A first home play-off since 2009 is a step on Wakefield Trinity’s journey towards winning major silverware, according to coach Daryl Powell.

Trinity’s fourth-place finish in Betfred Super League secured an elimination tie against Leigh Leopards, who were fifth, at DIY Kitchens Stadium, Belle Vue, on Friday. That’s remarkable progress for a club who were playing in the second-tier Championship just two years ago, but Powell reckons it’s only the start.

He insisted: “We are on a bit of a journey and being a consistent top-four club is part of that journey to having a chance of winning something. That’s what we are after, that is the progression of the club. When that happens, I am not 100 per cent sure, but we are going to be in the fight and that’s the most important thing.”

A home tie was Trinity’s target at the start of the campaign, after they finished sixth last term and were beaten at Leigh in an elimination play-off. “It’s what you go for all year - that’s why you talk about top-two or top-four,” Powell stressed.

Wakefield Trinity's Caleb Hamlin-Uele and Leigh Leopards' Umyla Hanley with the Betfred Super League trophy at Old Trafford this week. Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com.

placeholder image — Wakefield Trinity's Caleb Hamlin-Uele and Leigh Leopards' Umyla Hanley with the Betfred Super League trophy at Old Trafford this week. Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com.

“Top-two gives you a week off, top-four gives you a home game. We are in a great position - we have played most of the top-six in the last few weeks and we have given ourselves a chance.”

A trio of losses in August threatened to derail Trinity’s season, but they bounced back by winning their final three games of the regular campaign including an impressive 19-8 result at Leigh last week to ensure fourth place. “You can’t have good defeats, but two of those were not far off,” Powell reflected.

“I thought we were good against Wigan and really good against Leeds for large parts of the game. I feel like we are in a good place mentally, and physically we are all right so we are looking forward to the challenge.”

Cameron Scott scores for Wakefield Trinity during last week's win at Leigh Leopards. Picture by Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com.

It is the second successive year Trinity have played host to Leopards a week after winning there in a different competition. In 2025 Wakefield were beaten 20-12 in the Challenge Cup just seven days after a 40-14 Super League victory at Leigh Sports Village.

“We haven’t talked too much about that,” Powell insisted. “We’ve just taken each game as it comes. We wanted to win last week and we knew that would give us a chance to play in front of our own fans.

“It will be a great atmosphere and I feel like we are in a good vein of form. In the second-half against Warrington I thought we were unbelievable and the first half against Leigh we were rock-solid. We’ve had a couple of really good performances the last couple of weeks.”

Trinity are without Jayden Myers because of concussion so Kian McGann has been drafted into their 21-man squad. Leigh’s only change sees Ben McNamara, who finished the regular season on loan at Castleford Tigers, recalled in place of Robbie Mulhern (calf muscle injury).

Wakefield Trinity's Jayden Myers has been ruled out of Friday's play-off against Leigh Leopards after failing a head injury assessment during last week's win at the same opponents. Picture by Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com.

Wakefield Trinity: from Jowitt, Scott, Hall, Johnstone, Trueman, Lino,McMeeken, Smoothy, Rodwell, Tevaga,Pitts, Hamlin-Uele, Faatili, Smith, Vagana, Walmsley, Sinfield, Williams, Lipowicz, McGann, Guler.

Leigh Leopards: from Armstrong, Hanley, Charnley, Cook, Lam, Ofahengaue, Ipape, Trout, Liu, Alick-Wiencke, Davis, Horne, Senior, Towse, O’Brien, Hughes, Badrock, McNamara, Brogan, Wilde, Ashworth.

Referee: Chris Kendall (Huddersfield). Kick-off: Friday, 8pm.