BWSL Semi-Finals: Vicky Molyneux

Wigan Warriors captain Vicky Molyneux and her team find themselves just 80 minutes away a Betfred Women’s Super League Grand Final, and she is hoping her side can go one step further in 2024.

It’s been a fantastic season for Denis Betts’ Warriors, who already made history earlier this year, by playing their first BWSL fixture at The Brick Community Stadium, Wigan’s principal stadia.

The Warriors, who boast a mix of both talented youth and experience, have gone on to secure an impressive top four finish in 2024, with a semi-final tie awaiting on Sunday.

They haven’t featured in a Women’s Super League Grand Final since 2018, where they defeated Leeds Rhinos 16-18 to become the Champions. Since then, they have appeared in four consecutive semi-finals, but have fallen agonisingly short each time.

And Molyneux, now 36-years-old, has enjoyed watching her Warriors team flourish and transform, as she proudly reflected on her side’s remarkable year:

“One of the standout moments for us this year was beating York Valkyrie. We hadn’t beaten a top three side in several years, and over the last few seasons we’ve always said that we wanted to close the gap.

“And this year, our aim was to try and not have a gap at all.

“It was quite a convincing win as well. York threw everything at us, but we hung on, and I think that was our biggest moment.

“Winning the Women’s Nines Festival was another incredible achievement too. We got a convincing win against Leeds Rhinos in that final. Those are two prolific moments in our 2024 season, and the aim is to go one more and beat the other top three side and get into the Grand Final this year.

“We’ve always been in those semi-final matches but haven’t been able to do enough to get to the big stage right at the end.”

Molyneux, who has been with the Warriors since 2019 and made history by becoming the first women’s player to be inducted into the Wigan Hall of Fame, was full of praise for her teammates and the club:

“You look at our youth coming through and from the academy. We don’t have England superstars like the other top three sides just yet, but you can see our quality and that they’re at the start of their journey.

“You can see the momentum building and it all comes from the club. The club are so supportive and really invest in us. It’s exciting to see what this group of players can do and if we can keep a hold of this team, I think we can go really far and be looking at getting doubles and trebles in the next few seasons.

“The success of a team comes from building around the team’s willingness to work for each other and put our bodies on the line. No matter what performance you see, every one of us is willing to work and keeping working hard, and that’s something you can’t teach – it’s in your heart.

“If you have that, then you’ve got a foundation you can work upon from there.”

Arguably, one of Wigan Warriors’ biggest impacts has been new head coach and former Wigan legend Denis Betts, who took the reigns at the start of 2024 campaign and has helped to reinvigorate the women’s side with his admirable wealth of experience:

“Denis has such a presence, and we all love him,” Molyneux said. “It’s not just his extensive knowledge, it’s about the way he is. He’s got such a way of giving feedback and a way with words. He’s got incredible people skills and really knows how to motivate and inspire us.

“The message this week is that ‘this is it’. This is our last game potentially if we don’t win and it’s that Play-Off rugby feel - and Denis has the skills to build these moments up without adding too much pressure. I’ve loved working with him and the girls have loved it too.

“There are always moments for fun, but then we know when we need to get down to business and be serious and get the job done.

“The mood is great in camp – it’s been a great year, and we could make it even better by going that step further this year.”

The former England international has been a prominent figure in the women’s game since the mid-2000s and has always worn her heart on her sleeve, but did have a 14-year hiatus away from playing, in order to focus on her family and career.

“I had a big gap between my rugby league spells,” explained Molyneux, who made her astounding comeback with Wigan Warriors in 2019. “At the time I’d just surgery, and you didn’t get the medical support that you do now. I had just started a family and also started my career in teaching, so it was really difficult to come back straight away.

“But I eventually came back into the sport, and my why is because it’s addictive. It really is, and it brings out this feeling inside you, especially when you’re building up to big games. It’s this feeling you get and there’s nothing like it.

“I worry when I eventually stop playing that I’ll lose a part of me and a lose a little bit of my identity. It becomes a part of you and even after all these years of playing – the challenge and being under Denis, I still feel like I’m learning.

“The physical and mental challenge keeps you stimulated and wanting to play, but there’s such a family feel in the game as well. It’s not just your teammates you build friendships and bond with for life - it’s everyone around you at the club.

“Everyone is in it together and it’s such a big part of your life. Then one day when it’s over whether that’s through injury, retirement or choice, it’s those moments you’ll look back on that you’ll never been able to replicate ever again. Everyone will miss it and look back.”

As the women’s game continues to significantly grow and progress year on year, Molyneux admitted that this makes it harder to comprehend the thought of ever hanging up her boots:

“The momentum behind the women’s game has been so good over the past few years, which makes it harder to walk away.

“I’ve played in games in my time where you were lucky if you got a changing room! That was obviously a long time ago but look now and we’re playing live on Sky Sports in a semi-final on Sunday in such a wonderful stadium.

“It’s such a time for anyone to get involved in the women’s sport, and I think there’s a little bit of envy in these young girls who are just making their debuts – they don’t realise how lucky they are to be starting now when this game is just going to get better and better in the next five to ten years.”

Being a Women’s Rugby League player can be hard juggling about half a dozen commitments, but for Molyneux, who shows no signs of slowing, it's worth it:

“It is difficult - being a mum myself and working full-time. Sometimes I feel like if I’m being a good mum, then maybe I’m doing bad at work or should be doing more at training.

“Then if I’m at training, I feel guilty for not being at home with my daughter. Wigan have always been amazing with childcare though, and England whenever I was playing internationally. If I’m ever stuck for childcare, my daughter is always welcome down at the stadium – Denis is always throwing a ball around with her and bought her an ice cream at the last game!

“Having that is so important and makes it all worth it.

“We want to showcase that women can have children or time out and come back and play sport at the highest level. You come back different – when you have a child, it does something to you, and I came back feeling better and with a bit more fire in your belly.

“Not only are you then inspiring a younger generation but also your own child and that’s huge.”

With their semi-final fast approaching on Sunday, Molyneux previewed the highly anticipated St Helens v Wigan derby at The Totally Wicked Stadium:

“I think the intensity is going to be high and Saints will be out to get us. It’ll be a battle of us trying to utilise our strengths and vice versa.

“In Round 8, we were really unlucky. We went in at halftime as the better team but then it was the fifteen minutes, we couldn’t keep a hold of the ball or complete our sets. We got tired and they ran away it in the end. But we’ve learnt from that and we know now, that we can beat any one of those top three sides.

“We know we’ve been the huge underdogs of the top four sides, but that’s made us want to be competitive no matter what.

“We’ve got one opportunity now and it won’t be an easy one to win, it’ll be hard. But we’ll go in there knowing if we can pull a performance together and fulfil our potential like we know we’re capable of, then we can nick a win.

“We want to prove how good we are. We don’t want the win against York and Leeds to be one-offs, and we don’t want to look back and think we could have done more.

“To lose a semi-final is the worse game you can lose. To lose a final is obviously gutting, but you got there, and you got to the end, and essentially became one of the two best teams in the competition.

“When you’ve been there and felt it, it really does spur you on. It’s now or never, and it’s knockout rugby. There are no more second chances, it’s all or nothing and we’ve got to leave everything out there.

“We’ve got to defend our hearts out and take our chances when we’ve got them. If we do that, we’re confident we can win.”

Both Betfred Women’s Super League semi-finals will take place live on Sky Sports with Leeds Rhinos v York Valkyrie kicking things off at 5pm before coverage turns to St Helens v Wigan Warriors from 7.30pm.

The winners from both fixtures will then battle it out for the Super League crown on Sunday 6 October which will be played at home ground of the finalist ranked highest at the end of the regular season, also live on Sky Sports (KO 4.30pm).