Wigan Warriors' Kai Pearce-Paul on his "perfect ending" ahead of Australia move
Kai Pearce-Paul concedes he’s thought about what the “perfect ending” to his Wigan career will look like.
Part of it would involve lifting the League Leaders’ Shield on Friday which is what the Warriors can nail if they win at derby rivals Leigh. The final round of Super League action promises so much with Catalans and St Helens also still in the hunt. But their results will be rendered meaningless if resurgent Wigan - on a seven-game winning run since losing the Challenge Cup semi-final to Hull KR - beat Adrian Lam’s outfit. For England second-row Pearce-Paul, though, all he can truly think about is bowing out a winner at Old Trafford before he heads Down Under to Newcastle Knights in 2024.
“That would be the perfect ending for me,” said the rangy Londoner. “ With me moving on after four years, I’ve had a great time here but I’ve not won any silverware yet. I want to put that right . It feels good in camp and that’s replicated in how we’re playing performance-wise. There’s a good cohesion and trust in the team and - after a rocky spell - it does feel really good to be now entering the play-offs in good form. That’s what you want and hopefully we can carry it on to a Grand Final.”
Red-hot Wigan have motored into view in recent weeks in usurping Catalans from top spot. The highlight was a remarkable 34-0 win in Perpignan but Matty Peet’s side also ran amok 50-0 at Leeds having already put 64 points on Hull KR and then running in 48 on Castleford last week. But Leigh, who won the Challenge Cup final, need a win to confirm fourth spot and a home play-off.
They struggled when beating bottom-placed Wakefield in extra-time last week but Pearce-Paul, 22, insisted: “You’d never under-estimate Leigh. “They’ve had a very good year and are one of the top teams in the competition. They’ve got a couple of ex-Wigan players in there with people like Josh Charnley and Zak Hardaker who’d like to prove a point. It’s a sell-out crowd and (owner) Derek (Beaumont) always likes to put on a show for their home games.”
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Meanwhile, Pearce-Paul has kept a watchful eye on his soon-to-be employers in the NRL. Against the odds, Newcastle surged from the bottom four to the play-offs before falling to New Zealand Warriors. He admitted: “It will be really good. I’ve watched Newcastle this season and it’s great to see them come through as underdogs. They won ten games on the bounce to get into the play-offs and seeing the likes of Jackson Hastings and Dom (Young) firing like they have has been quality. It means there’s a lot more for me to look forward to next year. Those boys are so hard to handle. But that’s next year and we’ve important games with Wigan first.”
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