LAM SLAMS HIS CHAMPS

Adrian gets London mauling

ADRIAN LAM laid into champions Wigan as Super League new boys London Broncos pulled off the shock of the season so far.

The Warriors have now lost four out of five matches this season and new coach Lam – holding the reins until Shaun Edwards takes over next year – did not hold back.

He said: “I’m really disappointed. Our halves, full-back and backs let us down.

“Another disappointing part was a few of our senior players not owning the game when they needed to step up.

“We’re not winning and so there’s a fair bit of pressure coming down.”

The Warriors made a strong start as forwards Liam Paisley and Willie Isa muscled over for tries in the first 20 minutes.

And with Zak Hardaker adding a conversion, they led 10-0 and looked to be cruising to a second win of the year.

But London turned the game on its head, with Eddie Battye and Matty Gee typifying their spirited effort with quickfire tries before half-time.

Kieran Dixon converted both to give them a 12-10 lead at the break.

And minutes after the restart, he scooped up a loose ball and turned on the after-burners to score a full-length try to open up a 16-10 lead.

He later struck a penalty to wedge open an eight-point gap, ensuring Tony Clubb’s 58thminute converted try was not enough to get the wounded Warriors out of jail.

While Lam braced himself for a backlash from Wigan supporters, Broncos coach Danny Ward was trying to keep a lid on celebrations after a “special” victory.

He said: “I don’t want to get too carried away, we’ve had some big wins in the last 12 months and hopefully the boys can get some confidence from this.

“But beating the champions at home is special.

“I hope people talk about the team spirit we have here.

“We know we have to be on our game every week – every player has to be nine out of 10 at this level.”

On Dixon’s long-range try, he added: “There were a lot of key moments, but when Kieran gets a bit of space in front of him he’s unstoppable.”

It leaves Wigan, who also lost the World Club Challenge, on zero points although their appeal against a two-point deduction for breaking the salary cap will be heard tomorrow.