final score as Field fumbled a high Clune kick and Murchie collected before touching down.
Wigan head coach Matt Peet told BBC Radio Manchester:
"I'm very satisfied. It was always a big challenge, this game. Huddersfield bring a certain style of rugby that requires commitment for the full 80 minutes and after last weekend it needed even more.
"We did enough to get the win. The week has been very memorable but now we've knocked [this game] over we can enjoy it a little bit as a staff, as it was hard to look past this one when the Penrith game was finished.
[On Marshall]: "That's his job, that's what he's great at, and has great instincts and courage and athleticism. We expect him to score them, and he always has done."
Huddersfield head coach Ian Watson told BBC Sport West Yorkshire:
"There was a lot of grit and determination from us, especially defensively. But there were 19 sets in the first 15 to 20 minutes and they had 14 or 15 of them, which tells its own story - if you're defending that many sets back to back you are going to concede points.
"Wigan are too good a team to be given an 18-point start. The way we responded to that especially with Adam Milner being sin-binned, we showed really good character.
"We started going set for set with them and scored points on the back of it and it turned out to be a decent game.
"You only need to give Wigan half a chance and if you gift field position to a team with Jai Field and Bevan French …"
Wigan: Field, Miski, Keighran, Wardle, Marshall, French, Smith, Thompson, O'Neill, Dupree, Isa, Farrell, Ellis.
Interchanges: Mago, Chan, H Hill, Forber.
Sin-bin: Keighran (39).
Huddersfield: Connor, Swift, Marsters, Naiqama, Wallis, Russell, Clune, C Hill, Milner, Ikahihifo, Murchie, Hewitt, Cudjoe.
Interchanges: Golding, English, Wilson, Salabio.
Sin-bin: Milner (19).
Referee: Jack Smith.