Wakefield Trinity 4-30 Leigh Leopards: Play-off chasers survive Ben Reynolds red card to down Super League strugglers

Ben Reynolds was sent off for Leigh Leopards in the first half of the first game of Day 2 of Magic Weekend in Newcastle, but two tries from Lachlan Lam, plus Robbie Mulhern, Edwin Ipape and Josh Charnley crossing helped them pile more misery on winless Wakefield Trinity

Last Updated: 04/06/23 2:30pm


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Highlights from the Magic Weekend Super League match between Wakefield Trinity and Leigh Leopards

Highlights from the Magic Weekend Super League match between Wakefield Trinity and Leigh Leopards

Two tries from Lachlan Lam helped 12-player Leigh Leopards strengthen their Betfred Super League play-off ambitions with a 30-4 victory over struggling Wakefield Trinity in the opening game of Day 2 of Magic Weekend.

Scrum-half Lam and Robbie Mulhern helped the Leopards into a 10-0 lead at half-time at St James’ Park, but they were being forced to do things the hard way after Ben Reynolds was sent off for punching, with the incident swiftly followed by Tom Nisbet being sin-binned.

Trinity were unable to capitalise on that numerical advantage before the break and fell further behind in the 48th minute when Edwin Ipape was sent streaking clear to score, with Josh Charnley’s 16th Super League try this season and Lam’s second of the game securing their seventh win in a row.

The defeat ensured Wakefield, who grabbed a late consolation try through Max Jowitt, remain winless at the bottom of the table after 14 rounds of the regular season. But of greater immediate concern for them is the health of Jack Croft after he was taken off the field on a stretcher in the second half.

Story of the game

Wakefield, bottom of the Super League table and without a win in 2023 heading into this game, had been on something of a signing spree in a bid to boost their hopes of avoiding relegation and it was no surprise to see David Fifita named on the interchange bench after his midweek return to the club.

Leigh showed just why they had won their previous six matches in all competitions right from the start though and it needed some fine defence from Trinity to gang-tackle Zak Hardaker into touch and end a promising early attack from a scrum following a knock-on.

Nevertheless, the Leopards took the lead in the seventh minute thanks to the vision of former Sydney Roosters player Lam, who took the ball around 25 minutes out and spotted a gap to nip through and then out-pace the defence to finish on the left for an unconverted try.

Ben Reynolds was sent off for Leigh Leopards after punching Wakefield's David Fifita

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Ben Reynolds was sent off for Leigh Leopards after punching Wakefield’s David Fifita

Ben Reynolds was sent off for Leigh Leopards after punching Wakefield’s David Fifita

Charnley was then denied adding to his tally for the season when the video referee deemed he had been held up over the line, but Leigh were soon in again on the quarter-hour mark as the front row combined, with hooker Ipape and Tom Amone shipping the ball on for fellow prop Mulhern to finish followed by Reynolds converting.

Trinity were unable to make the most of a Leopards error close to their own line following the restart, knocking on themselves soon after, but the play-off chasers found themselves down to 12 players in the 28th minute when stand-off Reynolds was dismissed for punching Fifita.

The Leopards then lost second row Nisbett to the sin bin for a dangerous contact on Jay Pitts, leaving them reduced to 11 players for 10 minutes.

Wakefield, however, could still not find a way through before half-time though and the closest they came was Tom Lineham being held up over the line followed by the winger knocking on as he dived for the corner moments later.

Leigh Leopards' Josh Charnley voiced his admiration for the touch judge's handling of a high ball

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Leigh Leopards’ Josh Charnley voiced his admiration for the touch judge’s handling of a high ball

Leigh Leopards’ Josh Charnley voiced his admiration for the touch judge’s handling of a high ball

Indeed, it was Leigh who moved further ahead eight minutes into the second half when Ricky Leutele broke down the left wing and then passed back inside for the returning Nisbet to send Ipape racing away for another try.

Hardaker converted and then added a further two points from a penalty goal in front of the posts with 53 minutes played, but play was then halted to allow Croft to receive treatment before being taken from the field on a stretcher.

When play resumed, it was not long before the Leopards pushed 24 points clear as Lam and Leutele sent the ball wide to the left for winger Charnley to cross for another converted score on 61 minutes followed by Lam putting the seal on the win. Jowitt’s late try, meanwhile, provided scant consolation for Trinity.

What they said

Leigh Leopards head coach Adrian Lam

“We have had a lot of changeover with 14 new players coming in [during the off-season]. The players we brought in are not only great players, but good people and I think that has really helped to grow the team.

“They are very close, but I still think we have two or three levels to go. If we keep driving that the only way is up for us.”

Man of the match Lachlan Lam feels that his Leigh Leopards team are building something promising as they overcame Wakefield Trinity 30-4 at the Magic Weekend to boost their Grand Final hopes.

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Man of the match Lachlan Lam feels that his Leigh Leopards team are building something promising as they overcame Wakefield Trinity 30-4 at the Magic Weekend to boost their Grand Final hopes.

Man of the match Lachlan Lam feels that his Leigh Leopards team are building something promising as they overcame Wakefield Trinity 30-4 at the Magic Weekend to boost their Grand Final hopes.

Player of the match Lachlan Lam

“We talked about it at the start of the year, we said our goal is to just work hard each week and hopefully we can keep jumping the ladder as we do that. The sky is the limit for us.

“We are making progress up that ladder which is exciting for our team and that town. We are building something here.”

What’s next?

Wakefield face one of their West Yorkshire rivals next when they welcome Leeds Rhinos to Be Well Support Stadium on Sunday, June 11 (3pm). Leigh are back in action on Friday, June 9 when they host Hull FC.



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Leeds Rhinos 12-13 St Helens: Lewis Dodd the drop-goal hero as Super League champions win golden-point thriller

St Helens half-back Lewis Dodd booted a one-pointer in the dying seconds of golden-point extra-time in the Betfred Super League clash with Leeds Rhinos at Headingley to seal victory for the visitors; earlier in the night, Saints’ women had beaten the Rhinos 38-18

Last Updated: 26/05/23 11:25pm


Lewis Dodd celebrates scoring his drop goal to win the game

Lewis Dodd’s drop goal with just 26 seconds of golden-point extra-time left saw St Helens snatch a nail-biting 13-12 win over Leeds Rhinos in their Betfred Super League clash.

Tries from Ash Handley and Cameron Smith helped the Rhinos into a 12-4 lead at half-time at Headingley, with Tommy Makinson responding for the visitors with a try on his 300th Saints appearance.

Leeds were not helped by losing Aidan Sezer, Morgan Gannon and Harry Newman to injury before the break, and a converted try from Curtis Sironen and penalty goal from Makinson drew Saints level before the home side had James McDonnell sent off for punching late on.

St Helens' Lewis Dodd knocked over this drop-goal to seal a dramatic golden-point win over Leeds Rhinos

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St Helens’ Lewis Dodd knocked over this drop-goal to seal a dramatic golden-point win over Leeds Rhinos

St Helens’ Lewis Dodd knocked over this drop-goal to seal a dramatic golden-point win over Leeds Rhinos

Neither side was able to conjure up a winner in normal time and both had numerous attempts at the one-pointer before Dodd, who kicked the crucial goal in Saints’ World Club Challenge win over Penrith Panthers, finally nailed the winning score just as the match seemed to be heading for a draw.

The fixture was part of a double-header which earlier in the night saw two tries apiece from Emily Rudge and Shona Hoyle help Saints’ women secure a 38-18 win over the Rhinos in the Betfred Women’s Super League.

Saints snatch pulsating win over Rhinos

In the circumstances it was remarkable enough feat for the Rhinos to fashion an eight-point interval lead given the first-half injury carnage.

No sooner had Rhyse Martin shrugged off the sluggish attentions of Jonny Lomax to set up Handley’s sixth-minute opener, the sight of Sezer limping up the tunnel as Martin was duly converting raised concerns.

Makinson stretched in at the corner to bring his side back within two points, but the visitors looked sluggish and a collision between the England winger and Jack Welsby under Richie Myler’s high ball coughed up a simple chance for back-row Smith to extend the Leeds lead.

Papua New Guinea forward Martin’s extras took the score to 12-4 but far more concerning was the sight of Newman, only recently eased back from his succession of injury blows, being helped from the field in some distress.

Gannon followed, helped gingerly off after a collision with Sironen which left both men stretched out on the turf, but amid the carnage it was still Leeds who threatened the next score as Sam Walters burrowed agonisingly short.

The Rhinos’ resistance lasted until five minutes into the second half when player-of-the-match Sironen bundled past Myler to round off a strong spell of Saints pressure with Makinson’s first points with the boot hauling his side back within two.

Tempers flare in Leeds Rhinos' match against St Helens in the dying moments of regular time, with James McDonnell being shown a red card for throwing a punch

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Tempers flare in Leeds Rhinos’ match against St Helens in the dying moments of regular time, with James McDonnell being shown a red card for throwing a punch

Tempers flare in Leeds Rhinos’ match against St Helens in the dying moments of regular time, with James McDonnell being shown a red card for throwing a punch

But Leeds refused to buckle, and when normally dependable Saints prop Alex Walmsley coughed up a cheap error at the play-the-ball only a subsequent mistake by Justin Sangare saved the Saints prop’s blushes.

The visitors eventually dragged themselves level with 13 minutes left when Makinson kicked the two after Sangare was penalised for a late tackle on Jake Wingfield.

There was still drama to come as a mass brawl led to McDonnell being dismissed, and although the numbers were evened up in golden point when Sione Mata’utia was sin-binned that did not stop Saints from clinching victory at the last through Dodd’s boot.

Rudge and Hoyle help Saints women down champions

The win for the men made it a double at Headingley for Saints after their women had scored a resounding victory over the Rhinos in the opening match of the night.

Highlights of the Super League clash between Leeds Rhinos Women and St Helens Women

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Highlights of the Super League clash between Leeds Rhinos Women and St Helens Women

Highlights of the Super League clash between Leeds Rhinos Women and St Helens Women

Former England captain Rudge got the ball rolling for the visitors as she was sent charging over for the opening try after three minutes, although the Rhinos were level 13 minutes later after Caitlin Casey took a pass from Eloise Hayward to burst through a gap.

It was pretty much all Saints after that though, with Amy Taylor kicking a penalty and Rudge racing 30 metres for her second after being released by Faye Gaskin – named player of the match on her return from nearly two years out due to injury.

Gaskin had a hand in Hoyle’s first which made it 20-6 at half-time, and the back-row then followed Leah Burke in crossing within six minutes of the restart to put the away side firmly in the ascendancy.

The Rhinos briefly threatened a revival after hitting back through former Saints star Amy Hardcastle’s solo score and Hayward, Luci McColm’s finish and Katie Mottershead topping off scintillating attacking move secured a convincing win against the reigning BWSL champions.

See behind-the-scenes as St Helens Women head coach Matty Smith gives his half-time team-talk during their game against Leeds Rhinos.

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See behind-the-scenes as St Helens Women head coach Matty Smith gives his half-time team-talk during their game against Leeds Rhinos.

See behind-the-scenes as St Helens Women head coach Matty Smith gives his half-time team-talk during their game against Leeds Rhinos.

What they said

St Helens player of the match Curtis Sironen

“It was a very weird game. There were lots of errors, lots of penalties…but thank God for Lewis Dodd!

“We’ll take the two points from Leeds tonight and move forward from that.”

Leeds Rhinos head coach Rohan Smith

Leeds Rhinos head coach Rohan Smith was full of praise for his team after their tough loss to St Helens

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Leeds Rhinos head coach Rohan Smith was full of praise for his team after their tough loss to St Helens

Leeds Rhinos head coach Rohan Smith was full of praise for his team after their tough loss to St Helens

“I couldn’t be prouder of our players. It’s one of those days where you’ve won a lot more than two competition points.

“There is a lot of bravery, commitment and courage in that dressing room, and we know we can find it when it matters most.”

St Helens Women player of the match Faye Gaskin

St Helens' Faye Gaskin reveals how it feels to win player of the match after 720 days out injured

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St Helens’ Faye Gaskin reveals how it feels to win player of the match after 720 days out injured

St Helens’ Faye Gaskin reveals how it feels to win player of the match after 720 days out injured

“It was an absolute privilege – our girls were class today. It was tough, but I wanted to give [head coach] Matty [Smith] a bit of a selection headache.

“The injury was tough and I struggled really bad, but I got a lot of support from Rugby League Cares…and I’m really grateful.”

Leeds Rhinos Women head coach Lois Forsell

Leeds Rhinos Women's head coach Lois Forsell was unhappy with her team's defence in their loss to St Helens

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Leeds Rhinos Women’s head coach Lois Forsell was unhappy with her team’s defence in their loss to St Helens

Leeds Rhinos Women’s head coach Lois Forsell was unhappy with her team’s defence in their loss to St Helens

“We had the answers to get the job done, but we just didn’t give ourselves the chance to do it.

“If you get on the front foot, that’s a big thing in rugby and we didn’t manage to do that and didn’t really have the desire to make that happen in the first half – and that’s where it mattered for us.”

What’s next?

St Helens and Leeds’ men’s teams head to St James’ Park in Newcastle for Magic Weekend. The Rhinos close out day one against Castleford Tigers and Saints face Huddersfield Giants in the second game of day two. The women’s teams are next in action in the Betfred Women’s Challenge Cup quarter-finals.



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