FRIENDLY matches are often played at a snail’s pace with no great commitment from either side. This was not one of those games.

From minute one, Wolves and Widnes went at it like there was two league points or cup progress at stake, just how Tony Smith wanted it to be.

Naturally, there were signs of ring rust in the Wolves side early on which is to be expected as most of the team had not played a competitive game since September.

However, as the game went on Wolves’ young players grew in confidence and stature, perfectly demonstrated by a 12-minute, three-try blitz to win the game.

Widnes made the brighter start, with some lively play ending with Stefan Marsh crossing as The Wire struggled to get a foothold early on.

Their equalising try came from a Vikings error as Marsh dropped a high bomb into the path of Harvey Livett, who crossed to start his impressive individual performance.

Tom Gilmore fed Ryan Ince to nudge Widnes in front before the break, a lead that was extended by Keanan Brand’s flying finish.

Smith made changes, with Benjamin Jullien coming into dummy-half and he showed some good touches, including a well-timed short ball that put captain-for-the-day Ryan Atkins over to narrow the gap to two points.

The game continued to ebb and flow in the chilly post-Christmas weather, with Liam Walsh posting the final points for Denis Betts’ side before Wolves’ late charge.

They needed a slice of fortune as Toby King raced home after Rhys Evans charged down a kick, but you could sense a change in momentum.

Having started in the centres, Livett was now controlling things in the halves as he put in an assured display that impressed his coach.

It was not until seven minutes from the hooter that Wolves took the lead for the first time, with Atkins timing his release of the ball perfectly to send youngster Declan Kay in at the corner.

There was still time for a late flourish as Evans rounded off the scoring in an exercise that everyone connected with Wolves will be extremely pleased with.

Smith will rightly be pleased with the display of some of his younger players, with Livett, Jack Johnson and Morgan Smith particularly impressive.

With some senior players also getting miles in the tank, Wolves are well-placed to take their pre-season preparations to the next level.