Megan Wellens
Sports Journalist @MegWellensX
Warrington Wolves 42-6 Leigh Leopards: Sam Burgess' side cruise to win as crisis-hit opponents slump to bottom of Super League table
Warrington Wolves are now back at the top of the Super League table, with Leigh Leopards bottom; Leigh have injuries to at least seven of their usual starting 13; Sky Sports is the only place to watch every Super League game live in 2026
Last Updated: 04/04/26 5:57pm
Warrington Wolves moved back top of the Super League table with a 42-6 victory over Leigh Leopards in Rivals Round at the Halliwell Jones Stadium.
Warrington usurp Leeds Rhinos due to their superior points difference but it is the opposite picture for Leigh.
Thanks to another torrid loss, they are now propping up the standings and sit bottom.
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While the Leopards are dealing with a mountain of injuries to starting players, including Edwin Ipape and Umyla Hanley, plus struggling with less squad depth than other sides, it was another display that will worry head coach Adrian Lam.
Warrington had a comprehensive 24-0 half-time lead thanks to tries from Josh Smith, Matty Ashton, James Bentley and Joe Philbin.
Marc Sneyd was perfect with the boot to add the conversions for all four.
The home side then racked up 18 points in the second 40 thanks to a Sneyd penalty plus Ashton's second as well as tries from George Williams and Sam Powell. Sneyd converted two of the three.
Leigh did manage to get on the board when Adam Cook went over and converted his own effort but the points were only a consolation.
Warrington show style with Leigh under pressure at bottom
It was evident early on that Warrington were going to be the team in control when, just two minutes in, they were on the scoreboard as a kick was collected and sent out wide for Smith to walk in at the corner. Sneyd converted to put them 6-0 up.
Less than 10 minutes later they were over again with an effort that burst Leigh's attempts to wrestle some control.
As they tried to play in Warrington's half, Ashton came up with a massive interception and raced 70 metres downfield to go over before Sneyd made it 12-0 to the hosts.
It was all Warrington and the defensive toll started to tell on Leigh. Having to defend repeat set after repeat set, they were falling off tackles and allowing Warrington to get passes away to make extra crucial metres.
That saw Warrington in once again 15 minutes later when George Williams found Bentley running a nice line. On his Super League debut for the club, Bentley barrelled over and Sneyd kicked the extras for an 18-0 lead.
Warrington added more points in the 35th minute when Sneyd put through a perfectly-weighted grubber for Philbin to dive on. Sneyd made it four conversions out of four for a solid 24-0 half-time advantage.
Warrington came out looking to continue the second half in the same vein as the first and had points six minutes later when Leigh were penalised for offside and Sneyd sent over the penalty conversion.
Leigh just did not have any steel and in the 55th minute Williams had his moment as he danced and weaved before diving in under the sticks. His half-back partner obliged with the conversion again for a 32-0 lead.
The points would not stop for the home team and Ashton, who has been in fine form since his return, showed off the acrobatic skills that he has become renowned for to dive over on the edge. For the first time, Sneyd could not convert.
Off the back of a brilliant 40/20, Leigh eventually managed to get over through Cook to bring the score to 36-6.
However, Warrington put that quickly behind them when Powell barged in under the sticks with seven minutes remaining.
Lam: We need to minimise the 'bleeding' | Burgess: Being top means nothing
Leigh head coach Adrian Lam speaking to Sky Sports:
"Tough to watch. A lot of late changes and people playing out of position but we were probably our worst enemy. We just made it really difficult from the start.
"Am I confident we can rediscover our form once injuries clear up? That's the hope. But, having said that, it's still a decent side that's out on the field.
"It's the standards and basic principles that's letting us down at the moment. It doesn't matter who pulls the jersey on, it should be at the same levels. We're certainly not getting that at the moment.
"There's still a lot of hope there. There'll be a different picture next week, maybe one or two bodies back and a few changes, and just backing the group until that happens.
"We've got to minimise the bleeding at the moment. We're only four points outside the top five. We've been in this situation before and I know that once we get back on track with our strongest side, we'll get on a bit of a roll. But we've just got to make sure we find a win along the way and stay positive."
Warrington head coach Sam Burgess speaking to Sky Sports:
"I was happy we managed the conditions better. Last week we struggled with the wind [against Leeds], especially in the second half. It was a good performance all round, professional.
"We're aware that Leigh are undermanned, they've a lot of players injured at the moment, but we still had to be physical and get the job done.
"It means absolutely nothing [being top of the table at this stage of the season], history will tell you that. I'm not too worried about the league table, more about improving, making sure our players are challenging themselves and looking forward to getting better every day."
On Sneyd's man-of-the-match performance: "He's a very experienced player and we're grateful to have him. Ewan Irwin didn't play today, he had a bit of a bump last week. We've got the luxury of Marc, I can rest Ewan if I need to. He's a wonderful guy to have around. His attitude is first class and he's a very talented player."
2026 Super League - key dates and what to look out for
- Super League in Paris: Sat Jun 6: Catalans Dragons v Wigan Warriors (Paris), 6:30 UK (Sky Sports)
- Magic Weekend: July 4-July 5
- Rivals Round reversed: July 23-July 26
- Elimination Play-offs: September 19-September 20
- Play-off semi-finals: September 26-September 27
- Grand Final: October 3, Old Trafford.
Sky Sports will again show every game of the Super League live this season - including two matches in each round exclusively live, with the remaining five matches each week shown on Sky Sports+
