Saturday 24th July 10

Stand-in Wigan Warriors coach Shaun Wane heralded Pat Richards as one of the club’s greatest ever imports after the winger stole the show in the 46-0 win at Hull FC.

The 28-year-old Ireland international, who joined the Warriors from Wests Tigers in 2006, passed 100 tries for club and country since that switch with a first-half try before completing a third hat-trick of the season in the second.

He has 25 tries in all competitions this season and an overall points tally of 360, making him one of the leading contenders to win the prestigious Man of Steel award at the end of the season.

Wane, deputising for the absent Michael Maguire, would certainly endorse that, and was full of praise for the winger.

He said: “We’ve had some great Australians play for us in the 80s and 90s and he must rank as one of the best because he’s a fantastic player.
 
“When he turns up to train, you know what you’re going to get, and he’s a great guy off the field as well. I’m really pleased with how Paddy’s going.

“He never talks about personal achievements, but what he does, at the end of a full-on training session, he’ll work on extras. We have a group of things that me and Madge advise them to work on and you’ll see them doing it. He’s the one who is out the last. It goes to show that hard work pays off.”

Hull coach Richard Agar, who saw his fourth-placed men condemned to a joint-record defeat at the KC Stadium, also noted the performance of Richards, who kicked seven from eight goals to compliment his treble.

“Their back three certainly had an impact on the game,” he said. “He’s a player that’s in red-hot form, has been all season and the way he kicks the ball, I think he’s going to burst it, he kicks it that hard. He’s a good player.”