LEIGH Leopards’ play-off dreams were left in tatters after coming face-to-face with an imperious Wigan side who show no sign of wanting to relinquish their Super League title.

Having been in must-win games for more or less the last three months of the season, it took a gutsy effort from Leigh to battle through to the semi-finals for the first time.

But they were blown away 38-0 by a Warriors who held al the aces on both sides of the ball and who ruthlessly punished every error to bring Leigh's season to an end. 

It felt like a different Leigh side to the one that beat Salford last week and Saints a fortnight earlier, and there were signs that this was a game too far despite a strong opening 10 minutes or so.

Errors in particular killed them, starting with an unlucky bobble in fielding a kick from Matt Moylan.

Off the back of that Wigan put the ball through hands for Jai Field to send Liam Marshall in on the right for the opener.

It was the shape of things to come for the Leopards - dealing Wigan's physicality in the middle and coping with some classy ball movement and shift plays.

A promising Leigh move was halted by a crunching Adam Keighran tackle that dislodged the ball from Moylan’s grasp.

It gave Wigan the position to hammer the Leopards’ line with tall second rower Sam Walters stretching over.

Leigh continued to have a crack but their best opportunity to breach the Warriors line was snuffed out when Miski intercepted Ricky Leutele’s scoring pass close to the line and it it needed a determined cover tackle from Lachlan Lam to stop another Wigan try.

Wigan did end this particular phase with a penalty for offside, which Keighran converted to make it 12-0.

Had Leigh got to half time with the score limited to that, then there was still hope for the large army of travelling fans.

Alas, the game was more or less put to bed with Marshall’s second try on the left from another Field long pass.

Keighran’s conversion sent the Warriors in at 18-0 the break – and the mountain Leopards had to climb became mission impossible when Aaron Pene lost the ball in the first collision of the second half and Walters crossed for his second.

A solo effort from Bevan French, which utterly bamboozled the jaded Leigh defence and a long-range effort from the scrum from Field blew the scoreline out to 38.

After an injury-hit start to the season it has been some effort by Leigh to get here, and the side now breaks up with some significant departures.

But they were way off the pace against Matty Peet’s red-hot Warriors outfit who now head to Old Trafford.

Wigan: Field, Miski, Keighran, Wardle, Marshall, French, Smith, Havard, Leeming, Thompson, Nsemba, Walters, Ellis. Subs: Byrne, Mago, Dupree, Forber.

Leigh: Moylan, Hardaker, Leutele, Hanley, McIntosh, O'Brien, Lam, Amone, Ipape, Mulhern, Holmes, Hughes, Asiata. Subs: Trout, Pene, Davis, Dwyer.

Referee: Chris Kendall.