Bradford Bulls 28, Wigan Warriors 26 by Chris Hall

JUST as their international superstars looked to have given them the edge in an almighty tussle against the world champions, Wigan were sunk by one of their own.

Young scrum-half Paul Deacon, born and bred in Hindley, coolly slotted over a 51-yard penalty in the last second of the game to clinch an astonishing victory and move Bradford some six points clear of last year's Grand Final opponents.

It should never have ended that way.

With less than two minutes on the clock, Wigan were ominously forcing their way into the Bulls' half in preparation for a shot at a match-winning drop goal or to play out the rest of the game and clinch a share of the points at the very least.

But as skipper Andy Farrell ran sideways, probing for a gap in the line, an over-excited Terry Newton mis-timed his run, obstructing the Bradford tacklers and conceding the foul, the penalty, the match and very possibly Warriors' last hope of finishing the regular season on top of the pile.

To lose such an important game from one careless play would be heartbreaking. But the truth is that Wigan should have had the game won long before then. Tries from Stephen Wild, Adrian Lam and Brett Dallas opened up an unthinkable 14-point lead for Stuart Raper's men but winger Brian Carney's slackness under Deacon's high kick allowed Nathan McAvoy to cut the deficit shortly before the break and Warriors' defence crumbled under the weight of some simply breathtaking showboat rugby at the start of the second half.

Mick Withers' second score of the night was joined by tries from Tevita Vaikona and Scott Naylor as the home side cut loose. A wonderfully-timed run from scampering Papua New Guinea captain Lam laid on an equalising score for Newton and Kiwi prop Craig Smith seemed to have earned his side maximum points when his bustling drive was rewarded with a dubious penalty late in the game.

But Farrell fatefully missed his first kick of the night and moments later his opposite number was being held aloft amid celebrations on the Valley Parade pitch.

Team (if needed): Kris Radlinski, Brett Dallas, David Hodgson, Gary Connolly, Brian Carney, Andy Farrell, Adrian Lam, Terry O'Connor, Terry Newton, Craig Smith, Stephen Wild, David Furner, Simon Haughton. Subs: Ricky Bibey, Sean O'Loughlin, Mark Smith, Harvey Howard.