‘I did it for my little brother’
Adam. I wasn’t thinking about anything else and it still hasn’t sunk in yet. I’m sure there will be more tears but I’ve done it for him.
“My other brother was here and has experienced that today along with my grandma, who never really gets to see me play. There were so many special moments to take from this game.”
To win a Super League title takes a special kind of spirit. It requires a togetherness and a willingness to put bodies on the line and heads in where it hurts, the ability to call upon a collective desire.
This was not a classic but it was chiselled on aggression, defending and a refusal to buckle. They are traits which have characterised Wigan during Wane’s seven-year reign. Former Wigan winger Josh Charnley put Warrington ahead but Dom Manfredi and Tom Davies struck to give the Warriors an interval lead. Manfredi’s second try late in the match sealed victory and ensured a fairy-tale send-off for head coach Wane and departing players Sam Tomkins, John Bateman and Ryan Sutton. Bateman said: “Three days after Sarge’s brother died he came back into work and just got on with it. “I’m close to my brother and if it happened to me I don’t know what I’d do, so he’s an absolute role model and an inspiration to anyone out there.
“He has been one of our best players in recent weeks despite everything he has been through. That says everything about Sarge.”
On the win, Sarginson said: “We showed true character because we were our own worst enemies all game and Warrington had us on the back foot.
“Not many teams have it but we just have that will to defend. We invested so much energy in covering each other’s backs and couldn’t be broken down. Our character shone through.”
Wane’s 30-year association with his beloved hometown club has ended and he will take up a part-time role at the Scottish Rugby Union.
Bateman and Sutton are off to Canberra Raiders and Tomkins is joining Catalans.
Tomkins, fortunate not to be sin-binned twice in the first half, said: “This win means more to me than any other.”
An emotionally fraught Wane, who partied hard with his players on Saturday night, said: “Wigan have been fantastic for me and I think I have done a bit for the club as well.
“I will miss everything about the place and I’m on the drink for a month now.
“Could I ever come back? Never say never.”