Warrington Wolves star praised by pundits after ‘outstanding’ display in Leeds Rhinos win
Leeds forward James McDonnell is tackled by Warrington trio Lachlan Fitzgibbon, James Harrison and Ben Currie
Ben Currie produced a man of the match performance from the slightly unfamiliar role of loose forward in Warrington Wolves’ impressive 34-8 win over Leeds Rhinos.
Currie, a back-rower by trade but has been no stranger to the loose forward position this season, put in a huge display in both attack and defence, making 14 carries and 26 tackles as well as providing an assist in Warrington’s win at Headingley.
“The way he moved the ball in the middle, that’s not his normal position, he’s normally a back-rower, but we saw early on in the game Matty Nicholson went out on the edge and he was playing through the middle,” Sky Sports pundit Sam Tomkins said post-match.
“You don’t always have to be the biggest body to be in the middle and cause problems but I think Ben Currie is the perfect example of that.. The way that he moves the ball to other blokes and just causes issues for defences.”
It was a big effort from all of Warrington‘s pack, who were without three frontline forwards in Paul Vaughan (suspension), Zane Musgrove and Joe Philbin (both failed head injury assessments).
“I think his ball-playing was brilliant, particularly for the Joe Bullock try, but I think defensively as well his work rate was brilliant,” Sky Sports pundit Jodie Cunningham added.
“Later on in the game he went into that prop role as well and got through a lot of work today in a side where he might not always get all the headlines, but today his effort in attack and defence was outstanding and he’s looked really comfortable in that 13 role.”
Ben Currie flourishing in the loose forward role for Warrington Wolves
Speaking to Sky Sports after collecting his man of the match award, Currie admitted that he is enjoying himself in his new role as Warrington‘s 13.
He said: “I’ve had a slight positional change over the last few weeks, I’ve moved into the middle so I’ve managed to get my hands on the ball a little bit more and play a few plays, so I’m enjoying it there.
“It’s a fantastic result for us, obviously we’re a few troops down but as a team and as a squad we’ve no excuses: the next one in does a job: That’s a really big win for us tonight, boys like Max Wood and Joe Bullock coming in and stepping up like we’re missing nobody.
“This year, around the squad and the team there is a real togetherness, we’re like a big family so we know we’re going to turn up for each other. No matter if you play off or if you mess up, there’s going to be somebody there to cover you so we’re really good mates on and off the field which is really helping us.”
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