WOLVES’ performance fell to pieces against Wigan because frustration got the better of his men after they had failed to make chances count, says head of coaching and rugby Tony Smith.

He felt they never got the ‘breaks’ they needed from the rub of the green and 50:50 decisions that could have made a difference.

And then lack of composure and a breakdown in communications led to an awful second-half freefall.

“It was a tough day. That second half was tough to watch for all of us Wolves.

“We needed to get some points on the board when we had field position in the first half.

“And I thought we started really strongly after half time. I thought there was a lot of effort put into that and we got a couple of back-to-back sets of forced drop outs which is what you’ve got to do in wet weather footy, which is what Wigan did very well.

“We didn’t convert that into points and that’s what Wigan did well.

“A couple of their tries in the second half were top-drawer stuff. We didn’t need top-drawer stuff, we just needed it out of any draw at some stage to get us in the game.”

He added: “I didn’t think there was much between us in that firsthalf. I thought Wigan finished the half stronger.

“Stefan still feels he grounded the ball when the video referee overruled the on-field decision (for Liam Farrell’s opening try).

“It was a tough second half. Once we didn’t score those points I thought real frustration crept in.

“"Instead of all that effort going into all pulling in the same direction, I think they were all trying individually to try and get something done.

"And that's when you start making mistakes and it all falls apart, the communication isn't as strong and you need so much communication when you're in that sort of situation. I think we lacked composure there.

"That's what Wigan are fantastic at taking advantage of. I thought they were terrific and their defence was terrific as well."

Although Wolves had experienced players on the field to help cope with the situation, wisdom never showed itself.

Smith said: “There was (experience on the field). And some people who aren’t on their best form at the moment.

“They’re frustrated with themselves as well. We’re not buoyant about our recent form and a bid down in confidence at the moment.

“Some of our top players are in top form. Hilly (Chris Hill) keeps churning it out. Some of our more experienced players weren’t in their best form.”

Moving to the final three games, Smith says it is not a case of drumming into the players that the season isn’t over despite falling out of the top-four reckoning.

He said: “It’s about putting in a performance whether you can win a trophy or not.

“That’s what it’s about for us. It doesn’t matter who we are playing or when, you want to go out to play for your badge and play for your teammates. That’s what rugby league is all about.

“I saw enough of that but it was done in individual ways rather than in a group way. That’s what we’ve got to pull together and make sure that we’re all trying hard together, not individually.

“That broke down at times against Wigan where I thought efforts were put in. Poor old Daz Clark couldn’t try any harder at the end of the game but nothing could go right for him. There wasn’t enough composure about us and communications, so people knew what he was doing and he knew what they were doing.

“That’s how it all breaks down, and when it all breaks down it is horrible. It’s a hard place to get out of and that’s what we’ve got to do in the next few games.

“Fortunately we’ve got a few weeks now. We’ve been a bit busted in confidence and a bit down on form but we’ve got two weeks to work hard and get that back now.”

Smith was asked if he could have foreseen the current situation a month ago (Wolves have lost four on the run, been knocked out of the Challenge Cup and dropped out of the top-four reckoning since a 44-6 win at play-offs challengers Castleford).

He said: "I wouldn't have seen it this week, with the way the players have trained, and we just talked about that.

"They've been terrific in training this week. They didn't see it coming, I didn't see it coming.

"To be fair, there wasn't a lot in it in that first half. We just needed a break or two and it could have been 12-0 to us.

"We didn't get the ball down, we needed a couple of breaks here and there.

"That's how momentum can work and confidence can come quickly and leave quickly sometimes as well.

"In this last month, we wouldn't have envisaged that we were going to go through a tough period like this.

"We felt really good and we felt really good heading into this game as well."