2011 World Club Challenge
Encyclopedia
The 2011 World Club Challenge (known as the PROBIZ World Club Challenge due to sponsorship) was contested by Super League XV
champions, Wigan Warriors
, and 2010 NRL Premiers
, the St. George Illawarra Dragons. It was played at Wigan's home ground, DW Stadium, but was won by the St George Illawarra Dragons
, stretching the NRL's run of consecutive wins to three.
. For the Wigan, the World Club Challenge was played in place of their 2011 Super League season Round 3 match, which was re-scheduled.
32–8 defeat of in the 2010 NRL Grand Final
. Rather than play a warm-up match in England as other visiting NRL teams had done, after two pre-season trial match victories in Sydney, the Dragons travelled to London, trained, then moved on to Manchester for the World Club Challenge.
(wing) and Stuart Fielden
(forward) due to injury. Mark Riddell
(hooker) was also absent, having moved to another club.
The St. George Illawarra side was without their grand final players Neville Costigan
(forward), Jeremy Smith (forward) and Jarrod Saffy
(forward) who had moved to other clubs. Dean Young (hooker) was also absent due to injury.
The match was broadcast by Sky Sports
with commentary from Eddie Hemmings
, Mike Stephenson
, Phil Clarke
, Brian Carney, Bill Arthur.
For this match against the Dragons, whose colours are also red and white, Wigan wore mostly black jerseys.
A minute's silence was observed for the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake at the near capacity stadium before Wigan kicked off. By the end of the home side's very first set of six they had worked their way down to within ten metres of the opposition's try-line. Wigan stand-off half Paul Deacon then got the ball at first receiver and sent a kick up and over to the left part of the line where leaping centre George Carmont snatched it from the air and scored. The conversion was successful, so the Super League champions led 6-0 after only two minutes.
Just over a minute later Dragons hooker Nathan Fein conceded a penalty for a high tackle. Wigan took the kick, the boot of Deacon extending their lead to 8-0.
By the tenth minute The visitors had some ball in an attacking position and managed to move it through the hands out to Brett Morris on the wing who dived over for a try in the corner. Jamie Soward's conversion attempt missed so the score remained 8-4 in favour of Wigan.
St. George Illawarra had again made their way past their opponents' ten-metre line and in the seventeenth minute passed the ball out to the right once again, where centre Matt Cooper crashed over the try-line. Soward's kick got his team another two points and now the visitors were leading 8-10.
Just before the twenty-one-minute mark the Dragons were penalised in their own half when Beau Scott took too long to get off a tackled player. The home side decided to take the kick at goal but Deacon missed. However immediately upon receiving St. George Illawarra's kick off, George Carmont made a break inside his own half and raced sixty metres to score untouched under the posts, putting Wigan in front once more. Deacon added the extras so the score was 14-10.
In the twenty-ninth minute The Dragons had almost reached the opposition's twenty-metre line when they once more strung passes together over to their left wing where Brett Morris crashed over near the corner. Soward missed the conversion attempt so the NRL and Super League champions were level at 14-14.
In the final seconds of the first half, Wigan were down close to the visitors' try-line and the ball went to Sam Tomkins who kicked a drop-goal. The home side thus went into the break leading 15-14.
The first fifteen minutes of the second half were played across the field from end-to-end, with neither side able to convert their scoring opportunities into points until St. George Illawarra bench player Cameron King at close range forced his way over the try-line from dummy-half. Jamie Soward converted and the Australian club re-gained the lead at 15-20.
The attacking raids from both sides continued without points until the 70th minute when Soward opted for a drop-goal from twenty metres out and got it. The Dragons were now leading by a converted try at 15-21. Despite good attacking opportunities in the remaining ten minutes of the match, Wigan were unable to score, so St. George Illawarra had claimed their first World Club Challenge.
Super League XV
The 2010 Super League season was the fifteenth season of rugby league football since the Super League format was introduced in 1996. Fourteen teams competed for the League Leader's Shield over 27 rounds . All clubs also participated in the 2010 Challenge Cup tournament...
champions, Wigan Warriors
Wigan Warriors
Wigan Warriors is an English rugby league club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester. The club's first team squad competes in the engage Super League and the team are the current Challenge Cup holders as of the 27th August 2011....
, and 2010 NRL Premiers
2010 NRL season
The 2010 NRL season was the 103rd season of professional rugby league football club competition in Australia, and the thirteenth run by the National Rugby League. The season commenced on 12 March and ended with the Grand Final, played on 3 October at ANZ Stadium...
, the St. George Illawarra Dragons. It was played at Wigan's home ground, DW Stadium, but was won by the St George Illawarra Dragons
St George Illawarra Dragons
The St George Illawarra Dragons is an Australian professional rugby league football club, representing the St. George and Illawarra regions. They have competed in the National Rugby League since 1999 as a joint venture between Sydney's historic St. George Dragons club and 1982 expansion club, the...
, stretching the NRL's run of consecutive wins to three.
Wigan Warriors
Wigan qualified for what was their fifth World Club Challenge by defeating St Helens 22–10 in the 2010 Super League Grand Final2010 Super League Grand Final
The 2010 Super League Grand Final was the conclusive and championship-deciding game of Super League XV. Held on Saturday 2 October 2010, at Manchester's Old Trafford stadium, the match was contested by English clubs St Helens and Wigan Warriors...
. For the Wigan, the World Club Challenge was played in place of their 2011 Super League season Round 3 match, which was re-scheduled.
St. George Illawarra Dragons
St. George Illawarra qualified for what was their first World Club Challenge by defeating the Sydney RoostersSydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League and is one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Australian rugby league history, having won twelve New South Wales Rugby League...
32–8 defeat of in the 2010 NRL Grand Final
2010 NRL Grand Final
The 2010 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the 2010 NRL season. Played on Sunday, 3 October at Sydney's ANZ Stadium, the match was contested by the St. George Illawarra Dragons and the Sydney Roosters. It was the first time the two sides met in a grand final. They...
. Rather than play a warm-up match in England as other visiting NRL teams had done, after two pre-season trial match victories in Sydney, the Dragons travelled to London, trained, then moved on to Manchester for the World Club Challenge.
Match details
The Wigan side was without their grand final players Pat RichardsPat Richards
Pat Richards is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Wigan Warriors of Europe's Super League. An Ireland and Exiles international representative winger, he previously played in the National Rugby League for Sydney clubs the Parramatta Eels and Wests Tigers, winning the 2005...
(wing) and Stuart Fielden
Stuart Fielden
Stuart Fielden is an English professional rugby league footballer for Wigan of Super League...
(forward) due to injury. Mark Riddell
Mark Riddell
Mark Robert Riddell is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer of the 2000s and 2010s...
(hooker) was also absent, having moved to another club.
The St. George Illawarra side was without their grand final players Neville Costigan
Neville Costigan
Neville Costigan is a professional rugby league footballer for the Newcastle Knights of the National Rugby League. A Queensland State of Origin and Papua New Guinea international representative, Costigan previously played for the Brisbane Broncos, Canberra Raiders and most recently, the St...
(forward), Jeremy Smith (forward) and Jarrod Saffy
Jarrod Saffy
Jarrod Saffy is an Australian professional rugby union player. He played league for St George Illawarra Dragons , before switching to rugby to the train with the Melbourne Rebels in preparation for the 2011 Super Rugby season.-Early career:Saffy moved to Australia as a 15-year-old and continued...
(forward) who had moved to other clubs. Dean Young (hooker) was also absent due to injury.
The match was broadcast by Sky Sports
Sky Sports
Sky Sports is the brand name for a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by the UK and Ireland's main satellite pay-TV company, British Sky Broadcasting. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland...
with commentary from Eddie Hemmings
Eddie Hemmings (rugby league)
Eddie Leslie Bruce Hemmings presents Sky Sports rugby league coverage, and is also the channel's main commentator for the sport. Hailing from Warrington, Cheshire, England, Hemmings is usually partnered by the idiosyncratic co-commentator Mike Stephenson....
, Mike Stephenson
Mike Stephenson
Michael "Mike" Stephenson, also commonly known as Stevo, is an English Rugby League World Cup winning Rugby League, and presenter/commentator on British satellite television channel Sky Sports who also represented Great Britain in the sport.Stevo, the nickname that he is commonly known as on TV...
, Phil Clarke
Phil Clarke
Phil Clarke is an English rugby league football commentator and former professional player of the 1980s and 90s. A Great Britain and England international representative loose forward, he spent his club career with Wigan, as well as a stint in Australia with the Sydney Roosters.Phil Clarke is the...
, Brian Carney, Bill Arthur.
| Wigan Warriors |
Position | St. George Illawarra Dragons |
|---|---|---|
| Sam Tomkins Sam Tomkins A pre-season unofficial friendly match provided Tomkins his first experience against top-flight opposition as he came off the bench during Lee Briers' testimonial match in a 30–22 loss to Warrington Wolves. Noble followed this up by providing Tomkins, aged 19, with his first team debut on 12 May... 1 |
FB | 1 Darius Boyd Darius Boyd Darius Boyd is an Australian professional rugby league footballer currently playing for the Newcastle Knights in the NRL. Boyd plays at fullback, however he is also very capable as a three-quarter back, as proven by his selection for Australia and Queensland as a winger... |
| Darrell Goulding Darrell Goulding Darrell Goulding is an English professional rugby league footballer for the Wigan Warriors of Super League. He plays as either a centre or on the wing and has spent his whole professional career to date at Wigan, with whom he won the 2010 Super League Championship.-Early life:Goulding is a former... 2 |
WG | 2 Brett Morris Brett Morris Brett Morris is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the St. George Illawarra Dragons of the National Rugby League. An Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative winger, he is the son of St... |
| Martin Gleeson Martin Gleeson Martin Gleeson is an English professional rugby league footballer, who plays for Hull in the Super League. A Great Britain and England international representative , and /, he previously played for Wigan Warriors, Huddersfield Giants, St. Helens and Warrington... 3 |
CE | 3 Mark Gasnier Mark Gasnier Mark Gasnier is an Australian former rugby league player, a state and national representative centre three-quarter. He played eleven top-grade seasons with the St. George Illawarra Dragons in the NRL, interrupted by two seasons of rugby union played with the French club Stade Français. He was a... |
| George Carmont George Carmont George Carmont is a professional rugby league footballer for the Wigan Warriors of the Super League competition... 4 |
CE | 4 Matt Cooper |
| Amos Roberts Amos Roberts Amos Roberts is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for English club Wigan Warriors of Super League. A country New South Wales representative prolific try-scoring back, he previously played in Australasia's National Rugby League for the St... 19 |
WG | 5 Jason Nightingale Jason Nightingale Jason Nightingale is a professional rugby league footballer for the St. George Illawarra Dragons of the Australian National Rugby League... |
| Paul Deacon Paul Deacon Paul Deacon is a retired rugby league footballer. He previously played for Bradford Bulls from 1998 until joining his hometown club Wigan Warriors in 2010... 6 |
SO | 6 Jamie Soward Jamie Soward Jamie Soward is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the St. George Illawarra Dragons of National Rugby League... |
| Thomas Leuluai Thomas Leuluai Thomas Leuluai is a New Zealand professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the Wigan Warriors in the Super League. His position is at half-back... 7 |
HB | 7 Ben Hornby Ben Hornby Ben Hornby is an Australian Naruto loving professional rugby league footballer who currently captains the St George Illawarra Dragons of the National Rugby League... (c) |
| Paul Prescott Paul Prescott Paul Prescott is an English rugby league player. He plays prop for the Wigan Warriors. Paul is also known in celebrity circles for being the son of former UK deputy prime-minister and now lifelong Labour peer, John Prescott... 14 |
PR | 8 Dan Hunt Dan Hunt Dan Hunt is a Australian rugby league player for the St George Illawarra Dragons in the National Rugby League competition.His position of choice is at Prop... |
| Mike McIlorum 9 | HK | 9 Nathan Fien |
| Andy Coley Andy Coley Andy Coley is a rugby league player who plays for Wigan Warriors. He previously played at Salford City Reds before transferring after six years at the club... 10 |
PR | 10 Michael Weyman Michael Weyman Michael Weyman is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the St. George Illawarra Dragons of the National Rugby League... |
| Harrison Hansen Harrison Hansen Harrison Hansen is a rugby league player. He plays for Wigan as a second row forward.-Early life:Kiwi forward Harrison is the son of ex Salford and Swinton professional Shane Hansen and is a product of the Folly Lane ARLFC who play at the Blue Ribbon Field, Pendlebury... 11 |
SR | 11 Beau Scott Beau Scott Beau Scott is an Australian rugby league player for the St. George Illawarra Dragons in the NRL. His position of choice is at second row, however due to his versatility can also play in the centres.... |
| Ryan Hoffman Ryan Hoffman Ryan Hoffman is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Wigan Warriors of the Super League... 16 |
SR | 12 Ben Creagh Ben Creagh Ben Creagh is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the St George Illawarra Dragons of the National Rugby League... |
| (c) Sean O'Loughlin Sean O'Loughlin Sean O'Loughlin is an English professional rugby league footballer who captains the Wigan Warriors of Europe's Super League. A Great Britain and England international representative , and /, he has played his entire career to date with Wigan, with whom he won the 2010 Super League XV... 13 |
LF | 13 Matt Prior |
| Joel Tomkins Joel Tomkins Joel Tomkins is an English professional rugby league footballer for the Wigan Warriors in the European Super League. An England international representative second-row forward, he has played his whole career to date at Wigan, winning the 2010 Super League Grand Final and 2011 Challenge Cup with... 12 |
Int. | 14 Michael Greenfield Michael Greenfield (rugby league) Michael Greenfield is a rugby league player who currently plays for the Melbourne Storm in the NRL. He has previously played for the Cronulla Sharks, South Sydney Rabbitohs and the St George Illawarra Dragons. He plays as a Prop or in the Second Row... |
| Lee Mossop Lee Mossop Lee Mossop born 17 January 1989 in Whitehaven in England is a rugby league player for the Wigan Warriors in the European Super League.Lee Mossop's position of choice is Prop.... 21 |
Int. | 15 Trent Merrin Trent Merrin Trent Merrin is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the St. George Illawarra Dragons of the National Rugby League. Primarily a prop forward, he has played his whole career to date at the Dragons, winning the 2010 NRL Grand Final with them.... |
| Liam Farrell Liam Farrell Liam Farrell is an English rugby league player for the Wigan Warriors in the European Super League. He plays in the second-row or at loose forward. He is the cousin of former Warriors player Andy Farrell.-2010 season:... 22 |
Int. | 16 Jon Green Jon Green Jon Green is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the St George Illawarra Dragons of the National Rugby League. He has also previously played for the Bulldogs.... |
| Chris Tuson Chris Tuson Chris Tuson is an English rugby league player for the Wigan Warriors in the European Super League. He plays in the second-row... 23 |
Int. | 19 Cameron King |
| Michael Maguire Michael Maguire (rugby league) Michael Maguire is an Australian professional rugby league football coach and former player. He is the head coach of the South Sydney Rabbitohs in Australia's National Rugby League . After serving as assistant coach of the Melbourne Storm under Craig Bellamy, in 2009 he became the head coach of... |
Coach | Steve Price Steve Price (coach) Steven Price is an Australian professional rugby league football coach and former player. He is the current head coach for the St. George Illawarra Dragons of the NRL.-Playing career:... |
For this match against the Dragons, whose colours are also red and white, Wigan wore mostly black jerseys.
A minute's silence was observed for the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake at the near capacity stadium before Wigan kicked off. By the end of the home side's very first set of six they had worked their way down to within ten metres of the opposition's try-line. Wigan stand-off half Paul Deacon then got the ball at first receiver and sent a kick up and over to the left part of the line where leaping centre George Carmont snatched it from the air and scored. The conversion was successful, so the Super League champions led 6-0 after only two minutes.
Just over a minute later Dragons hooker Nathan Fein conceded a penalty for a high tackle. Wigan took the kick, the boot of Deacon extending their lead to 8-0.
By the tenth minute The visitors had some ball in an attacking position and managed to move it through the hands out to Brett Morris on the wing who dived over for a try in the corner. Jamie Soward's conversion attempt missed so the score remained 8-4 in favour of Wigan.
St. George Illawarra had again made their way past their opponents' ten-metre line and in the seventeenth minute passed the ball out to the right once again, where centre Matt Cooper crashed over the try-line. Soward's kick got his team another two points and now the visitors were leading 8-10.
Just before the twenty-one-minute mark the Dragons were penalised in their own half when Beau Scott took too long to get off a tackled player. The home side decided to take the kick at goal but Deacon missed. However immediately upon receiving St. George Illawarra's kick off, George Carmont made a break inside his own half and raced sixty metres to score untouched under the posts, putting Wigan in front once more. Deacon added the extras so the score was 14-10.
In the twenty-ninth minute The Dragons had almost reached the opposition's twenty-metre line when they once more strung passes together over to their left wing where Brett Morris crashed over near the corner. Soward missed the conversion attempt so the NRL and Super League champions were level at 14-14.
In the final seconds of the first half, Wigan were down close to the visitors' try-line and the ball went to Sam Tomkins who kicked a drop-goal. The home side thus went into the break leading 15-14.
The first fifteen minutes of the second half were played across the field from end-to-end, with neither side able to convert their scoring opportunities into points until St. George Illawarra bench player Cameron King at close range forced his way over the try-line from dummy-half. Jamie Soward converted and the Australian club re-gained the lead at 15-20.
The attacking raids from both sides continued without points until the 70th minute when Soward opted for a drop-goal from twenty metres out and got it. The Dragons were now leading by a converted try at 15-21. Despite good attacking opportunities in the remaining ten minutes of the match, Wigan were unable to score, so St. George Illawarra had claimed their first World Club Challenge.