Warrington had the first chance to add the opening points of the game. A break downfield by Matt Dufty put them in good field position before he was wrapped up by Jack Welsby and Jon Bennison. The following play, Saints got caught offside, Warrington opted for two points. Stefan Ratchford kicked the two points from in front of the sticks, 2-0 Saints trailed.
Saints then took the lead, 15 minutes in. A flowing move from right to left ended with Lewis Dodd finding Welsby, he then found Mark Percival who was able to spin his way over to score down the left edge. He converted his own try, 2-6 Saints led.
Warrington replied ten minutes later. A tackle on Daryl Clark on the Saints resulted in a ‘six again’ call. From it the hosts went left and a cut-out pass found Matty Ashton on the wing who dove over in the corner. Ratchford missed the kick, the scores were tied at 6-6.
It didn’t take long for the Red V to re-take the lead. Dodd found Welsby on his inside down the left edge, he then broke towards the middle of the pitch before finding Jonny Lomax on his outside, he then found James Bell to stroll over in the corner. Percival added the extras, 6-12 Saints led.
Warrington tried something different as we headed into the final five minutes of the half. An early kick from Josh Drinkwater to their left wing headed towards try-scorer Ashton as Will Hopoate slipped, his attempted pass back inside ended up in touch though.
Saints headed to the break with a 6-12 lead at the Halliwell Jones Stadium, after first half scores from Percival and Bell!
Warrington grabbed the first points of the second half four minutes in. Saints were on the attack but a poor cut-out pass from Welsby was intercepted by Ashton who raced the distance for his second try of the evening. Ratchford converted, 12-12 we were tied. The hosts then took the lead. A penalty in front of the sticks allowed Warrington to kick for goal and Ratchford made no mistake, 14-12 they led.
Their third try soon followed. A break down the left edge saw the ball go through the hands and it resulted in Matt Dufty breaking through the middle and he was too quick for the chasing Saints defence, to score under the sticks. Ratchford converted to give Warrington a two-score lead, 20-12.
Saints responded. A break by Lomax down the middle saw him find the supporting Welsby, he then found Lomax again whilst tackled to stroll over underneath the sticks. Percival maintained his 100% record with the boot, 20-18 Saints trailed.
The visitors took the lead with 13 minutes left. A break from Welsby down the left edge saw him find the supporting Dodd, he dragged some defenders with him towards the line with him before planting the ball down. Percival added the extras, 20-24 Saints led.
Warrington attempted to get back into the game as we headed towards the final few minutes, but it wasn’t to be, as Saints beat the Wolves 20-24 at the Halliwell Jones Stadium on Friday evening to make it eight wins in their last nine games!
Match Summary
Warrington Wolves Team: Matt Dufty, Matty Russell, Greg Minikin, Stefan Ratchford, Matty Ashton, Peter Mata’utia, Josh Drinkwater, Gil Dudson, Daryl Clark, Paul Vaughan, Ben Currie, Tom Whitehead, Joe Philbin.
Interchanges: Danny Walker, Joe Bullock, Adam Holroyd, Lucas Green.
18th Man: Connor Wrench.
Tries: Matty Ashton (25, 44), Matt Dufty (54)
Conversions: Stefan Ratchford (2 from 3)
Penalties: Stefan Ratchford (2 from 2)
Saints Team: Jack Welsby, Will Hopoate, Konrad Hurrell, Mark Percival, Jon Bennison, Jonny Lomax, Lewis Dodd, Alex Walmsley, James Roby, Matty Lees, Sione Mata’utia, James Bell, Morgan Knowles.
Interchanges: Joey Lussick, Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Agnatius Paasi, George Delaney.
18th Man: Ben Davies.
Tries: Mark Percival (15), James Bell (28), Jonny Lomax (60), Lewis Dodd (67)
Conversions: Mark Percival (4 from 4)
HT: 6-12
FT: 20-24
Attendance: 12,385
