A complete round-up of every match during Warrington's 2009 Super League XIV campaign including their first Challenge Cup Final success for 35 years!



Higham Double fails to lift Wolves

Warrington Wolves 24 Hull KR 32
TWO tries from new signing Mickey Higham failed to lift Warrington as they were beaten 32-24 by Hull KR in a pre-season friendly at the Halliwell Jones Stadium last night.
The former St Helens and Wigan player went over twice from dummy half as the Wolves established an 18-10 half-time lead, but Rovers scored four tries to one after the break against a tiring Warrington outfit which was welcoming a number of players back from long term injuries including Chris Bridge and Paul Johnson.
Peter Fox and Ben Cockayne scored first-half tries for the visitors, with Ben Fisher (2), Daniel Fitzhenry and Michael Dobson touching down in the second half.
Matt King and Alex Thompson were Warrington's other try-scorers but the home side lost stand-off Lee Briers with an arm injury.
Former Hull prop Garreth Carvell impressed on his first appearance for Warrington, while Bridge, Johnson and Steve Pickersgill all made successful returns from their long-term injuries.

Teams:
Warrington: Chris Hicks; Paul Johnson, Martin Gleeson, Matt King, Kevin Penny; Lee Briers, Michael Monaghan; Michael Cooper, Mickey Higham, Paul Rauhihi, Ben Westwood, Lee Mitchell, Matty Blythe. Subs used: Adrian Morley, Paul Wood, Garreth Carvell, Steve Pickersgill, Ben Harrison, Chris Bridge, Alex Thompson, James Mendeika. Tyrone McCarthy.

Hull Kingston Rovers: Shaun Briscoe; Peter Fox, Chev Walker, Kris Welham, Ben Cockayne; Paul Cooke, Michael Dobson; Nick Fozzard, Daniel Fitzhenry, Mick Vella, Stanley Gene, Ben Galea, Scott Murrell. Subs all used: Ben Fisher, Scott Wheeldon, Makali Aizue, David Mills, Ryan Esders.
Referee: J Child.

Same Old Story

WARRINGTON Wolves' suffered more heartbreak and misery against St Helens as they surrendered a 0-14 lead early in the second half eventually crashing 26-14.
The margin of defeat would have been even greater if Saints' Sean long had not left his kicking boots at home, missing five conversion attempts.
It had started so brightly for the Wolves when a  try from new signing Mickey Higham against his former club lifted Warrington's hopes as they attempted to record their first win at Knowsley Road in 15 years.
The live wire hooker dived over from dummy half six minutes from the break to give Warrington a valuable 0-8 half-time lead.
When a superb off-load from Chris Riley sent Paul Rauhihi crashing over after 45 minutes to open up a 0-14 lead Warrington looked on course to break their St Helens jinx.
Winger Chris Hicks had broken the deadlock in a tight encounter with a penalty on 30 minutes when  Rauhihi took a high shot. Hicks added Higham's try to give the Wolves their half-time lead.
Warrington had a lucky escape early on when Saints winger Ade Gardener just put a foot in touch as he squeezed in at the corner to be denied by the video ref.
The Wolves who looked strong going up the middle nearly broke through on 18 minutes as Matt King broke clear, only for his pass to hit winger Kev Penny on the shoulder.
With a penalty count of 6-1 against in the opening quarter Warrington did well to keep Saints at bay.
Ben Westwood was held up over the line on 26 minutes and lost control of the ball and then a minute later Chris Riley missed a golden opportunity when he passed to Gardener when King had an over lap in the corner.
But Warrington finished the half stronger and were good value for their 0-8 lead.
But Rauhihi's early second half score was the last time Warrington came near to scoring.
The turning point came in the 48th minute when Gareth Carvell was harshly adjudged to have knocked on when it looked like the ball had been ripped from his control in a two man tackle. From the resulting scrum Gilmour left Paul Johnson in his wake to score wide out and start the Saints fightback.
It was then nearly all one way traffic as Warrington couldn't get hold of the ball as tries from Gardner (53), Gidley twice (63),(68), Graham (73) and youngster Tom Armstrong in the final minute put the Wolves to the sword.
Long was only able to add one conversion but by the final hooter Warrington were out on their feet and well beaten.

Team: Wolves
Chris Riley, Chris Hicks, Paul Johnson, Matt King, Kevin Penny (Chris Bridge, 68 mins), Lee Briers, Michael Monaghan, Adrian Morley (Paul Rauhihi, 19 mins), Mickey Higham , Garreth Carvell (Paul Wood, 20 mins), Louis Anderson, Ben Westwood, Matty Blythe (Ben Harrison, 23 mins).

Replacements
Paul Wood, Paul Rauhihi, Ben Harrison, Chris Bridge

Atten: 17,000

Wolves Slain by Dragons
Warrington Wolves 20 Catalan Dragons 40 by Gary Skentelbery

Pressure mounts on Lowes

PRESSURE mounted on Warrington Wolves' Head Coach Jimmy Lowes as his team hit rock bottom 48-22 at Wakefield Trinity Wildcats.
While the Wildcats went joint top with their third win in four games, the Wolves were left rooted to the bottom of the league after their third consecutive defeat.
Warrington never got out of the starting blocks as Wakefield raced into a 24-0 lead in as many minutes.
Matt Blaymire scored the first on eight minutes after Warrington had to defend three consecutive sets of six and three minutes later he crashed over for his second after Mickey Higham had been penalised for a grapple tackle. Both tries were goaled by Tony Martin.
Warrington's goal line defence crumbled again on 22 minutes when Dave Ferguson went over with Martin again converting. Within two minutes the game was effectively put beyond Warrington's reach when full-back Chris Riley fumbled a kick, gifting winger Dave Halley a try which Martin goaled to make it 24-0.
Two quick tries from Louis Anderson, one goaled by Chris Hicks gave Warrington a glimmer of hope but another blunder by Riley just before the break allowed Halley in for a long range  interception try, again goaled by Martin, making it 30-10 at the break.
Warrington started the second half strongly but couldn't find a way through and then two silly penalties gave Wakefield the opportunity for Ferguson to barge over for his second try effectively ending the game as a contest, as Martin's goal made it 36-10.
A Chris Hicks try which he converted from wide out pegged it back to 36-16 but Trinity went further ahead when Monaghan lost the ball on his own try line allowing Blaymire to complete his hat-trick with Martin goaling to make it 42-16.
On 69 minutes Riley made amends for his earlier blunders with a great break from defence sending over the supporting Chris Bridge with Hicks goaling.
Two minutes later  Warrington's night was summed up as Hicks made a great break only for the supporting Higham to put the ball to ground with the try line at his mercy.
Wakefield had the final say on 73 minutes when Luke George raced over with the influential Brad Drew goaling to complete the rout.
On this showing Warrington's confidence is clearly at rock bottom and with their next game at home to Grand Final winners Leeds it isn't going to get any easier.
Ironically Warrington's last victory was against Leeds last August when Lowes was rewarded with the Head Coach job full-time - with Warrington failing to win a single game since!

WARRINGTON Wolves are "not far off" their first win according to new Director of Coaching Tony Smith who saw his team edged out 14-20 by his former club Leeds at the Halliwell Jones.
Despite an appalling start which saw Leeds race into a 12 point lead in the opening six minutes Warrington bounced back and for long periods of the match were the better team.
Poor defence in the third minute saw Karl Ablett touch down after Warrington failed to clear the danger with Kevin Sinfield adding the two. Three minutes later the visitors doubled their lead as Sinfield went over and again converted.
After a couple of missed opportunities Warrington got on the scoreboard in the 14th minute when Lee Briers showed a good turn of pace to breach the Leeds defence and touch down but Chris Hicks sliced the conversion attempt wide making it 4-12.
The Wolves fluffed a number of other gilt edged opportunities, in particular by half-back Monaghan.
Five minutes from the break Leeds extended their lead when Warrington were penalised for accidental off-side.
But a minute before the break the Wolves were back in the hunt when Micky Higham barged over from close range with Hicks adding the two to make it 10-14 at the hooter.
Playing with the wind in the second half  Warrington again squandered chances as Louis Anderson knocked on in front of the sticks and then was held up over the line.
The Wolves were on level terms in the 56th minute when Chris Hicks swept in at the corner but was unable to add a difficult conversion making it 14-14.
Warrington now looked the more likely to win but disaster struck in the 70th minute when full-back Chris Riley collected a kick and started to make good yards only to lose the ball on impact. Sinfield gleefully collected the lose ball and raced over for what proved to be the winning try as he added the coversion to make it 14-20.
In injury time Warrington had a chance to grab a last gasp score but Jon Clarke knocked on right on the line.
After the match Smith praised the effort of the team and the coaching staff who had faced a difficult week.
"With a little more patience we could have had a winning start. It was a mixed performance but I was really happy with the defensive effort and the spirit. We created plenty of opportunities but came up with too many errors allowing the pressure off Leeds.
"But we are not far off and with a little better execution we will strart to get the right results.
"We were a bit slow out of the blocks but it has been a traumatic week for the team and the coaching staff with the changes taking place midweek but I think everyone has responded well.
"I will be targeting improvement throughout the week but I have been encouraged by the spirit."
Warrington's next match is away at Harlequins on Saturday.
Pictures show Micky Higham, Paul Johnson and Lee Briers in action against Leeds.

Warrington squad: Johnson, Gleeson, King, Briers, Monaghan, Morley, Clarke, Rauhihi, L. Anderson, V.Anderson, Higham, Wood, Pickersgill, Cooper, Riley, Mitchell, Hicks, Harrison, Bridge.

 Leeds squad: Donald, Smith, Senior, Hall, McGuire, Burrow, Leuluai, Peacock, Jones-Buchanan, Lauitiiti, Sinfield, Diskin, Kirke, Ablett, Burgess, Bailey, Gibson, Watkins, McShane.
Atten 9,863

WARRINGTON Wolves' new team boss Tony Smith now knows the size of the task in hand as he saw his new charges slaughtered 60-8 by Harlequins at the Stoop.
The Quins ran in 10 tries, with former Wigan and Castleford half-back Danny Orr the inspiration for the home side - the scrum-half scoring a try, having a hand in three others and also converting all 10 tries.
The home side took the lead within two minutes when Orr delayed his pass allowing Luke Dorn to dummy his way over.
Warrington hit back with two tries of their own, the first came when Dorn's attempt at an interception instead saw the ball presented to Vinnie Anderson, who crossed the line unopposed.
Danny Ward then hit back to stretch Quins' lead, but Warrington reined them in once again when Paul Rauhihi touched down.
But tactical kicking from both Orr and Chad Randall pegged the Wolves back, and the Londoners started to threaten every time they gained possession.
They scored again after 24 minutes when Karl Temata barged over after brushing aside a couple of challenges.
The best try of the opening period came 11 minutes later, inspired by the pace of Will Sharp.
Orr's subsequent cross-field kick found Matt Gafa in acres of space to gather and stroll over the line.
The Quins went into the interval with a healthy lead after Orr scored their fifth following a Daniel Heckenberg break.
Warrington heads dropped in the second half, while Quins maintained their tempo as the traffic became strictly one way.
Randall chased a Dorn kick through to score early in the second period which all but ended the game as a contest.
Further tries were to follow in the final quarter from Luke Gale (2), David Howell and Chris Melling as Smith's men were truly put to the sword.

WARRINGTON Wolves kick started their season with a 24-12 victory over Hull KR at the Halliwell Jones stadium ending a run of 10 consecutive defeats.
With the influential Lee Briers starting on the bench and Michael Monaghan pairing up with Martin Gleeson at stand-off, the Wolves dominated much of the first half - with Monaghan in particular revelling at scrum-half.
Warrington took the lead on five minutes with young forward Ben Harrison breaching the visitors defensive line and Chris Hicks adding the two to make it 6-0.
Rovers hit back and forced Warrington to make a couple of defensive goal line drop outs but for once the Wolves' defence held firm.
It was Monaghan who extended the lead on 30 minutes with a try and then on the stroke of half time Paul Johnson went in at the corner with Hicks converting to make it 16-0 at the break.
With Monaghan injured Briers entered the fray and it was his kick which sent Johnson over for his second try to make it 20-0 on 57 minutes.
There were a few home jitters on the hour when a Martin Dobson kick saw Peter Fox in at the corner, with Dobson adding the conversion. But then Matt King popped up to put the game out of reach after collecting a Briers kick to touch down.
Rovers grabbed a late consolation try from Makali Aizue to make the scoreline appear a little more respectable for the visitors.
But on the whole it was a much improved performance form the Wolves, particularly in defence and Head of Coaching Tony Smith will be hoping the victory will now kick start the season.
Meanwhile speculation still surrounds the future of Briers, who started on the bench and has been strongly linked with a move to League Two Barrow who are believed to have offered him a lucrative three year contract.

Wolves made to work hard for win
WARRINGTON  Wolves were made to work hard by Super League newcomers Celtic Crusaders as they secured back to back home wins with a hard earned 27-22 victory at the Halliwell Jones.
Despite taking an early lead through Simon Grix after just three minutes it was the visitors who led 12-18 at the break, setting up a nervy second half for the Wolves.
When Grix opened the scoring with his effort converted by Chris Hicks to open up a 6-0 lead many expected the floodgates to open against a team rooted to the bottom of the league without a win.
But after a scrappy opening 20 the Crusaders scored with their first push on the Wolves' line as Anthony Blackwood went in at the corner with Josh Hannay adding the coversion. Two minutes later the visitors were in front when Matty Smith put Lincoln Withers under the sticks with Hannay adding the extras making it 6-12.
A strong run from Paul Wood sent Lee Briers (pictured) over on 29 minutes with Hicks adding the conversion to make it 12-12.
But it was the visitors who went in leading at the interval when Hannay threw an outrageous dummy to touchdown and then added the extras to make it 12-18 at the break.
It was crucial Warrington scored first after the break and it was Matt King who came up with the goods although Hicks was wide with the coversion.
Back came the visitors with a Luke Dyer try which was not converted making it 16-22.
On 62 minutes Lee Mitchell's try converted by Hicks drew the scores level and then with the clock ticking down Briers added a trademark drop goal to open up the narrowest of leads.
Chris Bridge sent Hicks over in the corner in the closing stages to open up a five point gap but the winger couldn't add the extras as Warrington hung on for a nail biting victory. For pictures CLICK HERE

Wolves see off plucky Knights

WARRINGTON  eventually eased  into the fifth round of the Carnegie Challenge Cup at the Halliwell Jones Stadium after a plucky fight by visitors York Knights.
The 56-10 scoreline somewhat flattered the Wolves who scored four tries late on after the visitors had been reduced to 12  men after prop Danny Ekis was sent off on 64 minutes.
The floodgates looked likely to open when Simon Grix gave Warrington a second-minute lead from Chris Bridge's pass but the Championship One part-timers caused an early shock when a burst from John Oakes ended with Danny Ratcliffe crossing for the visitors and Richard Knight converted to give York a 6-4 lead over their Super League opponents.
But Ben Harrison then put Vinnie Anderson over to regain the advantage before scoring himself, with Hicks adding the extras on both occasions.
An opportunist try by Paul Hughes midway through the first half cut the gap to 16-10 but Ben Westwood crashed over for Warrington's fourth after 26 minutes.
Jon Clarke then put Michael Cooper over for his first try of the season to take the Wolves 28-10 up at the break.
Bridge scored on 48 minutes to make it 34-10 and, following the dismissal of Ekis, York were unable stem the tide as  Briers, Vinnie Anderson, Louis Anderson and Paul Johnson all crossed.
It was a third win in a row for coach Tony Smith, who singled out prop Garreth Carvell and Ben Westwood, both returning after five-match absences, for special praise.
He said: "They were the two best players on the field. We were professional with the ball and scored some nice tries.
"We were a little patchy in the first half with three errors but lifted it in the second half. The job went well.
Smith also paid tribute to a gutsy perforrmance by their part-time opponents.
He added: "York have two cheeky little brothers in Paul and David March who probably annoy their own mother!"
York boss James Ratcliffe said: "It's hard enough playing against a Super League team with 13 players never mind 12 but four tries conceded in the last 10 minutes didn't do us justice.
"It was a valiant effort from our lads. It was a very good performance against world-class stars and full-time opposition. "
Pictures show Ben Westwood going for the line and Paul Johnson looking to off load.
For more pictures CLICK HERE

A LAST gasp try from Ben Westwood gave Warrington the chance of a draw at Salford - but that was as near as Wolves got to emerging from this game with any credit.
Chris Hicks shot wide and Wolves were left with another defeat to contemplate.
At half-time, the Reds were 12-6 in front but the game was still there to play for.
But after the interval, the  Reds  pressed home their advantage and it was only the late try from Westwood that gave respectability to the score line.
A try from Paul Johnson, converted by Hicks was all Wolves had to show for the first half.   Six more points from the same pair kept them in touch in the second, but it was only the Westwood refusal to give up that put them within reach of a draw and a share of the spoils.
Hicks could not produce the final touch so Wolves went home with nothing.

WOLVES had nothing to  show for the first half of this embarrassing defeat but at 0-6 at the interval they were still in the game.
But a second half collapse put the visitors in total control and a try from Chris Bridge and conversion from Chris Hicks did little to persuade home supporters that they have much to look forward to this summer.
Tony Smith was remarkably positive in the circumstances, with high praise for the never-say-die attitude of Ben Westwood  and nice words for Chris Bridge and Kevin Penny, who was drafted in as a late replacement for the injured Vinnie Anderson.
Both had played well in the circumstances, he said.
But there was no escaping the poor performance put in by Wolves in the second half.
In part, this was almost certainly down to the pressures of playing two games over the Bank Holiday weekend - and does not inspire much hope for this Friday's visit to Odsal to take on Bradford Bulls

WARRINGTON Wolves' Head Coach Tony Smith remained up beat despite seeing his team edged out  28-36 by Hull KR in the final game of the Murrayfield Magic Weekend in Edinburgh.

NEW signing Richie Mathers scored twice on his debut as the Wolves eased past Featherstone 56-8 to book their place in the Carnegie Challenge Cup quarter-finals.

WARRINGTON Wolves over turned a 14-6 half-time deficit as they "dug deep" to record a 16-18 victory at Hull which saw them climb to 10th in the table.
Despite fielding an under-strength side Hull appeared in control during the first half, scoring two tries through Richard Whiting and Jodie Broughton.
Warrington  had to make some late changes with Matt King and leading points scorer Chris Hicks joining Paul Johnson on the sidelines.
Despite being guilty of many handling errors in the opening period, Warrington -started to make their possession pay in the second period as Simon Grix followed up a first-half try, while scores from Chris Bridge and - on his 100th Super League appearance - Vinnie Anderson allowed the Wolves to come back and scrape the points.
They made an ill-disciplined start to the match and conceded three penalties in the opening four minutes, with Garreth Carvell sin-binned against his former club.
By the time Carvell returned to the fray the Airlie Birds were 12-0 ahead.
The first try came in the 12th minute and resulted from Michael Monaghan's intercepted pass.
Whiting booted the ball to the right wing where Mark Calderwood's footballing skills progressed the move - the second rower then diving over the line to touch down.
Tickle kicked the extras and did the same two minutes later after he had proved the inspiration for Hull's second, his pass releasing Broughton on the left-hand flank and leaving the Wolves' defence in his wake.
The Wolves appeared listless up until Anderson offloaded to  Grix who then ducked inside to touch down.
Bridge converted but there was to be no quickfire repeat score for the visitors, Tickle instead pushing Hull's lead back out to 14-6 with a long-range penalty just past the half-hour.
Tickle found the target once again with another such effort coming as heavy rain fell six minutes into the second half.
Warrington had opportunities to score during this period but poor handling and communication meant they were unable to take them until Bridge finally scored the Wolves' second after 61 minutes as they exploited an overlap on the right-hand flank.
He could not add the extras but Warrington were now just a converted try behind.
Bridge again missed after Grix scored his second just four minutes later but, although still behind, the match's momentum was now with Warrington.
Sure enough, the Wolves turned their two-point deficit into a two-point lead when Vinnie
Anderson scored their 4th  try with eight minutes remaining - but Bridge missed the
conversion once again. But Warrington dug deep and defended strongly and hung on for the points.
After the match Warrington coach Tony Smith said his players should be proud of their second-half performance.
"We were poor in the first half," said Smith. "We were really disappointed with the way we performed. It was the first wet game we've had to deal with for a while and we didn't handle the weather well.
"We couldn't get hold of the ball and it seemed like we were just defending and defending - and with 12 men.
"I don't know what the record is for early sin-bins but it would be up there I reckon.
"But the players should be very proud of themselves for the way they pulled themselves together in the second half and dug out a game of rugby league.
"To only allow the opposition only two sets in a half is pretty good going."
He also singled out Bridge and Richard Mathers for praise.
"We lost three wingers this week but the boys who stepped up did a really good job," he said.

WARRINGTON Wolves will be hoping the missing fans start returning after claiming  their fifth win in six matches with a 16-8 victory over arch rivals Wigan in a pulsating contest at the Halliwell Jones stadium.
The Warriors have not won a single  game in Warrington since the move to the Halliwell Jones  and that sequence continued in front of a 10,718 crowd - nearly 3,000 below capacity for a match which is nearly always a sell out.
Before the match Club Chief Executive Andy Gatcliffe urged home supporters to become the "14th man" but with a sizeable following from Wigan, it would appear many Warrington fans are yet to be convinced.
But those who did turn up created a superb atmosphere as Wigan led for almost an hour in a contest between two old rivals that lacked nothing in intensity.
Wigan  made a stunning start, launched by the perfect Pat Richards kick-off that bounced in goal and flew over the head of Gareth Carvell.
Warrington then twice charged down Wigan kicks on the last tackle and at the end of the third successive set of six, Thomas Leuluai slid in a grubber kick for Cameron Phelps to touch down.
On the next set of six Ben Westwood gave away a penalty for interference and Joel Tomkins forced his way over only to be held up by a fine effort from former Warrior Richie Mathers.
Wigan immediately forced a drop-out and Warrington faced a sixth successive set of six, failing to handle the ball in the opening eight minutes of the match.
They finally got hold of the ball when Amos Roberts touched down a Leuluai high kick, only for the try to be chalked off because of a Richards knock-on. On another day the Wolves could have already been 0-18 down!
As it was Warrington did well to only concede just six points in that sustained spell of pressure, but for the next 20 minutes it was mostly Wigan who were forced to defend, although they were  helped by a couple of errors at key moments by Warrington players, notably a poor Westwood pass when anything with a bit of quality on it would have put Chris Bridge in at the corner.
Lee Briers lofted a kick a yard too high for Matt King into the right corner but it was a repeat of that tactic which finally forced the breakthrough.
Wigan skipper Sean O'Loughlin gave away a penalty for a high shot and this time on the fifth tackle Briers' kick was perfectly weighted and King leapt above Sean Ainscough to collect and score.
Bridge missed the conversion and Wigan led 6-4 at the break, a lead they quickly doubled through Richards' boot after Westwood infringed at a ruck.
On 55 minutes Warrington finally grabbed the lead and never looked like surrendering it.
Andy Coley and Stuart Fielden gave away successive penalties and after a superb handling move, Chris Riley finished well in the corner on his 50th appearance for the club. This time Bridge added the extras from the touchline.
It was fitting that such a superb contest was settled by a piece of brilliance, Michael Monaghan jinking past three defenders to score by the posts.
After the match Wolves' Head of Coaching Tony Smith said: "We still had some errors in us but there was much more energy and enthusiasm in our performance," Smith added.
"Defensively I thought we were very good on the back of starting a game with six sets on your own line. I challenge the average person to tackle for eight minutes. I get tired thinking about it.
"I thought we were the dominant team apart from that first eight minutes.
"The only scary moments I felt we had were from kicks and that's saying something about our defence. Wigan have got some terrific attacking players so it was a big effort and we're pleased to get through that one.
"We do feel we are building but we've got a way to go."
With a Challenge Cup trip to high flying Hull KR next on the menu, perhaps a victory over the old enemy and a trip to Wembley will help bring back the missing Wolves fans.

A Golden goal from Lee Briers saw Warrington Wolves snatch a Challenge Cup semi-final spot in a thrilling encounter at Hull KR.
With the scores locked at 24-24 after the final hooter Briers stepped up at the third time of asking to drop a golden point which gave the Wolves victory, leaving them just 80 minutes from a dream trip to Wembley.
Trailing 22-12 after an hour Warrington showed true grit to bounce back.
Head of Coaching Tony Smith, who appears to have added extra resilience to the team since taking over, said aftrer the game: "It was tough and we were way off today. But we showed composure at the end and I thought we were always capable even though we were pretty poor in the first half.
"It wasn't pretty but I am pleased for the players and the fans."
Man of the match Briers heaped praise on his Prop forwards Adrian Morley and Garreth Carvell saying they "played like men possessed."
He added: "I know we had a poor first half but we are starting to build character within the team even when we are not playing particularly well."
It looked bleak for Warrington as early as the third minute when Paul Cooke opened up their defence allowing Peter Fox to send Chris Welham over with Dobson adding the extras to make it 6-0.
But Warrington hit back on 16 minutes with the only other score of the half after good handling by Jon Clarke and Michael Monaghan opened up the way for Vinnie Anderson to touch down, with stand in kicker Chris Bridge (pictured) adding the extras in the absence of the injured Chris Hicks.
Warrington took the lead early in the second half when Bridge put Matt King away on the wing to feed the supporting Clarke who raced over. Bridge added the extras to make it 6-12.
Back came Rovers as Clint Newton went through a gaping hole in the Wolves' defence with Dobson making no mistake to level the scores.
With Warrington giving away silly penalties Rovers took full advantage and hit the front when a kick through left full-back Richie Mathers stranded, allowing Ben Galea to touch down with Dobson making it 18-12.
Warrington looked dead and buried when Jake Webster finished off a sweeping move but Dobson crucially missedthe conversion.
A clever chip kick from Briers put Matt King in at the corner on 66 minutes and Bridge landed a stunning touchline conversion to bring the Wolves to within four points at 22-18.
Ten minutes from time a great break by Morley enabled Briers to put Bridge in the clear to touch down and then Bridge kept his cool to add the extras to give Warrington the lead at 22-24.
With just two minutes on the clock Rovers were awarded a penalty for off-side and Dobson made no mistake to level the scores and take the game into extra time - and the golden point, meaning the first team to score would win.
It was man-of-the match Briers who kept his cool at the third time of asking to land the crucial drop goal which sent the travelling fans into raptures and dreaming of Wembley.

WARRINGTON Wolves once again showed their new found mental toughness and resilience as they came from behind to win 18-34 at Castleford Tigers.
Skipper Adrian Morley (pictured right) sent out a warning to other clubs  after the match saying: "The positive thing is we are winning games without playing our best. But when we click watch out!"
The powerhouse prop who is now heading out to Paris with Head of Coaching Tony Smith for England duties added: "We've not been starting games very well and the Coach gave it to us a bit at half time and we came out better in the second half."
Man of the match Vinnie Anderson who grabbed two tries added: "The Coach got us revved up at half time but there is still a lot of room for improvement - but Tony's style is good for us."
Despite a slow start which saw the Tigers race into an 8-0 lead the Wolves still managed to hit back to lead 8-12 at the break against the run of play.
It took just four minutes for Castleford's Kirk Dixon to open the scoring after Benny Westwood had been penalised for a high shot putting the Wolves on the back foot.
Warrington again paid the the penalty on 18 minutes when Vinnie Anderson was penalised for holding down and from the resulting play Castleford's Richard Owen went in at the corner. Fortunately Dixon was again wide of the target leaving the Wolves trailing by just eight points, which considering they had missed seven tackles in the opening 20 minutes was not surprising.
Lee Briers brought the Wolves back into the game on 23 minutes when he was put over by Jon Clarke and Chris Bridge added the extras to make it 8-6.
Warrington took the lead on 33 minutes when Castleford failed to make touch with a penalty and they were duly punished as Louis Anderson powered his way over after being put through a gap by Chris Bridge, who was playing at stand-off in the absence of the injured Michael Monaghan.
Warrington were some what fortunate they didn't find themselves behind at the break as a sweeping move from the home side was ruled out by the video referee for the slightest of knock ons in back play.
Warrington started the second half poorly with knock ons from Westwood and Higham but then master poacher Lee Briers came up with an  interception try to open up an 8-16 lead.
It was now Castleford who were giving away penalties and Briers made them pay as he sent Matt King crashing over, although Bridge was again wide with his conversion attempt in blustery conditions, making it 8-20.
Warrington had another lucky escape on 53 minutes when the Tigers had another try ruled out after the video referee ruled that Chris Riley had unfairly been taken out after allowing a high ball to bounce.
On 58 minutes Castleford gave the home fans some hope when Michael Shenton scored a break away try with Dixon adding the extras to bring them back to within one score at 14-20.
But a clever kick from Bridge was touched down by Vinnie Anderson and Tigers Ryan McColdrick was sin binned for dissent after arguing with the referee.
On 66 minutes Warrington scored their best try of the game after great hands from Clarke, Bridge and Grix sent Anderson in for his second try which Bridge converted to make it 14-30.
On 71 minutes Castleford were given some slight hope after Carvell knocked on  and was then penalised allowing the home side to take advantage and send winger Evans over in the corner but Dixon was again wide of the target.
Five minutes from time Warrington sealed their victory with another interception effort as Chris Hicks, who had been having a quiet game, raced 80 metres to touch down. Bridge was wide again but it mattered little as the Wolves were home and dry at 18-34.
Warrington have now won seven of their last eight games, including five consecutive victories, leaving their dismal start to the season a near distant memory.

WARRINGTON Wolves were out muscled by a rampant Bradford Bulls as they went down 10-21 at the Halliwell Jones. 
In a poor first half Warrington were completely out played as the visitors built up a 0-9 interval lead thanks to a try from Chris Nero, converted by Paul Deacon who also weighed in with a drop goal right on the hooter.
Missing skipper Adrian Morley and second-rower Ben Westwood, who were on international duty, the Wolves suffered a further set back with the loss of play maker Lee Briers on 15 minutes with a gashed ear.
Warrington were a shadow of the team which had won its five previous games and the defeat left them still outside the top eight with more than half the season gone.
Despite being on England duty Head of Coaching Tony Smith was in attendance but could do little to inspire his team which were well beaten by the better team.
The team did respond to his half-time team talk and but were already 0-15 behind thanks to a Glenn Morrison try and Deacon conversion when stand-off Chris Bridge sent Simon Grix through a gap as the centre side stepped through on his way to the line. Birdge added the extras to make it 6-15 but Terry Newton ended any hope of  a comeback when he crashed over near the posts five minutes from time, as Deacon again added the extras.
Winger Chris Hicks went over in the corner late on to make the scoreline more respectable but Bridge couldn't find the target.
Warrington could have no complaint with the final scoreline as they were beaten by a team they appeared more hungry for the points.

WARRINGTON Wolves created a little piece of history when they became the first ever Rugby League team to win a game in Barcelona beating the Catalan Dragons 12-24 in front of a crowd of more than 18,000 at the Olympic Stadium.
Trailing 10-6 at the break the Wolves bounced back to create a party atmosphere for the 1,500 plus travelling fans.
Chris Bridge gave the Wolves the perfect start scoring early on with Chris Hicks landing a touchline conversion to make it 0-6.
But cheered on by a partisan crowd the Dragons roared back with tries from Jason Croaker and Cyril Stacul to lead 10-6 at the break.
A Bosc penalty early in the second half made it 12-6 but Warrington were on level terms when Matt King went over with Hicks adding the extras.
Warrington took the lead when a grubber kick from Simon Grix sent winger Chris Riley over and Hicks again added the extras.
The Dragons had an effort ruled out by the video referee and then Jon Clarke showed a fine turn of pace to score wide out 10 minutes from time to send the travelling fans into party mood.
Hicks added a late penalty to complete the scoring and ensure Warrington went down in history as the first ever Rugby League team to record a victory in Barcelona.

A 14 minute purple patch saw Warrington triumph 24-12 over Hull at the Halliwell Jones Stadium.
In a dour first half with defences on top and neither side creating any chances Hull took the lead against the run of play on 30 minutes when Jodie Broughton intercepted a loose Michael Monaghan pass to race clear from inside his own half to score. Danny Tickle added the coversion to give the visitors a 0-6 lead.
But then on the stroke of half time winger Chris Riley and full-back Richie Mathers, who had been Warrington's best attacking player, lit up the stadium with a brilliant length of the field try.
Riley confidentally collected a high ball, quickly fed Mathers who broke clear and then supported his full-back to score a stunning try. Chris Hicks put the icing on the cake with a superb touchline conversion to level the scores.
The try two minutes before the break proved to be the turning point as Warrington started the second half like a team possessed with some breath taking rugby as they scored three tries in 12 minutes.
First Monaghan opened up the Hull defence on 44 minutes as he raced for the line and then threw the ball back for the supporting Paul Wood to burst over to give Warrington the lead. Hicks again added the extras.
The on 50 minutes Matt King showed power and pace to force his way in at the corner as the Wolves turned the game on its head. Hicks landed another towering conversion to make it 18-6 to the Wolves.
Then two minutes later another stunning five man move started by Riley and finished off by Ben Harrison, with Hicks again goaling, saw Warrington in control at 24-6.
Hull pulled a try back on the hour through Kirk Yeaman after the Warrington defence was penalised and Tickle added the conversion.
But as defences got on top again Warrington held out for their seventh win in nine games.
With Riley again in top form and Hicks dynamic with his goal kicking, new signing Brian Carney could be sat in the wings for a little longer!
Meanwhile Warrington are still being heavily linked with Salford's young half-back Richie Myler, who has rejected a big contract offer from his club.

WARRINGTON Wolves secured a 6-22 victory at Celtic Crusaders on their first ever visit to the new Welsh franchise.
The victory was Warrington's third on the trot and took them to 7th in the league table, leap-frogging Wigan.
Defences were on top for most of the first half, with the only try coming after nine minutes from Warrington's Jon Clarke, who pounced from five yards out as two Crusaders defenders allowed a cross kick to bounce, with Chris Hicks adding the extras to put the Wolves 0-6 up at the break.
Young forward Ben Harrison extended the lead after 52 minutes with Hicks again on target.
Full-back Richie Mathers secured the points for Warrington with two quick tries on 57 and 62 minutes, with Hicks converting one to open up a 0-22 lead.
The home side scored a late consolation effort through Luke Dyer which was goaled by Mark Lennon.
After the match Warrington's Head of Coaching Tony Smith heaped praise on his teams defensive effort but was still not satisfied with the overall performance!
"I thought our defence was awesome today," he said.
 "I don't want to be negative but there were handling errors. I was encouraged by the way we started to play before those errors crept in.
"It was a greasy ball and, although it was not wet or raining, it was greasy out there and it is a while since we played in those type of conditions.
"Some individuals struggled with that but, overall, I was quite satisfied in the manner we went about the game.
"There was some good rugby league played out there and some enterprising tries.
"I don't want to be too downbeat about it because that will not give credit to Celtic, who I thought defended very well as well. They are very solid in that area.
"Whilst I thought we were always in control and held onto the ball, there was just a patch where we came up with five or six errors in a row and that was pretty rough. "We lost our way but I was not too disappointed by that."

ST HELENS are still the curse of Warrington Wolves as they came from behind to win 26-40 at the Halliwell Jones.
Warrington could not be faulted for effort while missing play maker Lee Briers alongside skipper Adrian Morley and leading scoring Chris Hicks who were late withdrawals through injury.
And while Saints were without Sean Long and Keiron Cunnigham, it was Long's replacement, young scrum half Karl Eastmond who proved to the thorn in the Wolves' side, who still only have one win and two draws to their credit against St Helens since the start of Super League.
The teenager constantly carved out openings, creating two tries and scoring one himself as well as landing six coversions.
It had all started so well for the Wolves who were 6-0 up in as many minutes after a great move saw Louise Anderson race clear, supported by Matt King who sent Jon Clarke over. Chris Bridge added the extras.
But in what was probably a key turning point in the game came moments later as Jon Wilkin inflicted a high shot on Simon Grix, who had to leave the field with a badly gashed mouth and was unable to return. While Wilkin escaped unpunished Lee Gilmour powered through a huge gap in the Warrington defence which was in disarray as Grix left the field injured. Eastmond added the extras to level the scores.
Saints then hit a purple patch as James Graham crashed over with Eastmond's conversion making it 6-12 to the visitors. Eastmond then slotted over a penalty after Vinnie Anderson was penalised for a high tackle.
But back came the Wolves as Bridge showed a nice side step to power over and then added the extras to close the gap to 12-14.
But then with just 10 seconds left on the clock Roby hacked forward a loose ball and raced sixty yards before the ball was swept out wide to Ade Gardener who went in at the corner. Eastmond was wide with the conversion but Saints had the half-time advantage.
Five minutes after the break Warrington were back on level terms as Paul Johnson powered over with Bridge adding the extras.
Then four minutes later the Warrington faithful started to believe they could see the end of the Saints curse as prop Gareth Carvell (pictured) scored probably the greatest try of his career from inside his own half.
After collecting a loose ball the Prop showed true guts and determination to out pace the Saints defence to score a breathtaking try which brought the house down. Bridge added the conversion to make it 24-18.
But as is often the case against St Helens, Warrington's joy was short-lived as Eastmond carved open the defence to send over Paul Wellens, adding the extras to level the scores.
A Bridge penalty gave Warrington a slight advantage but with little fuel left in the tank the Wolves' spirits sank on 67 minutes when Wellens ghosted through a tiring defence and returned the favour for man-of-the-match Eastmond to touch down and add the extras to make it 26-30.
The on 72 minutes the gripping contest was over as Graham went over for his second try after Eastmond had been just held short following a great try saving tackle by Matt King.
Five minutes from time Meli rubbed salt in the wounds out pacing Brian Carney to touch down a precision kick from Jon Wilkins. Eastmond was wide with the conversion but Saints were home and dry as the heavens opened to provide welcome relief for the players from both teams who had given their all.
It was a baptism of fire for the returning Carney who was playing his first game of League in three years. After the match he confessed that Warrington had allowed Saints too much space.Wolves' Coach Tony Smith said he was pleased with the effort put in by his players but the "best team had won on the day."

Wolves: Richie Mathers; Brian Carney, Simon Grix, Matt King, Chris Riley; Chris Bridge, Michael Monaghan; Paul Wood, Jon Clarke, Garreth Carvell, Louis Anderson, Ben Westwood, Ben Harrison. Subs: Paul Johnson, Mike Cooper, Vinnie Anderson, Lee Mitchell.

Saints: Paul Wellens; Ade Gardner, Gary Wheeler, Lee Gilmour, Francis Meli; Leon Pryce, Kyle Eastmond; James Graham, James Roby, Paul Clough, Jon Wilkin, Chris Flannery, Tony Puletua. Subs: Andrew Dixon, Mauri Fa’asavalu, Bryn Hargreaves, Jonny Lomax.

Atten: 12,075

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WARRINGTON Wolves paid the penalty for early missed opportunites as went down 28-10 At Huddersfield Giants.
Trailing 18-0 at the break the Wolves were poor in most departments and the defeat left them outside the top eight play off places.
Warrington started the brighter in the opening five minutes with the returning Lee Briers making a fine break but winger Chris Riley was not able to collect his through kick.
With a 5-0 penalty count in their favour Warrington created two more scoring opportunities when Louis Anderson knocked on after being put through by Matt King on 14 minutes.
Moments later Ben Harrison knocked on two yards from the try line.
On 19 minutes the Giants took the lead when a short pass from Kevin Brown put Paul Jackson over with Brett Hodgeson adding the conversion to make it 6-0.
Substitute forward Eorl Crabtree started to cause havoc in the Warrington defence and the Giants went further ahead on 30 minutes when Luke Robinson side stepped his way through two would be tacklers to send Scott Moore over with Hodgson again on target.
Warrington were in total disarray with Louis Anderson again knocking on and it was no surprise when Kurt Cudjoe went in for the third try of the half. Hodgeson missed the difficult conversion but added a penalty just before the half-time hooter to make it 18-0 at the break.
Ben Westwood gave the travelling faithful some hope with a try four minutes after the re-start but the hope was short-lived as the Giants increased their lead five minutes later when a Luke Robinson break was finished off by Cudjoe for his second try of the game. Hodgeson added the extras to put the Giants back in command at 24-4.
Warrington continued to drop too much ball and Cudjoe completed his hat-trick on the hour after being set up by a Scott Moore kick. Hodgeson was wide of the target but at 28-4 the home team were well in control.
Warrington gained some late consolation as Brian Carney went in for his first try for the club which was goaled by Chris Bridge but it was too little too late on a disappointing afternoon for the Wolves.
Reflecting on his teams' performance on returning to his former club Warrington's Head of Coaching Tony Smith said: "We were a bit flat. We should have got some points early on when we had a series of penalties. That's where we should have cracked them but we didn't.
"It all clicked for Huddersfield when they brought Crabtree on. He gave them a real spark. If we had a Crabtree then the game might have been different.
"But as a team we were busted by having several players out. It's a bit disappointing that some of the others couldn't step up to the mark."

Teams:
Huddersfield Giants :1. Brett Hodgson  21. Leroy Cudjoe 5. David Hodgson 13. Stephen Wild 4. Paul Whatuira 19.Michael Lawrence 3. Kevin Brown 7. Luke Robinson  6. Liam Fulton 9. David Faiumu 10. Darrell Griffin 24. Shaun Lunt 16. Keith Mason    
Substitues 2. Martin Aspinwall 20. Scott Moore  8. Eorl Crabtree 15. Paul Jackson

Warrington Wolves :30. Richard Mathers  4. Matt King 19. Chris Riley 32. Brian Carney 24. Ben Harrison 25. Chris Bridge 6. Lee Briers  7. Michael Monaghan 2. Paul Johnson  12. Ben Westwood 11. Louis Anderson 15. Paul Wood  16.Garreth Carvell
Substitues 21. Matty Blythe 22. Lee Mitchell 18. Michael Cooper 9. Jon Clarke
Atten: 7,107

Pictures show Ben Westwood scoring for Warrington and reflecting on another bad day at the office for some of his team mates.
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BOOED off at half time by their fans Warrington Wolves rattled up 50 points without reply as they completely overwhelmed Salford City Reds at the Halliwell Jones.
The Wolves had the perfect start after just six minutes as playmaker Lee Briers opened the scoring after an 80 metre lung busting burst by centre Matt King set up the try scoring opportunity.
Chris Bridge, handed the goal-kicking duties despite leading points scorer Chris Hicks being in the team, made it 6-0.
Moment later another great burst, this time from Gareth Carvell, was finished off by the Prop after Salford were penalised on their own line. Bridge was again on target as the Wolves looked in command at 12-0.
But instead of kicking on the wheels came off as Salford hit back on 14 minutes when a sweeping move saw Mark Henry go in at the corner. Former Wire John Wilshere was wide with the conversion.
Five minutes later Warrington should have had another try after more good work by King, but Michael Monaghan dropped the ball over the line.
Back came Salford as Stuart Littler strolled through some woeful tackling and Wilshere's conversion brought the visitors to within two points at 12-10.
Again Warrington missed a golden opportunity when Briers put Hicks clear only for a poor pass to go to ground. Salford responded with a length of the field move finished off by half-back Richie Myler, so often linked with a move to the Wolves, to give the visitors the lead for the first time.
Salford then rubbed salt in the wounds on the stroke of half time when Jeremy Smith went over, with Wilshere converting, leaving the Wolves players to troop off with boos from the home fans ringing in their ears at 12-20 down.
Whatever Head of Coaching Tony Smith said at half time certainly did the trick as Warrington came back out like the team which had started so brightly - but this time they put Salford to the sword.
It was Briers who started the ball rolling with a great break which was finished off by Paul Johnson, with Bridge's conversion closing the gap to 18-20.
Then on 50 minutes a clever kick by Briers opened up the way for Simon Grix to restore Warrington's lead and Bridge's goal made it 24-20.
From that moment Warrington never looked back as they rattled up a further seven tries without reply.
Briers touched down for his second try of the game on 55 minutes with Bridge again on target.
Moments later Briers again showed his class this time opening up a gap for Benny Westwood to go over with Bridge landing a superb conversion from wide out to make it 36-20.
Warrington were now well in control and full-back Chris Riley, made amends for some earlier blunders when he burst over after some good build up play.
Within two minutes the floodgates were opened as a Monaghan pass carved open a huge opening for skipper Adrian Morley to go over against his home town club, with Bridge again on target to make it 46-20.
On 69 minutes Benny Westwood blocked an attempted kick through, superbly re-gathered and then off-loaded to Bridge, who scampered 60 metres from inside his own half to touch down.
In the closing stages Riley sent over Brian Carney for his debut try at the Halliwell Jones and in the closing moment a Briers chip kick was easily finished off by Hicks, with Bridge adding the extras to finish the scoring at 62-20.

Pictures show Chris Riley touching down and Matt King in full flight.

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Wolves: Riley, Hicks, Bridge, King, Carney, Grix, Briers, Morley, Monaghan, Carvell, L Anderson, Harrison, Westwood. Subs: Wood, Cooper, Johnson, Mitchell.

Salford: Wilshere, McGilvray, Littler, Ratchford, Henry, Smith, Myler, Cashmere, Alker, Stapleton, Adamson, Sidlow, Swain. Subs: Paul, Sibbit, Leulaui, Nash.

Atten 8,900.

WARRINGTON WOLVES ended their long wait for a Wembley return with a stunning 39-26 victory over arch-rivals Wigan.
Man of the match Lee Briers, (pictured in try scoring action above) who landed a crucial drop goal as Wigan threatened the come back of all come backs, dedicated the victory to his late brother Brian, who tragically died from cancer eight years ago at the age of just 33, who would have been celebrating his birthday today.
Fighting back tears at the end of the match and pointing his man of the match bottle of champagne to the heavens, Briers said: "That's for you Brian!"
He went on to heap praise on Wolves' Coach Tony Smith who has helped turn the club's fortunes around since arriving in March.
"Smith is the best Coach in the world. He has turned my game around and helped me learn new tricks."
Praising the effort of his players Smith said: "We made hard work of it in the end but you could see the determination from the players who worked so hard and pulled together as a group.
"It has been a long wait for the club to get to a major final and we will be celebrating tonight!"
Nineteen years since their last visit to Wembley, when they were ironically defeated 36-14 by Wigan, Warrington looked like they would have to wait a little longer as the Cherry and Whites opened up an 8-0 lead with a Phil Bailey try, converted by Pat Richards, who then banged over a penalty.
But when Matt King powered over after 18 minutes and Bridge landed the conversion to narrow the gap to two points,  the Wolves hit a purple patch with some breath-taking rugby.
Within two minutes a towering kick by Briers was touched down by Louis Anderson, with Bridge again on target to make it 12-8 to the Wolves. Then on 23 minutes Warrington extended their lead when Westwood set up Briers who managed to reach out to touch down, with Bridge again on target.
On 30 minutes it was Briers who set up Mike Cooper for a walk over try, goaled by Bridge and then just before the break good work by Michael Monaghan (pictured above left) sent King in for his second try to make it 28-8 at the break.
Shortly after the re-start King completed his hat-trick after out jumping the Wigan defence to touchdown another Briers kick and Warrington looked home and dry at 32-8.
But back game Wigan who score three tries without reply, the first from Sam Tomkins on 54 minutes, goaled by Richards. Warrington's young winger Chris Riley was then stretchered off with concussion after catching a stray knee in the head and the Wolves seem to lose all their momentum as Andy Coley and Thomas Leulaui tries, each goaled by Richards brought the scores to 32-26 and game on.
But then with 10 minutes left on the clock Briers landed the all important drop goal and then five minutes from time winger Chris Hicks put the icing on the cake out sprinting the Wigan defence to touchdown in the corner. Bridge landed a towering conversion from the touchline to complete the scoring and send the Warrington fans (pictured below) into party mode.
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WARRINGTON'S top eight hopes are fading fast as they crashed to a disappointing 28-40 home defeat to Wakefield Trinity Wildcats.
With one eye clearly on Wembley next week Warrington's defence was woeful as the visitors ran in seven tries, securing their own play off place.
Wakefield crossed the line after just three minutes, as Dale Ferguson raced in from out wide after a good kick had put Warrington under pressure.
The Wolves bounced back as playmaker Lee Briers produced a clever kick in the fifth minute, which resulted in Kevin Penny going over in the corner.
But then Sam Obst showed the Wolves' defence a clean pair of heels as he scored a fine individual try just three minutes later, but Warrington produced an instant response with Paul Johnson gathering Briers' angled kick to score, with Bridges' conversion levelling the scores at 10-10.
With just 18 minutes on the clock, Luke George squeezed in at the corner for a third Wildcats try after a great offload from Matt Blaymire.
The Wolves grabbed the lead for the first time on the half hour mark as Chris Riley intercepted a Sean Gleeson pass and raced the length of the field to score.
He spared the blushes of fellow winger Penny who knocked on with a 20 metre re-start in his eagerness to try and catch the Wildcats off-guard. But Trinity failed to take advantage as Riley left them in his wake by intercepting. Bridge added the simple conversion to make it 16-14.
On 34 minutes Louis Anderson made a great burst but Penny knocked on in the danger zone and two minutes later the visitors were back in front thanks to Sean Gleeson, with Drew's conversion giving them a 16-20 half-time lead.
The writing was on the wall for Warrington when Wakefield went further clear as they crossed just two minutes into the second half, with George collecting a long pass from Drew before finishing in the corner. Obst scored his second try on 61 minutes when Drew and Grix combined once more to give him the opportunity to scamper underneath the posts. Drew sent the conversion over and the game looked over as a contest.
But just two minutes later hooker Michael Monaghan gave the Wolves some faint hope as he crashed over following a good set of six from the Wolves pack.
Bridge's conversion left the gap at 10 points but young winger Dale Morton crossed in the 70th minute for a converted try, while Drew added a further penalty late on to secure the points for the visitors.
Gareth Carvell crossed for a late consolation to give the Warrington faithful some late cheer.
Now Head of Coaching Tony Smith must rally his troops to ensure Warrington can salvage their season with a Challenge Cup victory against Huddersfield Giants next Saturday.



Pictures show Warrington's try scorers Kevin Penny, Chris Riley and Paul Johnson.
For more pictures from the game CLICK HERE.

Warrington: Mathers, Riley, Bridge, Johnson, Penny, Briers, Clarke, Morley, Monaghan, Carvell L. Anderson, V. Anderson, Westwood
Subs:Cooper, McCarthy, Mitchell, Rauhihi.

Wakefield: Blaymire, Morton, Gleeson Atkins, George, Grix, Obst Korkidas, Drew, Stosic, Wilkes, Henderson,  Ferguson,  Subs : Snitch, Latu, Moore, Bibb

Atten: 8,681

THE Challenge Cup is heading back to Warrington for the first time since 1974 after the Wolves completed a magnificent 16-25 victory over Huddersfield Giants at Wembley.
Warrington started the match as favourites and soon showed their 25,000 fans why. The game was only 69 seconds old when Richie Mathers charged over under the posts and after consultation with the video referee the try was awarded.
Further tries came from  Michael Monaghan and Chris Hicks as the Wolves went on the rampage. Giants replied through Shaun Lunt but had two tries ruled out.
Brett Hodgson closed the gap to 18-10 before the end of a frantic first half.
A try from Vinnie Anderson looked to have put Warrington out of reach and although a try from David Hodgson gave the Giants some hope, Lee Briers' late drop-goal sealed Warrington's win.
Matt King had a try denied by the video referee or Wolves’ victory would have been bigger.
The game was played at a frantic pace and at times this seemed to affect Wolves more than Giants. But in the end, Warrington's sheer class shone through.
Monaghan, who has been a revelation since switching to hooker, collected the Lance Todd Trophy for a man-of-the match performance, only the third Australian to ever receive the honour.


TEAMS:
Huddersfield: B Hodgson (capt); Cudjoe, Lolesi, Whatuira, D Hodgson; Brown, Robinson; Mason, Moore, Griffin, Fulton, Wild, Faiumu.
Subs: Crabtree, Jackson, Lunt, Aspinwall.

Warrington: Mathers; Riley, King, Bridge, Hicks; V Anderson, Briers; Morley (capt), Monaghan, Carvell, L Anderson, Westwood, Harrison.
Subs: Cooper, Johnson, Higham, McCarthy.

Referee: Steve Ganson (St Helens).   ATTEN: 76,000

WARRINGTON'S dream of following up their Wembley success with a top eight finish probably came to an end as they went down 40-16 at Hull KR who avenged their Challenge Cup golden point quarter-final defeat.
But the scoreline didn't really reflect a game Warrington could have won with a little more composure.
It was the Wolves who scored first after just five minutes after a superb break by Lee Briers who sent Micky Higham under the sticks, with Briers converting in the absence of usual kicker Chris Bridge who failed to make the seventeen.
But the lead was short-lived as Benny Westwood gave away a penalty and from the resulting play Jake Webster raced through an enormous gap with Dobson adding the extras to level the scores.
Back came Warrington as young Tyrone McCarthy, coming off the bench for the injured Ben Harrison, scored his first Super League try, the week afer making just his third professional start at Wembley! Briers again added the extras to make it 6-12.
Within three minutes Rovers hit back when Warrington gave away another silly penalty allowing Paul Cooke to ghost through a gap following missed tackles by Westwood and Matty Blythe. Dobson was wide with the conversion.
A crucial turning point came in the 28th minute when Higham appeared to get the ball over by the posts but was ruled to have made a double movement, even though his ball carrying arm did not touch the ground. The video referee ruled that his momentum had been stopped.
Four minutes later Rovers hit the front as Clint Newton brushed aside Louis Anderson to score, with Dobson adding the extras.
Then as Warrington pushed to get back in the game they were dealt a killer blow as Kris Welham intercepted on the stroke of half time to score by the sticks, with Dobson adding the extras to make it 22-12 at the break.
As  the Wolves again pushed to get back into the game, needing to score first after the break, another loose pass by Briers saw Rovers gifted another try as Peter Fox showed the Wolves' defence a clean pair of heels. Dobson added the goal and at 28-12 and just a week after Warrington's Wembley exploits the game was gone.
To their credit Warrington never gave up and winger Chris Hicks was rewarded with a try in the corner which Briers narrowly failed to convert.
But just as with their previous scores Warrington only managed to hold Rovers out for three minutes as Newton went over for his second try on 68 minutes which was goaled by Dobson.
Warrington's Matty Blythe was unlucky not to score when the video referee ruled out his touchdown as he just lost the ball on the line and then f ive minutes from time Newton celebrated his man-of-match performance with his third try, which was again goaled by Dobson to complete the scoring at 40-16.
Although Warrington could mathematically still finish in the top eight if form team Bradford, who travel to Hull and Catalans who visit St Helens both lose, realistically the curtain will now come down on Warrington's season at the Halliwell Jones on Sunday when they will parade the Challenge Cup after their game with the Harlequins.
For more pictures from the game CLICK HERE

TWO tries from Kevin Penny helped Warrington end their season on a high with a 44-34 victory over Harlequins avenging their 60-8 hammering at The Stoop earlier in the season.
It was a fitting end to the season as the club bid a fond farewell to club Chairman Doug Hoyle, who announced his retirement before the game.
It was also a curtain call for Prop Paul Rauhihi who is retiring from the game.
The victory ensured Warrington clinched 10th spot in the table, with the Quins finishing 11th following their 11th defeat in 12 outings.
Warrington didn't have the best of starts as Lee Briers put the kick off straight into touch as Warrington conceded two tries inside eight minutes.
Danny Orr's cross-field kick set up Tony Clubb to break the deadlock and soon after Dorn grabbed his first of the afternoon, Matt Gafa adding the extras.
Warrington eventually came to life, winger Penny finishing off Centre Matty Blythe's surging break.
The Wolves were soon level when Chris Bridge converted Ben Westwood's try - only for Quins to go back in front when Dorn broke away from some weak tackling to reach
the line. Chris Melling added the goal to make it 16-10, though the Quins joy was short-lived and by half time the scores were level again.
The sin-binning of Luke Williamson opened up enough space for Briers to breeze over and with their opponents still down to 12, the Wolves moved ahead for the first time
when Blythe crossed six minutes after the break.
A try on his debut for teenage hooker Alex Thompson and a second for Penny helped Warrington pull clear, Bridge's boot making the score 32-16.
But Quins, to their credit, continued to battle hard and tries from Jamie O'Callaghan and Matt Gafa in a three-minute burst cut the gap to 32-28.
But, while Dorn did manage to complete his hat-trick it was Warrington who finished the stronger with Mickey Higham and Tyrone McCarthy both touching
down to seal the win for Warrington, who paraded the Challenge Cup in front of their fans after the final hooter.
Head of Coaching Tony Smith said after the game: "It wasn't pretty from either side in terms of defence. But both teams tried and threw caution to the wind."
"It's nice to finish with a win but we're a couple of wins too short of the play-offs. We'd like to be making a finals appearance but at least we have one trophy in the cabinet and will be chasing the other next year.
"Mozza led the team unbelievably well and keeps churning out performances. It was also good for Alex Thompson to score a debut try and Tyrone McCarthy keeps coming up and has been consistent at the end of the year.
"We showed some enterprise with the ball and it was a nice way for Paul Rauhihi to finish."
Commenting on his sudden departure Lord Hoyle (pictured right) , who is 79, said: “I am sorry to be leaving my post as Chairman of Warrington Wolves. However, I think that after 10 years and having seen the club move from Wilderspool to a modern Rugby League designed stadium at The Halliwell Jones, and now having won the Carnegie Challenge Cup, it is time to step down from this post while still retaining strong links with the club.
“It has been a very exciting and fascinating period, where we have gone from fighting to retain our place in Super League, to now becoming one of the prominent members of the competition. I believe that the club has strong foundations and financial backing and I am please to have worked with Simon Moran who has done so much to support and stabilise the club. I look forward to the team going from strength to strength and hopefully winning more silverware next season.”
Wolves Chief Executive Andy Gatcliffe added: “On behalf of everyone connected with the club, I would like to sincerely thank Doug for all his hard work, time and dedication to Warrington Wolves and say that it has been, and will, I am sure continue to be, a pleasure to work closely with Doug in representing the club ensuring future success both on and off the pitch
“Doug’s passion and support for the club has been tremendous and for this he cannot be thanked enough.”




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Teams:
Wolves: Richie Mathers; Kevin Penny, Chris Bridge, Matty Blythe, Chris Riley; Lee Briers, Michael Monaghan; Garreth Carvell, Mickey Higham, Adrian Morley, Ben Westwood, Tyrone McCarthy, Ben Harrison. Subs: Mike Cooper, Paul Rauhihi, Lee Mitchell, Alex Thompson.

Quins: Chris Melling; Tony Chubb, MattGafa, Lamont Bryan, Will Sharp; Luke Dorn, Danny Orr; Daniel Heckenberg, Chad Randall, Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Luke Williamson, Ryan Esders, Jason Golden. Subs: Luke Gale, Gareth Haggerty, David Williams, Jamie O’Callaghan.