The 'Original' derby saw the oldest enemies clash at the DW Stadium as Wigan Warriors hosted St Helens in a brutal game which would see no quarter asked or given.

Both sides were without key personnel, but it was the Saints who had been hit hardest and who would be trying out an experimental half-back pairing in Turner and Hohaia after Burns and Wilkin were both ruled out through injury.

Over twenty-four thousand were packed into the stands and the teams were greeted by a deafening roar and a sea of cherry, red and white as they entered the arena. Wigan needed the points to keep in touch with the top four and Saints needed to win by more than twenty-three points to regain top spot from Leeds Rhinos.

The Warriors got the dream start that the whole of Wigan would have spent the night dreaming about as they opened the scoring inside the first sixty seconds.

As Saints looked to clear their lines a kick was charged down and bounced kindly into the hands of Dom Manfredi who sped to the line to ground under the tackle. Smith goaled for 6-0 and just when you thought that the noise couldn't get any louder, it did.

Despite the early setback both sides soon got into their defensive routine and wave after wave of tit-for-tat attacks were foiled by resolute defensive efforts.

On fifteen the Saints got back within two points when Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook muscled his way over the line. Makinson was up unable to add the two but we had a real humdinger of a game on our hands.

The entertainment just kept coming, and you barely noticed that the scoreboard wasn't turning.

Early in the second half the Saints injury woes deepened when Wellens limped off with a groin strain but it didn't weaken the resolve or determination of either side. The game was too close to call right up until the seventieth minute when Greg Richards lost count of the tackles and handed over possession on his own thirty. In the resulting set a chip over from George Williams bounced in goal before Joe Burgess won the race to ground just before he went dead in goal.

The video referee was consulted but the deafening reception to the one screen decision signalled 'TRY' and when Hampshire added the extras the game belonged to Wigan.

Despite their being just three tries and two goals this was a classic. Two dedicated, if at time badly wounded, sides sagging it out in far from ideal conditions to serve a banquet of rugby league to the assembled masses.

Saints stay second, but Wigan are now just three points adrift of their local rivals in third (pending tonight's game between Salford and Huddersfield).


Warriors: Hampshire, Manfredi, Gelling, Sargison, Burgess, Williams, Smith, Clubb, McIlorum, Mossop, Tomkins J, Farrell L, Bateman. Subs: Tautai, Patrick, Tomkins L, Sutton

Saints: Wellens, Makinson, Jones, Dawson, Swift, Turner, Hohaia, Amor, Roby, Walmsley, McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Greenwood, Thompson. Subs: Savelio, Masoe, Flanagan, Richards.


Referee: Phil Bentham
Attendance: 24,054