Wigan comfortably claimed the top spot on the Betfred Super League ladder, recording a club‑record twelfth consecutive victory after outclassing a resilient Wakefield side 26-12 at the Brick Community Stadium. Coach Matt Peet’s men capitalised on a cascade of handling mistakes from the visitors, building a 20‑point lead by halftime and then sealing the win with a spectacular length‑of‑field interception by Jai Field just after the hour mark. The timing and manner of Wigan’s ascent to pole position sends a clear warning to their rivals, especially long‑time leaders Leeds, who now face mounting pressure ahead of their upcoming trip to York on Sunday. Peet lauded his squad’s determination, noting, "I’m very pleased with how the game unfolded.
The first half was intense and went set for set for a long time and we came out the other side of that. In the second half we got a little bit sloppy but we had to defend for the most part and it probably did us good. Wakefield throw so much threat at you and they never stop asking questions." For Wakefield, the defeat marked a fourth straight loss. They began brightly and were denied an early try when Oliver Pratt appeared to ground the ball for Max Jowitt, only for officials to rule a knock‑on in the process.
Earlier, Wakefield had briefly levelled the score after a rare mistake by Bevan French, who inadvertently sent Zach Eckersley over in the corner from a forward pass. Wigan’s dominance was evident early on. After a tight opening quarter that produced no points, the home side seized on two Wakefield errors to score three tries in just ten minutes, establishing a lead that looked almost impossible to overturn.
French punished a careless pass from Jowitt by sprinting over the halfway line for the opening score. Six minutes later, a well‑timed penalty pass found Kian McDermott, whose deft handling set up Liam Marshall for a corner try. Marshall added a second shortly after, and a trio of kicks from Adam Keighran, combined with a late‑minute penalty, sent Wigan into the break with four tries to their name. Despite the looming defeat, Wakefield showed character at the start of the second half.
They applied sustained pressure and, on 52 minutes, Jake Trueman’s clever kick eluded French, allowing Corey Hall to cross for a try that narrowed the gap. A subsequent penalty and another set gave Wakefield a chance to get even closer, but Hall’s foot slipped into touch as he tried to flick the ball back to Jowitt, thwarting the opportunity.
The visitors’ hopes were finally extinguished when a loose ball from Mike McMeeken rolled to Jai Field, who sprinted the length of the field to score Wigan’s fourth try. A late effort from Wakefield’s Ky Rodwell added a touch of respectability to the final scoreline. Wakefield head coach Daryl Powell was outspoken about the officiating, stating, "I do think the refereeing department have to ask themselves a couple of questions.
There's two teams that were top class but there's other parts of the game that weren't. I'll be asking my team to get better from tonight and I think [the officials] should be doing the same." In a separate fixture, Leigh Leopards continued their playoff push with a commanding 62-10 victory over the Bradford Bulls.
Adam Cook was the standout, amassing 30 points by converting all 11 goal attempts and scoring two tries, while Leigh piled on 48 points in a dominant second half. Robbie Mulhern opened the scoring for Leigh in the 12th minute, with Cook adding the conversion and a penalty. A handling lapse by the Leopards allowed Bradford’s Waqa Blake to dive over in the corner.
Louis Brogan restored Leigh’s momentum before halftime, making it 14-4 at the break and setting the tone for a second half that would be defined by relentless attacking play. Bradford fumbled the kickoff, gifting Innes Senior a corner try for Leigh. From there, tries flowed thick and fast. Lachlan Lam initiated a move in the 48th minute that culminated in a try, and he later assisted Cook, who chased down his own kick for another score.
Senior added a second, Umyla Hanley finished a brilliant long pass from Lam, and Joe Ofahengaue completed a flowing sequence with just over ten minutes remaining. Cook later broke away for his second try, and Lam capped off his outstanding individual performance with a second try of his own. Bradford’s sole consolation came from Eliot Peposhi. It was Leigh’s fourth consecutive win, following a victory over Leeds Rhinos the previous week.
Head coach Adrian Lam praised his side, saying, "Really happy with it, obviously a lot of confidence from last week's win. I thought throughout that second half especially we were unbelievable. Cook kicking at 100 per cent certainly helps. He's been under pressure during the season at times but a nice week for him to find his form." Bradford, hampered by injuries, remain at the bottom of the table.
Coach Kurt Haggerty reflected, "It was a very tough night. We competed for 40 minutes like we have done for the majority of the season.
We got to a point where we were so many bodies down but some of the [defence] wasn't acceptable that we tossed up in the second half. We won't feel sorry for ourselves, I won't let the group feel sorry for ourselves.
We've got three tasty games to go and we'll keep scrapping." Sky Sports will broadcast every Super League match this season, with two games each round shown exclusively live and the remaining five fixtures available on Sky Sports+.