\n<\/p>\n
Betfred Super League<\/b><\/p>\n
Huddersfield (4) 10<\/b><\/p>\n
Tries:<\/b> Milne, Gagai Goal:<\/b> Flanagan<\/p>\n
Wigan (10) 24<\/b><\/p>\n
Tries:<\/b> Partington, Eckersley 3 Goals:<\/b> Keighran 4<\/p>\n
Zach Eckersley’s hat-trick broke Huddersfield Giants’ stiff resistance to send Wigan Warriors up to second and to within two points of the Super League summit.<\/b><\/p>\n
Jim Lenihan’s side made a nonsense of the fact they had suffered 11 straight defeats going into the game and threatened to do the league double over the in-form Warriors after pulling off a shock victory at the Brick Community Stadium in March.<\/p>\n
Taane Milne’s try put the league’s bottom side ahead, but Oliver Partington and Eckersley hit back with tries which had Matt Peet’s team 10-4 up at the break.<\/p>\n
The hosts raised their game again in the second half to level through Jacob Gagai but as their discipline faltered and Joe Greenwood was sin-binned for dissent, Adam Keighran’s penalty and a late Eckersley double secured the win for Wigan.<\/p>\n
Huddersfield have suffered another tough week, losing three players for the season through injury and having long-serving chairman Ken Davy step down, and the sight of Wigan rolling into town on the back of seven successive wins in all competitions had some supporters fearing the worst.<\/p>\n
Lenihan has started to work a little magic, however, and after Huddersfield soaked up the expected early pressure, they struck first as Milne finished strongly.<\/p>\n
Wigan have been in imperious form and they soon edged ahead as Partington stretched out to finish after evading two tackles following Keighran’s short, sharp pass.<\/p>\n
Tanguy Zenon was forced off with a head injury after being knocked out cold, and Eckersley took advantage of a brilliant Keighran pass to score his first try of the evening and open a six-point gap at half-time.<\/p>\n
Tempers flared throughout the game and referee Matty Lynn’s patience ran out just before the interval as he sent both Tui Lolohea and Shea O’Connor to the sin-bin for a tussle at the play-the-ball.<\/p>\n
It started to look like the game would slip away from Huddersfield, but they muscled up again in the second half and levelled when Gagai finished a slick passing move and George Flanagan, on as the 18th man, kicked the extras.<\/p>\n
Suddenly it was Wigan who looked unsure of themselves, but the game turned on moments of indiscipline.<\/p>\n
Huddersfield thought they had scored a brilliant counter-attacking try after Wigan’s teenage half-back George Marsden had dropped the ball, but referee Lynn disallowed it for a forward pass. <\/p>\n
To rub salt in the wound, Wigan challenged the decision and were awarded a penalty for a high challenge on Marsden, with Keighran converting the two points to restore the lead.<\/p>\n
Huddersfield were still hunting the win but when they were penalised for a knock-on, Greenwood disputed the decision despite the captain’s challenge having been used, and he was sent to the sin-bin.<\/p>\n
That ended the superb Huddersfield effort as Wigan went up the other end and Harry Smith, the calmest man on the pitch, dinked a beautiful kick for Eckersley to race through and collect for his second try.<\/p>\n
With all resistance over, Eckersley claimed his hat-trick, and made it 19 tries for the season, from George O’Loughlin’s pass on the last tackle.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n