Wigan must move on after final heartbreak

WIGAN captain Sean O’Loughlin says his side will be ready to bounce back against St Helens once they have licked their wounds from their agonising Challenge Cup final defeat.

The Warriors fell just short in their bid for a record-extending 20th triumph, losing 18-14 to holders Hull in a nail-biting finish at Wembley on Saturday, and must quickly pick themselves up as they seek to keep alive their hopes of retaining their Super League title.

Wigan are level with St Helens but with an inferior points difference, and a point behind fourth-placed Wakefield with just three rounds left of the Super 8s, and O’Loughlin knows they cannot afford to lose their derby clash with Saints on Friday.

“We’ll go away from this and lick our wounds but we’re still in a good position to have a crack at the remaining league games and put ourselves in a position for the final,” O’Loughlin said. “We’ve not got our hands on silverware so our only opportunity now is to win the rest of the games.”

O’Loughlin’s England team-mate Liam Farrell has revealed that coach Shaun Wane began turning his thoughts to Friday’s crunch league game within minutes of the final whistle on Saturday.

“It’s already been spoken about,” Farrell said. “We got back into the changing rooms and it was probably the first words out of Waney’s mouth.”