Wakefield Trinity’s rise from relegation to a first Super League Grand Final

Wakefield Trinity will play in their first Super League Grand Final against Warrington Wolves at Old Trafford on Saturday 3 October, two years after competing in the second-tier Championship. A 33-6 semi-final win over league leaders Wigan put Wakefield in the final and guaranteed that the competition will have a first-time champion. The match is scheduled to kick off at 6pm.

The final is the latest step in a turnaround that began after Wakefield’s relegation in 2023. The club won promotion at the first attempt, reached the Super League play-offs in 2025 and has now advanced beyond them. Warrington, who last appeared in a Grand Final in 2018, are also seeking their first Super League title.

How Wakefield reached the Grand Final

Wakefield’s decisive result came at Wigan, winners of the League Leaders’ Shield. Trinity took a narrow lead into the second half before Tom Johnstone, Jack Sinfield and Corey Hall scored three tries in quick succession. Further second-half tries from Ky Rodwell, Mason Lino and Max Jowitt completed the 33-6 win. Super League recorded the score as 6-33 from Wigan’s perspective.

The result set up a meeting with Warrington, who edged Leeds Rhinos in the other semi-final. Ewan Irwin’s penalty in the 65th minute made the difference after the teams had been level at half-time. Their meeting means a new name will go on the Super League trophy for a second consecutive year, following Hull KR’s first title in 2025.

What changed after relegation in 2023

Wakefield dropped out of Super League at the end of 2023, ending a 20-year run in the top division. Local businessman and supporter Matt Ellis took control around that time. The Guardian reports that £10m has been invested under Ellis, although its report does not give an itemised accounting of that figure.

The club also changed at Belle Vue. Planning permission for redevelopment arrived in 2023, according to the Guardian, and work on the ground accompanied investment in the playing squad. Former owner Michael Carter had worked to keep the club going and to advance the stadium plans before selling to Ellis. The turnaround has several contributors, even if the change of ownership provides a clear marker in its recent history.

Players described the earlier conditions in stark terms to the Guardian. Pitts said the stadium had been broken and leaking and that the club lacked money to address its problems. Johnstone recalled poor facilities and training conditions from his earlier years at Wakefield. He told the newspaper that local residents now call out their good wishes when he walks his son to school.

On the field, Wakefield won all three trophies available in the Championship in 2024, according to the Guardian’s report on their return to Super League. Powell, appointed during the rebuild, led the club back to the top division. Wakefield then reached the play-offs in their first season back before going one step further this year.

What the final means for Wakefield

Support has grown alongside the results. The Guardian reported an attendance of 8,065 at Wakefield’s Super League homecoming in February 2025, compared with 4,710 at their final home match of 2023. Its October 2026 report says average crowds have risen from below 5,000 three years ago to more than 9,000 this season; the article does not publish the underlying attendance dataset.

Pitts, who plans to retire after the final, has experienced both ends of that shift. The Guardian reported that Wakefield’s Grand Final merchandise had sold out before reaching the club shop. Ellis is considering whether Belle Vue might need further redevelopment to meet demand in 2027, but no additional project is confirmed in the report.

The finalists have already beaten each other once in the league this season. Wakefield’s club says Warrington won 27-16 in February, while Trinity won their round 26 meeting 25-18. Those results establish how closely contested their season meetings have been; the title, the final attendance and any longer-term effect on Wakefield’s support will be decided or measured later.