By Greg Nixon
TENEISHA Fairbrother’s first-half hat-trick effectively ended the game as a contest as Warrington Wolves ran out comfortable 38-12 winners against their derby rivals Widnes Vikings.
The Wire went into the sheds with a 32-0 lead and, despite a more spirited second half display from the visitors at the Asics Stadium, never looked like losing their grip on the match.
Fairbrother opened the scoring as early as the third minute after strong runs down the middle from Georgia Westwood and Beth Hayes got the home side into a position to spread the ball out wide to the left. Michelle Davis missed the touchline conversion.
After a sustained period of pressure from Widnes which saw Evie Price-Horrocks then Carraghan Hannon knock on with the line at their mercy, winger Evie Williams benefited from a beautifully timed pass from Hollie Brussels to race in under the posts from 70 metres. Davis added the extras to give Wire a 10-0 lead on 15 minutes.
Widnes again tried to find a way back into the game with some good runs from Tracy Peet and Vickie Grace, and some nice touches from half back Rach Porter, but strong defence from Warrington kept them at bay.
When The Chemics were pinged for offside on 22 minutes, Wire worked the ball up field well and stretched the Widnes defence enough for skipper Megan Bragg to walk through a huge gap at the play the ball. Davis’s kick made it 16-0.
Just moments later, Davis bagged a try of her own as she waltzed through some weak Widnes defence to score by the posts then add the extras for a 22-0 lead.
With Warrington now smelling blood, Davis almost added a second try to her tally after a kick through was just kicked dead by Naomi Gill-Ward, then Williams lost the ball after a good run and cut inside from the resultant drop-out.
From the scrum, Hannon knocked on and the home side took full advantage to release Fairbrother down the left to add her second on 35 minutes, with Davis extending the lead to 28-0.
Then, on the stroke of half-time, Fairbrother picked up a lose pass from Ellie Costello to race in for her hat-trick and send Wire into the break with a 32-0 lead.
To their credit, Widnes started the second half the brighter of the two sides, with Hannon, loose forward Jenny Moss and Sammy Traynor, from the bench, all making inroads into the Wire defence.
Warrington managed to keep the visitors out in what was becoming a scruffy affair, with mistakes and ill-discipline creeping in from both sides, until the hour mark when Ellie Reed got some reward for her barnstorming runs by barging over to score. Aimee Wood converted to make the score 32-6.
Wire’s reply was almost instant, with Kaitlin Hilton benefiting from player of the match Davis’s beautifully timed pass to barge the defence out of the way to score. Davis’s kick made it 38-6.
The visitors had the final say in the dying minutes as Porter chased a Wood kick to score under the posts and make the conversion an easy one and make the final score 38-12.
After the game, Davis said: “It was a good win, but we have a habit of letting ourselves down, coming away from the processes in the second half.
“But it’s all learning which is what this year is all about. We’ve got depth in the squad so we need to make sure everyone’s running the same lines and knows the processes.
“I got another try where I pirouetted and fell over the line, but they all count.”
And with just two home games left of the regular season against Bradford and London before the play-offs, Davis is calling for Wire fans to come along to Victoria Park and back the team.
She said: “The crowd makes a big difference for us, hearing them all cheering. It’s really nice and why Warrington has been a big part of my heart because I know they will get behind us.”
