Resurgent Wigan deny Leeds top spot

Image source, SW Pix

• Published15 May 2026, 22:17 BST

Betfred Super League

Wigan (16) 24

Tries: Farrimond, Keighran, Hodkinson, Wardle Goals: Keighran 4

Leeds (0) 4

Tries: Sivo

Wigan put the brakes on in-form Leeds Rhinos to deny them the chance to go top of the table with a dominant 24-4 victory at the Brick Community Stadium.

A sixth straight win on the bounce would have given Rhinos pole position over St Helens on points difference at the top of the Super League table.

But on a sobering night they delivered a disjointed performance against a resurgent Wigan who followed up a 32-0 Challenge Cup semi-final win over Saints with a four-try win.

Matt Peet's Wigan continued to put distance between them and a run of four straight Super League defeats during March and April, adding victory here to wins over Bradford and Saints.

Tries from Jack Farrimond, Adam Keighran and Noah Hodkinson gave Wigan a 16-0 half-time lead with Jake Wardle adding a fourth early in the second as the Rhinos were kept at arm's length throughout.

Maika Sivo provided Leeds' solitary response with an 18th try of the season in a better Rhinos second-half display but the home side were never in danger of giving up the lead.

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Wigan are hitting their straps just at the right time and with Super League's most in-form side Leeds despatched, Peet's side now have two clashes against Hull KR, in Super League and in the Challenge Cup Final at Wembley.

And on their first-half display they will fancy their chances of winning both and grabbing the first piece of 2026 silverware on offer.

Wigan's execution on the final pass was pinpoint all night and they were ahead on six minutes after the excellent Harry Smith kicked to the corner where Keighran tapped back and Farrimond went over.

Keighran's intercept try on 22 minutes, with the tryscorer again adding the extras, allowed Wigan to stretch the lead and Hodkinson got on the end of another Smith assist to give them a 16-0 half-time lead.

Smith was at it again early in the second period floating another high kick that Wardle converted.

Leeds hampered themselves with handling errors and poor execution with the boot. They could have narrowed the gap either side of half-time but both Harry Newman and Ash Handley failed to get the ball down cleanly in-goal.

They built a head of steam around the hour mark and Sivo finished off neatly with a pirouette finish hard against the touchline in the left corner on 67 minutes.

Yet the comeback ended there with Wigan digging in for a 10-minute period to shut out more Rhinos pressure and the visitors seemingly accepted their fate as the hooter approached.

'An intense game against quality opposition' - reaction

Wigan head coach Matt Peet:

"It was an intense game against quality opposition. We had to be resilient, we had to look after the ball and finish our sets well, and I thought we did that, so I'm really pleased.

"Our preparation was focused and particularly in the first half, we committed to our game plan and the players executed it very well against a really dangerous team."

Leeds Rhinos head coach Brad Arthur speaking to BBC Radio Leeds:

"I thought our team identity and our physicality and effort – we tried really hard and we were nice and physical – but the rest of our game we just didn't own.

"We gave away penalties and made errors while they completed 91%. They defended their line strongly, scored off two of their kick tries and an intercept and we fumbled the ball over the line twice.

"I felt like we showed better composure in the second half and there are plenty of lessons we can take away from that. But it would have been nice to have been on top of our game."

Wigan: Field, Eckersley, Keighran, Wardle, Hodkinson, Farrimond, Smith; Havard, O'Neill, Thompson, Nsemba, Walters, Partington

Interchanges: Ellis, Mago, Eseh, Kerr

Leeds: Miller, Sivo, Newman, Handley, Hall, Croft, Connor; Holroyd, Levi, Palasia, Hankinson, McDonnell, Watkins

Interchanges: Oledzki, Jenkins, O'Connor, Smith

Referee: Liam Moore.

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