Bevan French made a sensational return from hamstring surgery to lead Wigan Warriors to a dominant 40-10 victory over Hull KR in the Challenge Cup final at Wembley, exacting revenge for last season's Grand Final loss.
French's Impact Off the Bench
Named in Matt Peet's 21-man squad six weeks earlier than anticipated after sustaining the injury in March, French entered the match on the hour mark and needed less than three minutes to score his side's sixth try, skipping over with ease.
French's cameo role was made possible by the outstanding performance of his understudy, Jack Farrimond, who scored Wigan's first two tries and orchestrated a blistering start that Hull KR could not recover from.
Dominant Display
The victory marked the biggest winning margin in a Challenge Cup final since Hull KR lost 50-0 to Leeds in 2015. It also vindicated Peet's decision to field a second-string side in a 62-4 Super League loss to Rovers just ten days prior.
Questions about French's fitness dominated the build-up, and his participation in the warm-up suggested his inclusion was merely a decoy. However, this allowed Farrimond to shine in a tense first half where Wigan's defence excelled and Hull KR appeared lacklustre, lacking the spark that ended their 40-year trophy drought at the same venue the previous year.
First Half Action
Hull KR suffered an early blow when prop Dean Hadley was forced off with a head injury after just three minutes. Two minutes later, Farrimond darted through a gap to put Wigan ahead 4-0. Jake Wardle came close to a second try, and Harry Smith escaped punishment for a high tackle on Rovers winger Tom Davies after 12 minutes.
Rovers rallied with a tough repeat set before the half-hour mark, but Farrimond struck again five minutes before the break, racing onto Oliver Partington's short pass and stepping between two defenders to score under the posts. Adam Keighran's conversion made it 10-0.
With playmaker Mikey Lewis limping, Hull KR snatched a lifeline seconds before halftime when Peta Hiku caught May's kick and rolled over under pressure from Wardle, making it 10-4 at the break.
Second Half Rout
Any hope for the holders was dashed early in the second half when Junior Nsemba scored from Smith's high kick to restore a double-figure lead. Keighran then added two tries of his own, complementing his six conversions for a record-equalling 20-point individual haul.
French arrived to add gloss to the scoreline, and despite a second try from Hiku, Luke Thompson sealed the demolition with Wigan's seventh try. Sam Walters was red-carded with two minutes remaining for a dangerous tip-tackle on Bill Leyland.
