Wigan's woes worsen
Wigan's season took another turn for the worse with a 43-24 defeat at Warrington.
By Graeme Mair
Last Updated: 05/08/07 6:33pm
Wigan Warriors faltering campaign received another blow on Sunday when they were beaten 43-24 by Warrington Wolves at the Halliwell Jones Stadium.
The Wolves ran in seven tries with stand-off Lee Briers contributing a personal haul of 19 points through a try, seven goals and a drop-goal.
The defeat is the latest blow for the Warriors, whose miserable fortnight has included being docked four points for breaching the Super League's salary cap and losing to Catalans Dragons in the semi-finals of the Carnegie Challenge Cup.
Early tries
Four of the hosts' tries came in the opening 24 minutes to open a 24-6 advantage that effectively ended the game as a contest.
Brent Grose opened the floodgates with a third-minute score, Kevin Penny (8) and Briers (21) soon following him across the whitewash.
Grose completed a double in the 24th minute, all four tries being converted by Briers, with Wigan's only response a converted effort from Liam Colbon in the 12th minute.
Calderwood axed
Wigan coach Brian Ashton dropped Mark Calderwood after the winger's poor performance in last Sunday's loss to the Catalans, but it made little difference as his side continued to commit basic errors.
The visitors did briefly raise the prospect of a comeback when Thomas Leuluai sidestepped Grose and touched down for their second try straight after the interval.
But Stuart Fielden's 56th-minute sin binning for a challenge on Briers ended those hopes as, while Fielden was off the field, Jon Clarke was sent over for Warrington's fifth try, the conversion extending their lead to 31-12.
There were two late tries for Wigan's Darrell Goulding, but Henry Fa'afili and Chris Bridge also crossed for Warrington to ensure a comfortable victory.
