Unprecedented.
Had Wigan won just one major trophy this season, that would be considered the benchmark for a club of their stature – figureheads of northern hemisphere rugby league.
Two? With the riches head coach Matt Peet has to offer in his squad, such an achievement looked a real possibility.
Three would have been an outstanding feat.
But to wrap up all four major domestic and international trophies on offer in a single season is not just impressive, it’s downright ridiculous in the modern era.
Thirty years on from the Wigan side of 1994 lifting all the trophies they could manage in the course of one campaign, the Cherry and Whites have done it again.
Asked in his post-match news conference following Wigan’s 9-2 Grand Final victory over Hull KR whether his side match up to the squad of 1994, Peet batted the question away.
“No, truthfully and honestly,” he said. “It’s nice to be asked and nice to be mentioned.”
Modest he may well be, but not many can match the Wigan side we have seen over the past eight months.
Peet’s seven trophies in 99 games
To put this season’s achievements in context, Peet is not even 100 games into his tenure as Wigan boss. He’s been at the helm for just 99, in fact.
And in that period he has won everything he possibly can do, collecting a total of seven pieces of silverware.
The list makes for incredible reading: two Challenge Cups, two League Leaders’ Shields, two triumphs at Old Trafford in successive Super League Grand Finals, too.
All three have been won this season by the Warriors, on top of the trophy that kicked off their glorious 2024 – the World Club Challenge victory over National Rugby League premiers Penrith Panthers, themselves in the conversation for being among the game’s greatest sides after winning their fourth successive title.
The way Wigan have ended their campaign is also nothing short of remarkable.
They did not concede a single try in their final four games and conceded just two points in that time – Mikey Lewis’ penalty in the Grand Final.
In fact, they have only conceded three tries over the course of the past two Grand Finals, the Challenge Cup final win over Warrington in June and their World Club Challenge triumph – so it is no wonder Peet credits his defence as the reason for their success.
“I attach defence to team spirit and culture. Bevan French has his moments with the ball, it’s amazing how he has that innate talent,” Peet said. “But he’s always contributing towards defence.
“Defence runs through everything we do. They looked like they were enjoying defending today.
“We continued to turn up for one another. That’s why defence makes me proud. It comes down to how much you want to do it for each other.”
Ending St Helens’ years of dominance
What makes the ascent of Peet and Wigan even more remarkable is the position the club were in when their coach took over.
A mild-mannered figure who had risen through the ranks at Wigan, the club recruited him from within for his first head coach role, replacing the outgoing Adrian Lam, who had failed to put a dent in the St Helens dynasty that had begun under Justin Holbrook with their 2019 Grand Final triumph against Salford.
After Holbrook ventured to the NRL, Kristian Woolf picked up the mantle and turned Saints into superstars of Super League, winning four titles in a row.
Club legend Paul Wellens stepped in and himself won the World Club Challenge against Penrith – in their backyard no less – in the early days of his Saints tenure.
That Peet and a revitalised Wigan side were able to end their rivals’ dynasty and start their own period of domination says a lot about the culture both on and off the field.
It is no surprise his players speak so highly of Peet.
“He knows how to get the best out of everyone. It’s a pleasure to work with someone like him,” French said.
“I think I speak on everyone’s behalf for what he’s achieved for us. He’s turned the club around in a short amount of time. I think he deserves every bit of recognition that he can get.
“I know myself personally, and everyone else in the team, wants to work hard for him.”
French makes case for defence
Saturday’s victory over Hull KR under the lights at Old Trafford wrote Wigan’s name into the record books as the first team to win the quadruple in the course of one season in the Super League era.
In doing so they matched the record of the Wigan side of 1994 when they became the first side to ever win all four major trophies in the course of one campaign.
Bradford in 2003-04 and St Helens in 2006-07 achieved the feat of holding all four trophies at the same time, albeit across the course of two seasons.
French has been at the core of a side so tuned to each other that they just keep winning.
After scoring in the Challenge Cup final he had a spell out through injury, but he made his return in time for Wigan’s end-of-season run-in.
His try against Hull KR cemented French’s reputation as a player for the big occasion, underlined by man-of-the-match awards in the World Club Challenge, Challenge Cup final and Super League Grand Final.
Despite his try-scoring exploits, French, like his boss, once again credited Wigan’s defence.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to set up tries or score them, but in all those finals it was our defence,” French said.
“It’s great to achieve those man-of-the-matches in those finals, but collectively our defence was a bonus.”
