Wigan 16-14 St Helens

St Helens were awarded a penalty kick with no time remaining. A conversion would have taken the game to golden point overtime, but Jackson Hastings missed the conversion attempt. The win moved Wigan up to second in the Betfred Super League table, while Saints dropped to sixth.

Wigan Warriors won 16-14 after a hard-fought derby match against St Helens to conclude the Magic Weekend of Super League at Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Saints took a slim 8-6 lead at half-time following a Jackson Hastings penalty and a Jake Davies try before Tristan Sailor added a fourth-pointer.

Wigan went on to convert his try through Adam Keighran.

Wigan went first in the second half through a converted Jai Field try and a non-converted Zach Eckersley finish, but St Helens fought back to come within two points through a converted Jack Welsby.

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Brad O’Neill and Jack Welsby were sent to the prison cell as their anger soared.

With no time remaining, St Helens used the Captain’s Challenge to withdraw Harry Robertson, resulting in a penalty. But Hastings missed a conversion from outside that could have leveled the scores and taken the game to golden point.

It was a contest filled with cards and brawls, with Welsby seeing yellows for professional fouls in the first and second halves and receiving a yellow for his role in a bust-up afterwards. Wigan’s Brad O’Neill was sent to the sin bin along with Welsby for the second incident.

Wigan’s win moved them up to second in the table, while St Helens dropped to sixth.

Wigan overcomes a fierce derby to rise to second place

The build-up to the game centered around Matt Peet’s comments following the Warriors’ 32-0 Challenge Cup semifinal win, the last game between the teams. The Wigan manager says St Helens have lost their identity.

So it was inevitable that the Saints would come out firing, and they did. In fact, the first penalty of the game occurred when Saints prop David Klemmer ran into the back of O’Neill in a kick chase before the tackle was made. The two exchanged words after the last team meeting.

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Tempers exploded almost immediately as Wigan Warriors and St Helens players were involved in a massive brawl just 10 seconds after kick-off.

In the end, it was Paul Rowley’s side that dominated territory and possession in the early stages, with Wigan conceding numerous handling errors and penalties.

Eventually, Saints decided to take the lead with Hastings scoring a penalty goal.

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Adam Keighran crossed to put Wigan Warriors in front.

Saints were creating chances and Welsby produced a superb individual run from deep, but a few plays later he kicked and then threw the ball into the stands to thwart a Wigan counter-attack and was consequently sin-binned.

One man down, Saints went close through Hastings but hit back through the Field after Wigan grabbed the loose ball. He went down but Wigan moved the ball wide and took advantage of the free space, with Keighran running home from a corner to convert his try for a 6-2 lead.

But Saints went ahead before Welsby returned. Hastings provided a drop-off ball for young back-row Davis to hit at pace and find an opening on the line to score. Hastings converted.

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Welsby was sent to the sinbin for throwing the ball too far.

Injuries dominated the final 10 minutes. Daryl Clark and Owen Dagnall went out for HIA, passed and returned, but Wigan youngster Nathan Lowe was unlucky as he ruptured his hamstring while being dragged down by contact. The player passed out on the sideline twice.

The second half started much calmer than the first, but after about 50 minutes, the stadium was once again boiling over with brawls between both sides. To cool off, referee Chris Kendal sent O’Neill and Welsby to the sin bin for their roles in the recent brawl, with Welsby sitting out the second 10 minutes.

Then Wigan found something out of nothing. After finding space on the right flank for Eckersley to skim across the touchline, Field was ready to race in support. Keighran converted to put his side ahead 12-8.

A battle ensued after that and, similar to the first half, Saints dominated territory and possession, forcing successive goal-line exits for Wigan to defend, but they were unable to convert pressure into points and the chances were lost.

Wigan had been hoping to score through Eckersley in the 69th minute, but each team’s attacks in the build-up prevented a goal from being scored.

It didn’t take long for Eckersley to score a try, but in the ensuing scrum, Wigan got his hands on it and found space to get into the corner. Wigan’s demise has come to an end, and Saints’ demise has become solemn.

But Saints did not give up and the game was set for a huge conclusion after Welsby broke through and Hastings converted to leave them just two points behind.

It looked like a huge ending was coming when St Helens used the Captain’s Challenge with no time remaining and were awarded a penalty for forcing Robertson back.

But Hastings sent a converted try wide to leave the idea of ​​a golden point showdown just as Wigan won 16-14.

Super League 2026 – Upcoming Major Schedule

• Rival Round Reversal: July 23rd – July 26th
• Elimination playoffs: September 19th – September 20th
• playoff semifinals: September 26 ~ September 27
• Grand Finals: October 3

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