Warrington Wolves boss insists Matt Dufty will get over his Leeds Rhinos howler

20 August 2023 , 20:06

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Warrington's Matt Dufty on the charge against Leeds (Image: PA)

Warrington interim boss Gary Chambers insists Matt Dufty will bounce back from his costly howler.

Wolves fell to an eighth straight defeat against Leeds at Headingley but the Aussie full-back bombed a golden chance to win it with just 15 seconds remaining. With time running out, desperate captain Stefan Ratchford dinked a hopeful grubber infield and Dufty emerged onto it with no one near him. But the 27-year-old inexplicably spilled the ball trying to gather it five metres out to let Leeds off the hook.

Dufty had already suffered a mind-explosion shortly before having dummied his way through only to pass inside to a Leeds player. Rhinos - who had been staring at a fourth straight defeat - couldn’t believe their luck as they kept their play-offs hopes alive. Dufty did score in the first half and made the classy break for Matty Ashton’s try as Warrington led 10-6 at the break.

But Danny Walker also bombed a gilt-edged chance and the early season leaders are increasingly in danger of missing the top-six. Chambers maintained: “I thought Matt was outstanding. He can't be defined by that one mistake at the end because of what he did generally through the game.

“He responded after last week. The kid takes it tough when he doesn’t play well. It’s part of his progress and he’ll go again. The lads worked really really hard. But the club demands that standard every week. We expect that every week. We just didn't get the result. The game could have gone either way. There were a couple of lapses of concentration and they have an excellent goalkicker.”

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Rhinos ace Rhyse Martin nailed all four of his kicks whereas Ratchford managed just three from five attempts. Warrington remain fifth but are now level on points with Salford and Hull KR just below them and eighth-placed Leeds - who scored tries via Sam Walters, David Fusitu'a, Luke Hooley and James Bentley - are only two adrift. Rhinos had already been fortunate with Hooley’s first Super League try that put them 18-16 ahead in the 62nd minute.

Warrington Wolves boss insists Matt Dufty will get over his Leeds Rhinos howler

Leeds Rhinos' James Bentley celebrates scoring his crucial try against Warrington (John Clifton/SWpix.com)

Leeds kept the ball alive brilliantly before Aidan Sezer broke but the Aussie scrum-half’s final pass was clearly forward. Nene Macdonald’s superb flick pass got Bentley over six minutes later, Martin’s fourth goal making it 24-16. Josh Drinkwater’s grubber saw Matty Nicholson give Warrington hope - but Dufty endured that last-gasp nightmare.

Rhinos boss Rohan Smith said: “It all happened quickly. Dufty’s a poacher. But we’ve had the ball bounce the other way plenty of times so over the course of the year they’ll square themselves out. We just had to find a way to win. And this team’s getting tighter and tighter.”