Leigh Leopards coach relishing Jackson Hastings reunion as star quality lauded
Adrian Lam and Jackson Hastings suffered a gut-wrenching Grand Final defeat together in 2020
The 2020 Super League Grand Final remains unforgettable: but for some will always carry heartbreak. Adrian Lam and Jackson Hastings are among those.
Lam guided a Wigan side including Jackson Hastings to the showpiece, taking place behind closed doors at the MKM Stadium during the COVID-19 Pandemic.
The Warriors had already won the League Leaders’ Shield, and Hastings was out for redemption against St Helens having lost the 2019 Grand Final against them with Salford Red Devils in the year he was crowned Super League‘s Man of Steel.
But redemption was not to be, with defeat snatched from the jaws of victory. A nip-and-tuck contest was won on the final hooter by a fresh-faced Jack Welsby, dotting the ball down after Tommy Makinson’s attempted drop goal bounced off the sticks.
This weekend, Lam and Hastings reunite for the first time since that night. Lam’s Leigh Leopards side travel to St Helens, whose star off-season recruit was Hastings.
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‘He’s very influential on the game… I’ve no doubt he’ll be like that for Saints this year’
Leigh make the trip to the BrewDog Stadium on Friday night for the Round 2 clash having won their Super League opener last weekend at home against Leeds Rhinos.
Saints meanwhile were beaten at Warrington Wolves in their first game of the league campaign, with Hastings sin-binned in the second half.
Full of praise for the playmaker during his pre-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon, Lam took a comedic jibe at the Saints star.
The Leopards head coach said: “Jackson gave the penalty away with five-and-a-half minutes to go to make it 4-4 (in the 2020 Grand Final)!
“We haven’t been involved as a player-coach since then, but I message him on a regular basis during a season. We keep in touch.
“He’s one of those players, as we saw a few years ago when he won the Man of Steel and even as part of that Wigan group where we made the Grand Final, he’s very influential on the game.
“I’ve no doubt he’ll be like that for Saints this year. He’s bringing a lot of experience to them, and he’s also the ultimate competitor.
“I can’t see him being any different this week than what he is usually.”
