Pat Richards extends Wigan's lead at Super League summit

Pat Richards's remarkable points-scoring prowess proved the crucial difference as Wigan moved four points clear at the Super League summit. The prolific Australian winger showed the kind of finishing skills that were lacking in an otherwise commendable Salford display to score two vital second-half tries. This was far from Wigan's most accomplished performance of the season, as a constant willingness to keep the ball alive led to a host of handling errors. But their defence were every bit as well-organised as they have been for the majority of the campaign, which they needed to be at times against a Salford side who have improved dramatically over the past month. "They made it a tough game for us," the Wigan coach, Michael Maguire, said. "But we made it hard for ourselves as well. We were making offloads and throwing passes that we don't normally do, so there's a bit of work still to do there." There were just two points between the sides after an often scrappy first half, as Ashley Gibson's try for Salford just before the break cancelled out the opening score by Wigan's Paul Deacon. But Richards's tries, which came in the space of 11 minutes in the third quarter, took the game away from the home side. Twice Richards got the better of his opposing winger Steve Tyrer to produce smart finishes and his late penalty completed another 14-point haul, taking him to 168 in 11 games. "I've no doubt that the team we've played today are the best team in the competition," the Salford coach, Shaun McRae, said. "Our display was very spirited. You can see that our guys are together, but we just got beat by a couple of special plays, and a couple of special players." Salford City Reds Fitzpatrick; Henry, Talau, Gibson, Tyrer; Ratchford, Holdsworth; Cashmere, Alker, Jewitt, Sidlow, Adamson, Swain. Interchange Littler, Smith, Leuluai, Sibbit. Try Gibson. Wigan Warriors Phelps; Goulding, Gleeson, Carmont, Richards; S Tomkins, Deacon; Prescott, Riddell, Coley, Bailey, J Tomkins, O'Loughlin. Interchange McIlorum, Paleaasina, O'Carroll, Mossop. Tries Deacon, Richards 2 Goals Richards 3. Referee T Alibert (France). Attendance 6,618.