KEVIN Penny and Gareth O’Brien were not scapegoats insists Tony Smith after the Warrington Wolves chief left them out of the side that ended a losing run with an 80-0 win against Wakefield on Saturday.

Smith said his first task after the win was to speak to both men who had played every minute of all previous Warrington games this season.

“They’re not scapegoats,” he said.

“They would have played well against Wakefield and I told both those boys. I grabbed them straight after the game. They would have shone, I know that.

“Sometimes if you’re not at the top of your game and there’s somebody breathing down your neck and deserves a crack at it, well they get the opportunity and that puts you behind them sometimes.”

They were replaced by debutant Declan Patton at stand off and winger Gene Ormsby, who made his first appearance of the season on the left wing.

“It’ll just make Kev and Gaz more determined the next time they get an opportunity and they will get one,” said Smith.

“They’re not ‘bad’ players and they’ve not been the reason why we haven’t been winning games or performing well. They’ve been part of it, and they’ve suffered some of their own personal performances not being up to scratch in certain areas.

“They know that and some others who have been sailing close know that too.

“You need to have some people who are breathing down the neck of some of the players to keep them on their toes and keep them honest.”