Reds routed by the new Offiah

It brought the winger, 19, one of Warrington's homegrown discoveries rather than one of their expensive signings, an eight-minute hat-trick as Salford Reds went down to another painful defeat.

Salford coach Shaun McRae, brought in to stave off relegation, said: "Penny's probably the quickest player in Super League. He's a real prospect.

"But that doesn't concern me because we know what will happen if we don't turn this round quickly. We need to improve before we play Warrington again in our last game of the season."

Penny's devastating finishing in the final quarter, crowning his hat-trick with a 60-metre run to outstrip two Salford defenders, may well cost the opponents around £1million if they lose their place in the top flight.

Warrington coach Paul Cullen knows he has a jewel in Penny.

"He's never looked back since he got his chance. His pace is there for all to see. He's capable of going all the way to the top."

Wolves were already taking Salford apart before Penny scored his opening try in the 65th minute. They held a 20-point advantage even after losing substitute Michael Sullivan with a broken arm in the first half-hour.

And if Penny deserved to steal the headlines - he has now scored nine tries in six games - Warrington enjoyed major contributions from half back Chris Bridge, Great Britain enforcer Adrian Morley and the returning duo of Vinnie Anderson and Martin Gleeson.

Bridge, after a succession of injuries, has looked superb on his comeback. His expertise with the ball was the catalyst of their win while Morley softened up the Salford pack.

Warrington are still outside the top six but they are improving sufficiently to get there. Skipper Lee Briers directed them round the pitch with all his familiar guile.

First-half tries from Jon Clarke, Ben Westwood, Henry Fa'afili and Briers helped Warrington into a 22-6 lead at the break, Salford fading after an early try from Luke Dorn.

Salford, however, started without five senior players and then lost Ian Sibbit (calf), Mark Edmondson (ankle) and Gray Viane (blurred vision).

But McRae offered no excuses: "I hoped we'd respond after a heavy defeat by Wakefield but we didn't cope with the conditions or pose enough of a challenge."