YOU could be forgiven for thinking that Parry Gordon was looking down from heaven approvingly on Sunday.

Sixty-seven of his former teammates and members of the Warrington Wolves Past Players Association joined more than 11,500 supporters in honouring Gordon, Bob Ryan (ex-forward) and Terry Lewis (ex-physio) with one minute’s applause at the first league game since their deaths.

Gordon would have been proud of the way Wolves opened the 2010 season and, fittingly, some of his own achievements were stamped all over the 58-0 success.

Scrum half legend Gordon, who made 543 appearances in a 20-year career in primrose and blue, was the last Warrington player to score five tries in a home league game. Chris Riley matched that feat on Sunday.

Gordon’s haul came against Dewsbury at Wilderspool Stadium on March 3, 1974.

And in another amazing coincidence, Gordon had the number seven shirt on his back the last time Warrington nilled a team at home in the league. Ten of his teammates that day lined up in front of the North Stand on Sunday to pay tribute to his life, achievements and friendship.

That last nilling was against Leigh on Boxing Day, 1978, also famous for the fact that the 27-0 scoreline was an exact repeat of the outcome nine days earlier when the two sides also met at Wilderspool in the John Player competition.

From that team, Derek Finnegan, Billy Benyon, John Bevan, Ken Kelly, Bob Eccles, John Whittaker, Tommy Martyn, Brian Case, Alan Gwilliam and Mike Peers were pitchside on Sunday.

Bevan travelled up from Cardiff for the occasion, while John Smith - who appeared for Warrington from 1962 to 1966 - flew in from Spain to offer his applause.