A 78th minute try from St Helens’ Josh Jones stole victory away from the Warriors as they went down 18-14 in dramatic fashion at Langtree Park.
Wigan boss Wane was quick to praise his team, who lead for the majority of the match, but confessed they failed to see the game out when it mattered.
‘‘It’s a tough one to deal with but there were loads of positives in that game,’’ said Wane.
‘‘Our middles dominated, we did some good things at the end of our sets but we’ve got nothing at the end of the day, they’ve come away with the two points.’’
The Wigan coach again stressed the importance of his team playing for the full 80 minutes, but admitted they failed to do so in a dramatic game that he says sums up the sport of rugby league.
‘‘That’s hurt me, for large parts of it I thought we controlled it, but it just shows you with the quality they have you’ve got to play for 80 minutes,’’ Wane said.
‘‘Our last plays were good, our halves were good, we did a lot of good things but that’s rugby league, it’s a tough sport.
‘‘Unless you do the right things for 80 minutes and concentrate they you can get burned as we did today.’’
Wane’s opposite number Keiron Cunningham expressed delight for his players, who he believes have been unfairly treated in recent weeks.
‘‘I thought the boys played really well,’’ said the Saints boss.
‘‘They’ve had a lot of stuff said about them in the last few weeks and it wasn’t very nice about certain individuals.
‘‘Let’s see what they say this week.’’
Wigan remain in second position, level on points with leaders Leeds. Victories for Saints and the Giants at the weekend mean they sit just a point behind the top two sides.
This means the race for top spot is wide open as we head into the last round of the Super 8s this weekend, with Leeds, Wigan and Huddersfield all in with a chance of clinching the leader’s crown.
Image courtesy of Rugby League Week via YouTube, with thanks.
