Leigh shock Wigan in extra time after first 0-0 draw in Super League history

Wigan Warriors tried to add a touch of Hollywood to Super League’s opening night ahead of their trip to Las Vegas next month, with Michael Buffer among the VIPs in attendance to introduce the stars of Super League. But not even the greatest script-writers could have predicted how the most remarkable game in the competition’s 30-year history would unfold.

The biggest-ever opening-night crowd was in attendance at the Brick Community Stadium. Not a single one of the 21,748 people here would have expected to watch the lowest-scoring game Super League has ever seen. And that doesn’t even skim the surface when it comes to the records that were set here on a gripping, engrossing and ultimately bizarre evening.

There have been thousands of Super League fixtures since the competition launched in 1996. Not a single one has finished 0-0 after 80 minutes. Only two have gone to the end without there being a try scored: Salford’s 5-2 win over Harlequins in 2007, and Warrington’s 4-0 victory against Hull FC in 2022. The last 0-0? All the way back in 1993.

But here, at the end of regulation time, two great rivals could not be separated. The cynics may suggest that both Wigan and Leigh’s attack is yet to click, and they both misfired on the night. But you could just as equally argue that defensively, two sides who will be in the mix for the Super League title this year were fantastic from minute one to minute 82: when Gareth O’Brien finally snapped the deadlock in dramatic fashion.

Leigh have not won at the home of their neighbours since 1983. But O’Brien ended that run two minutes into golden point extra time as he held his nerve when others faltered, kicking a wonderful long-range drop goal to ensure the Leopards started 2025 with a win that reaffirms their credentials of being fancied, while the reigning champions start with a defeat.

The players take to the pitch after being introduced by Michael Buffer. Photograph: Martin Rickett/PA

“Wigan are the only club we haven’t beaten since coming back up to Super League. Our first win here in 42 years. It’s a wonderful achievement,” Leigh’s coach, Adrian Lam, reflected.

“It had a playoff feel to it with the intensity. Our fans will be tearing Leigh up tonight given how long they’ve had to wait for this. I’m delighted for them.”

With Buffer on hand to bring the players out as the hype starts to roll up for the Warriors’ game against Warrington in Las Vegas in March, the intensity from both sides mirrored the excitement delivered by the pre-match entertainment. But it was apparent from an early stage that points would be on short supply, with some stunning last-ditch defensive efforts denying both sides.

It looked as though things would click into gear after half-time, when Liam Farrell was sin-binned for kicking the ball away. Within a minute of that, Wigan thought they had scored against the run of play when Jai Field touched down, but there was a ball steal in the build-up, keeping it scoreless. Leigh then failed to take advantage of the ten minutes without Farrell on the field and incredibly, it remained 0-0.

Chances came and went in the frenetic final few moments, with both sides rejecting the chance to kick the winning drop goal. And when Adam Keighran was sent to the sin-bin for a high tackle with seconds remaining, it left the door ajar for Leigh heading into golden point.

Leigh’s Gareth O’Brien lets fly to land the decisive drop goal after 80 minutes of no score. Photograph: Martin Rickett/PA

Wigan’s first chance with possession saw them again turn down a drop goal attempt and when Leigh broke downfield a minute later, O’Brien – who famously kicked the drop goal that kept Salford in Super League in the 2016 Million Pound Game – produced the business to seal the most remarkable victory, and the most remarkable scoreline, Super League has perhaps ever seen.

“It was tough to lose but it was a high-quality game, very intense and I thought both teams played to a really high level,” Wigan’s coach, Matt Peet, said. “There will be things we’ll look back at, plays we could have made at certain times of the game. But as far as the energy of the group goes, I’m proud. Leigh were worthy winners.”

Wigan will unquestionably be in the mix when the trophies are handed out later this year but here, on an historic night, this occasion belonged to their rivals from across the borough.