Where do Wigan Warriors rank among Super League’s greatest sides after Challenge Cup win?

Wigan Warriors are only the third team in the Super League era to hold all four domestic trophies possible at the same time, completing the haul with victory in Saturday’s Challenge Cup final.

Matt Peet’s side were too good for Warrington Wolves to secure the first trophy of 2024 – and the scale of their success almost immediately raises the debate about where this group of players rank among the greatest ever to play in Super League.

It’s certainly a point that could be debated long into the night – and no doubt will be. But to measure Wigan’s achievements up, here’s some of the other great Super League sides in history. Where do Wigan sit among this group of legendary teams?

Bradford Bulls 2003

There were some outrageous sides in the early years of Super League. St Helens’ title-winners of 1996, the Bradford side who followed it up in 1997 and the Wigan team who won the first Grand Final of 1998.

But the first genuinely world-class side was arguably Brian Noble’s all-conquering Bulls team of 2003, who became the first team in the modern era to secure the domestic treble. The Bulls edged a thrilling cup final against Leeds Rhinos in Cardiff before going on to top Super League later in the season.

They then completed the treble with a 25-12 win over Wigan Warriors at Old Trafford – and defeated Penrith Panthers to win the World Club Challenge a few months later.

St Helens 2006

Three years after Bradford swept the board trophy-wise, St Helens followed suit with an utterly world-class side, littered with international talent throughout.

Their team list from 2006 reads like a who’s who of Super League greats, including the likes of Paul Wellens, Sean Long, Keiron Cunningham, Leon Pryce, Jamie Lyon – the list goes on and on. Coached by the outstanding Daniel Anderson, the Saints were simply too good for everyone all season long.

The first leg of the treble was completed in style, a 42-12 win over Huddersfield Giants at Twickenham to secure the Challenge Cup. They finished eight points clear of Hull FC to top Super League – before going on to win the Grand Final with a 26-4 win at Old Trafford against the Black and Whites.

And if that wasn’t enough, they followed it up a few months later with the World Club Challenge triumph over Brisbane Broncos to complete the feat of holding every domestic trophy on offer at the same time.

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Leeds Rhinos 2015

The third team in the Super League era to go on and win the domestic treble was the star-studded, legendary Leeds Rhinos side of the mid-2010s.

The Rhinos enjoyed a prolonged period of success for so long in Super League but it was headlined in 2015 with Brian McDermott’s side who swept aside all comers to win every trophy on offer, starting with the unforgettable 50-0 win over Hull KR in the Challenge Cup final.

They finished joint-top of Super League, beating Wigan to the League Leader’s Shield on points difference, before triumphing in the Grand Final against the Warriors to complete the treble. With the likes of Rob Burrow, Danny McGuire, Kevin Sinfield, Ryan Hall and Jamie Peacock.. it is arguably the most talented team ever to play in the modern era.

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St Helens 2019

There is a fair argument to pluck out any of the St Helens sides that won four successive Super League titles between 2019 and 2022, in truth – such was their dominance of the domestic game for a prolonged period of time.

But the team that began that era of dominance was undoubtedly one of the strongest club sides Super League has ever seen. They came up short in that year’s Challenge Cup final, losing to Warrington Wolves at Wembley. But in Super League, they were practically unstoppable.

Justin Holbrook’s side won an astonishing 26 of their 29 league games, scoring well over 900 points in the process. They then sauntered through the play-offs; beating Wigan 40-10 in the first round before beating Salford Red Devils at Old Trafford.

It will surely be remembered as one of the Saints’ best-ever sides.

But over to you – where do Wigan rank alongside this outrageously good quarter?

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