Report: Warrington 48-12 London

The Warrington Wolves ran in nine tries to comfortably defeat London Broncos and record their eighth win of the season, moving to the top of Super League, with St Helens losing to Catalans this weekend.

As expected, Steve Price made a few changes to the team that decimated Hull FC last week, with Mike Cooper being rested from the squad completely, with Lama Tasi taking his place at prop forward. Harvey Livett came in for Jack Hughes, who was also rested, and the injured Jake Mamo was replaced by Ryan Atkins at centre. These were the only changes to the starting XIII, so it was still a very strong lineup named by Steve Price, with Matt Davis making his Warrington debut from the bench against the side he has been on loan at for the last month. Danny Walker returned to the squad and was named on the bench, meaning there were three changes to the overall matchday squad - Atkins, Walker and Davis in for Mamo, Hughes and Cooper.

The first period of the game was a little nervy and raised some early questions about whether Price was right to make changes, with London Broncos starting well and having lots of possession. Warrington gave away four penalties, giving the Broncos several chances to score, but several instances of excellent Wire defence ensured that the capital side remained scoreless for the time being. Wire got the first try of the game after earning a trio of penalties in the London half, and got themselves on the board when a quick chain of passing involving Blake Austin and Declan Patton was completed by Stefan Ratchford, who sent a searching pass into the path of Tom Lineham. Lineham collected and acrobatically finished for his fourth try of the season and his first of the night. Ratchford couldn't convert the try and the score remained 4-0, though not for long. An accurate looping pass from Austin found Josh Charnley out wide, and the winger fought off two London defenders to register his 11th try of the season and put Wire eight points in front. Another unsuccessful Ratchford attempt at goal meant London's deficit remained as such.

Austin's influence on the game was growing and nine minutes after setting up Charnley's try, the Aussie halfback scored one of his own. Another trademark dummy allowed him to make his way over the line, and this time Ratchford's goal-kicking prowess had returned, extending the lead to 14-0. Just before half-time, Wire scored a scrappy try to further widen the gap. Daryl Clark was an unusual choice of kicker on the fifth tackle, but on this occasion it worked as the former Castleford man's kick was deflected and bounced around, allowing his fellow Clark, Jason, to touch down for his first try in primrose and blue. A simple Ratchford goal meant that the lead was 20-0 at half-time.

The second half began positively for London, much like the first half did, and they got themselves on the scoresheet deservedly when Nathan Mason collected a quick ball from Greg Richards and muscled his way past Livett and Davis to score. Kieran Dixon added the extras, though Wire were back in the groove shortly afterwards. This time the in-play kicking responsibility fell to Ratchford, who sent the ball up high. A brilliant chase from Toby King resulted in Alex Walker completely fumbling the kick, which allowed Ratchford to calmly cross over and score a try that his own kick and King's chase was the architect of. The full back again missed his conversion, so it was 24-6. With the lead at 18 points, Daryl Clark was subbed off for Danny Walker and given a deserved rest, continuing a theme after Chris Hill was withdrawn in the first half and didn't return.

The best try of the night followed when a quick passing exchange in our own half from the two halfbacks Patton and Austin ended up in the hands of Ryan Atkins. The returning centre made a brilliant tackle bust and broke free, though looked like he was tackled by Dixon ten metres out from the line. However, Atkins managed to escape before the tackle was completed, and then fended off former Wire Morgan Smith and Alex Walker to cross over for a wonderful try. Atkins, who was impressive defensively when London were on top in the early parts of the game, saw his try converted by Ratchford, making the score 30-6. Three minutes later, Austin sold yet another dummy, which was purchased this time by Matty Fleming. Austin weaved his way through a tight gap to score his second of the night and ninth of the season. Ratchford's conversion made the lead 30 points and Austin was subsequently withdrawn and given the last 19 minutes off.

The Wire team were now without Cooper or Hughes who weren't in the squad, and Austin, Hill and Daryl Clark had all been withdrawn, so it was interesting to see how the team coped without five of the big leaders in the squad. Youngsters like King, Livett, Davis, Philbin and Walker were trusted to see the game out. There were a few positional changes too with Charnley moving to full back, Ratchford to the wing and Livett to stand off, with Steve Price using the last throes of the game experimentally to see players perform in unusual positions and how they'd cope. With fixtures piling up as well as any injuries and suspensions that may occur, it is inevitable that people will have to play in unfamiliar roles at some point - so this was a clever move. 

Matty Gee scored one of the scrappiest tries you'll see all season for London as a grubber kick took four deflections before Gee touched down and reduced the arrears slightly. A Dixon goal followed. Ratchford did really well to collect a pass and find Ben Currie, who set Lineham free. The winger showed a great display of strength to force his way over for his second of the evening, beating three defenders on the way. He completed his hat-trick after collecting a nice long pass from Patton, before once again battering his way over the line. Ratchford finished the night with two successful conversions, giving him a six out of nine record for the game, helping earn Warrington a comfortable 48-12 win over the Broncos, and a fifth successive victory.

This was another very satisfying night at the Halliwell Jones as the Wire recorded a good win with elements of a really good performance, too. We were defensively excellent in the first half as London provided perhaps sterner attacking threat than was expected. It was great to see a mix of tryscorers too, with Jason Clark bagging his first for Wire, while it was also nice for players who have had very little game time play for long periods, in turn resting some of the big guns for next week's clash with title rivals St Helens. Our squad depth is looking really strong at the minute - a 48-12 win without Goodwin, Brown, Cooper, Hughes, Akauola, Mamo or Westwood even making the squad, and Hill, Austin and Clark getting a fair amount of rest too.

The most pleasing thing about the game though was the attendance - a remarkable 11,718. This was the highest ever for a game against London, and with the initiative of local school children being given tickets for just £1, many of that crowd will have been soaking in their first ever rugby league match. Creating the next generation of fans is crucial for any sports team, and this initiative alongside things like the Wire Flyer, the Bad Blood promotion and fireworks at the Wigan game, the wonderful lightshow against Castleford are just some examples of how Warrington are currently leading the way in Super League in terms of promotion and fan engagement.

Oh, and we're leading the league table too. Top of the league with a tantalising visit to St Helens next Friday. What a game that will be as the two best teams in the competition go head-to-head. Make sure to check the blog for lots of build-up to the game, which will include a piece on my combined Saints and Wire XIII, which should cause a lot of discussion!

It's always our year.

Daniel (@aloosewire)