Harry Smith proves himself Wigan's main man and can lead Warriors to glory again
Let's start by going back before we move forward.
Unless you’re a certain type of strait-jacketed Warrington fan, you may have noticed Wigan won the Grand Final at the weekend. Thoroughly deserved too. Some Warrington supporters thought the title was theirs after winning the first eight games of the season. But it doesn’t work like that and honours are won at a nippy Old Trafford in October - not at the beginning of April.
It seems particularly relevant to note that Wigan were the team that ended the Wolves’ encouraging opening run all those months ago. Their coach Matty Peet heralded player of the match Harry Smith that Friday night after a 13-6 win. He said: “We sat behind Harry’s kicking game and defended like our lives depended on it.”
Sound familiar? Fast forward to the showcase final and exactly the same happened. The two players who have lit up Super League this season, and occasionally dug Wigan out of a few holes, have been Bevan French and Jai Field.
French was anonymous in this game and Field, while threatening at times, appeared a bit too skittish - like a man with several wasps up his bottom. The PA played Manchester anthem Wonderwall at one point and throughout, the Warriors’ defence was just that. But, like in April, Smith was the most significant player on the pitch at Old Trafford, his kicks always finding the space to make the Catalans Dragons defenders turn or chase across and, crucially, burn energy.
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Jake Wardle has the distant and haunted look of a man who is unfamiliar with sunshine and joy. He is turning into a fine centre and won the Harry Sunderland trophy. But Smith was the key in this game.
Wigan Warriors celebrate at the final hooter of their Super League Grand Final win over Catalans Dragons (Getty Images)His role was helped by the Dragons’ somewhat sluggish approach to pressing him when he had the ball in his hands. If you’re familiar with the terminology in the dull world of the NFL, what they needed to do more urgently was to try to sack the quarterback - and that never happened. And already you start to wonder if that was the French team's best chance in coming years of winning the title.
They lose Sam Tomkins, of course, though the loss of Mitchell Pearce will be less significant. Tomkins on one leg has done more this season than a largely anonymous Pearce. But Tyrone May leaving is a perplexing one.
He looked their only chance of breaking the line in the final, particularly given Arthur Mourgue was left on the bench until seemingly way too deep into the game. May will play for Hull KR next season and they will be a better side for it. Adam Keighran is another through the exit door, to Wigan no less, and is arguably the best goal kicker in the league.
Wigan Warriors' Morgan Smithies takes on Catalans Dragons in the Super League Grand Final at Old Trafford (Getty Images)Which brings us back to the champions. Their recruitment for 2024 is enough to make you genuinely take seriously Peet’s victory words of creating “sustained success”. Luke Thompson and Sam Walters bring experience and rich promise to that mongrel of a pack with Kruise Leeming at last giving the Warriors pace at dummy half. All this when it appears their nearest competitors are stagnating.
St Helens need more pace and Hull seem to operate on a ‘one season ahead’ strategy. Leeds are fast becoming a basket case where players disappear (Nene Macdonald), go backwards (James Bentley) and they allow their next potentially great forward join their rivals (Walters). Then there is Warrington under Sam Burgess.
Who knows, after three games next season their fans may already think they have won the title again. They won’t have, that accolade will have to wait yet again until October - and the smart money should already be piled on Wigan to comfortably retain their crown.
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