WARRINGTON Wolves ended a five-year wait for a home win over Wigan Warriors, and in doing so sent their opponents to a fourth straight Super League defeat.
With both sides missing star half-backs, it was Warrington that dealt better with the absence of George Williams as Wigan struggled without Bevan French and Harry Smith.
Always in charge of the game, Warrington eventually made the game safe in the final quarter to win 23-6.
It took 23 minutes for the game to see any points, Marc Sneyd taking a penalty after an accidental offside by Sam Eseh from a kick rebound.
Wigan’s makeshift half-back pairing of Adam Keighran and youngster Jack Farrimond was split up when winger Liam Marshall was forced off injured, which meant Keighran returned to centre and young Taylor Kerr came in off the bench.
Warrington too were disrupted, Cai Taylor-Wray hobbling around on an injury that eventually forced him off at the break. With him not perhaps at full pelt, eventual man of the match Josh Thewlis stepped in at full back, and his weaving run from 10 metres out off Ewan Irwin’s inside pass saw the first try scored just five minutes before the break.
After seeing off a lively Wigan start to the second half, Warrington stretched their lead in some style, fine centre play by stand-in James Bentley putting Albert Hopoate away to finish acrobatically in the corner.
Wigan never really looked like scoring but after Warrington wasted some good field position, winger Zack Eckersley romped down the right wing to get them back in to the game.
At 12-6, they had one opportunity off a Keighran break, but perhaps squandered the chance on the first tackle, and Warrington soon closed out the game.
Thewlis powered over from close range to restore a 12-point lead and then Sneyd kicked the 50th drop goal of his career, a tally only bettered by former Warrington stand-off Lee Briers.
Hopoate put the icing on the cake late on with another try down the right.
Warrington: Taylor-Wray, Thewlis, Hopoate, King, Ashton, Irwin, Sneyd, Byrne, Walker, Thomas, Bentley, Stone, Currie. Subs: Crowther, Philbin, Wood, Tanginoa
Wigan: Field, Eckersley, Farrell, Wardle, Marshall, Keighran, Farrimond, Havard, O’Neill, Thompson, Nsemba, Partington, Ellis. Subs: Mago, McDermott, Eseh, Kerr.
