Last-gasp Bailey denies Rhinos

Leeds came from 16-4 down to edge into an 18-16 lead with 11 minutes to go and they had a chance to seal victory when centre Clinton Toopi reached the line only to drop the ball.

Great Britain centre Keith Senior then passed into touch to concede a scrum 30 metres out and Wigan maintained their composure to set up the position for the all-important score with hugely-influential half-backs Trent Barrett and Thomas Leuluai combining to set up Bailey to crash past Danny McGuire for the winning try which lifts Wigan to fourth in the table.

The visitors opened the scoring with an eighth-minute penalty from Pat Richards but Leeds claimed the first try three minutes later. Scrum-half Rob Burrow worked a run-around with full-back Brent Webb and Senior proved unstoppable from 10 metres out as he took his opposite number Bailey over the line with him.

Kevin Sinfield failed with the conversion and Leeds fell behind on 24 minutes when Wigan second rower Bryan Fletcher won the race to Leuluai's grubber kick to the line.

Wigan, who should have scored when full-back Michael Withers broke clear, were reduced to 12 men just before the break when Fielden was sin-binned for persistent laying-on. And they were still a man short when they extended their lead five minutes into the second half thanks largely to danger man Barrett.

The former Australia stand-off scooped a stray Leeds pass to set up an attack and it was from his stabbed kick that former Leeds winger Mark Calderwood raced in for a try against his old team-mates. Richards kicked the touchline conversion and added a 40-metre penalty six minutes later to stretch his side's lead to 16-4.

Leeds thought they had pulled a try back on 58 minutes when Danny McGuire had a touchdown disallowed by video referee Ian Smith but the Rhinos maintained the pressure from the goal-line drop-out and the ever-dangerous Burrow, bloodied but unbowed from a high shot by Fielden, went on a typical weaving run and stretched his 5ft 5in frame to reach the line.

And the scores were level on 64 minutes when Ellis took Sinfield's pass off balance and virtually stumbled over the line backwards. Sinfield's second conversion levelled the scores and his restored his side's lead five minutes later with a penalty after Wigan second rower Gareth Hock was sin-binned for holding down in the tackle.

Leeds should have then sealed it when Ellis picked up a loose pass 15 metres out from the Wigan line and offloaded to the supporting Toopi only for the Kiwi to lose control of the ball over the line. They still looked the more likely winners until Senior's blunder which was punished ruthlessly by his opposite number.