It was the late show once again as Wire were beaten in the closing stages by their arch-rivals Wigan Warriors.
Yet another frustrating evening for Wire with Liam Farrell crossing late on to secure a win for Wigan. It was a great start for Steve Price's team, with a Matty Ashton penalty try and Chris Hill's first score of the season. Wigan came back though with tries for Joe Greenwood, Zak Hardaker and Farrell to claim the two points. Here are my six talking points...
1) The ultimate player
Let's start on a positive. Another absolute beast of a performance from the rugby league phenomenon that is Stefan Ratchford. He just does everything so well, doesn't he? Gets an assist for the first try after a brilliant run and kick, defended like a machine all night and was the only one offering any creativity in the absence of Austin and Widdop. Back at full-back tonight. You could put him anywhere and you'd get an 8/10 from him. A huge asset to the club.
2) Not over the Hill yet
The co-captain has really come to the fore in the last few matches with some belting performances in the forward pack. He was absolutely everywhere with metres aplenty and some fantastic carries. He also got his first try of the season with a powerful angled run.
3) Running out of steam?
Three matches in a row have seen Wire lose the lead in the late stages now. Whether this is a stamina or game management issue is up for debate, but it's certainly a concern.
4) At sixes and sevens
Given the amount of money we have paid for Austin and Widdop, and the talent they possess, you'd think we'd be getting more from them. Austin started the game well with some testing kicks but had a stinking second half, while Widdop defended well but did nothing going forward.
5) Need to get a move on
Two Super League losses in a row have seen Wire fall out of the top four with six matches left. There's plenty of time to turn it around and some favourable fixtures coming up against a distracted Leeds and a potentially disinterested Hull KR, Huddersfield and Salford, but there are also nasty away games at St Helens and Catalans, so it's no gimme. Wins are still needed.
6) Waiting in the wings
I'd really hate to play on the wing in our team. Josh Charnley was magnificent with the ball in hand from his own line tonight. He made a mountain of yards with some great carries and was also very solid defensively. But for those who ask why he doesn't get the same number of tries as he did for Wigan and in his early Wire days, it's because we never send the ball out wide. Our attacking structure is awful in front of the line. We look more likely to score with a break from our own half than break a team down when they're pinned back.
Player Ratings
Stefan Ratchford - 9/10
As mentioned before, a terrific performance. What a player.
Jake Mamo - 4/10
Knocked on twice when in great position to score and then went off injured.
Toby King - 8/10
Started the game on fire with great carries and passes, though came up with an appalling defensive action for the Greenwood try.
Anthony Gelling - 8/10
On fire with the metre-making and always offered himself.
Josh Charnley - 8/10
Fabulous yardage and defensive efforts.
Blake Austin - 5/10
Good high kicks early on. Faded terribly.
Gareth Widdop - 6/10
He can defend and tackle, but when is he going to break a defence down?
Chris Hill - 9/10
Wire's best player on the night. Metres, metres, metres, and a try.
Daryl Clark - 8/10
He's coming to form at just the right time. Got 80 minutes from him tonight too.
Mike Cooper - 6/10
A bit quieter tonight but still some neat offloads.
Ben Currie - 7/10
Ran the lines well and looked threatening with the ball in hand.
Jack Hughes - 6/10
Doesn't seem the same post-injury if you ask me.
Jason Clark - 6/10
Can't remember a meaningful contribution.
Matty Ashton - 7/10
Got himself a penalty try because of his pace but didn't see much of him other than that.
Joe Philbin - 6/10
Nowhere near as destructive as usual.
Matt Davis - 6/10
Can't remember him doing much.
@ALooseWire
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