Not the result I wanted, of course, but objectively I thought that was a fantastic advert for Rugby League. Hats off to everyone who worked to make the opening feel special, bringing in Michael Buffer was absolutely brilliant. I've heard some people moaning about the spectacle in the stands and on social media, I don't understand that negativity towards promoting the game.
In my eyes, Leigh were well-deserved winners; their forwards ate up metres post-contact and they moved the ball around far more than Wigan did. Defence from both teams was great, and I think Moore had a decent game overall, a bit too lenient in my opinion but he seemed to want the game to flow; I thought his decision to sin-bin Farrell was harsh, though. The game could've gone either way at any point, I felt like Wigan was on the front foot for most of the first half but the momentum swung in Leigh's favour in the second after Wigan conceded a few penalties.
Leeming and Ellis had great games but Wardle was my MotM for Wigan, he shut down the Leigh attack time and time again.
The lowest-scoring game in Super League history and Leigh ended their 40-year winless streak against Wigan in regular games, (minus that one pre-season friendly a few years ago), the biggest Super League opener attendance ever. Three records were broken in a single night in the derby, for the sport as a whole, that's an immensely successful night.
