Warrington ease to victory over Leeds to reach Challenge Cup final

Warrington Wolves 48-12 Leeds Rhinos: Wingers Josh Charnley and Tom Lineham each grabbed two tries and stand-off Kevin Brown scored the 150th of his career

Warrington will now meet Catalans Dragons in the final (PA)

Australian Steve Price will lead Warrington out at Wembley in his first season as a Super League head coach after watching his side overcome struggling Leeds 48-12 at Bolton.

Price took over a Wolves team that finished in the bottom four last season but now has realistic hopes of completing the double.

Wingers Josh Charnley and Tom Lineham each grabbed two tries and stand-off Kevin Brown scored the 150th of his career on his 400th appearance as Price's men set up a meeting with surprise finalists Catalans Dragons in the Ladbrokes Challenge Cup final on 25 August.

The teams will meet at the Halliwell Jones Stadium on Friday night for a dress rehearsal in the opening round of the Super 8s.

While Warrington can savour a fifth Wembley appearance in the last 10 years, Leeds will be able to concentrate on their fight for survival via the Qualifiers and, on this showing, they can take nothing for granted.

It takes three men to bring down Warrington's Tom Lineham (PA)

Still coming to terms with the Dragons' stunning 35-16 destruction of St Helens in the first semi-final, the sell-out 26,086 crowd at Bolton might have sensed another upset when Leeds scored the opening try through Ryan Hall but order was restored long before the end of the double-header.

Warrington made the more impressive start and, after darting runs from hooker Daryl Clark and scrum-half Tyrone Roberts, they opened the scoring with a 10th-minute penalty goal from Roberts, the first of his eight successful kicks at goal.

Hall, one of seven fit-again players brought back into the Leeds side, struck with the first try, evading his opposite number Charnley with a run from dummy half and using his brute force to take two other defenders over the line with him.

Liam Sutcliffe's conversion put the Rhinos into a 6-2 lead and they were attacking promisingly once more when they lost possession near the Wolves tryline, and Lineham scored a breakaway try through the heart of the Leeds defence to bring the scores level.

Roberts added the conversion to nudge Warrington back in front and they ran in three further tries before the break to establish a stranglehold.

Richie Myler scores but his try was subsequently disallowed (PA)

Centre Toby King outjumped Hall to collect the ball from Roberts' high kick to get Charnley over for his first try and Brown jinked his way over for his landmark score before burly substitute Ben Murdoch-Masila proved unstoppable from 20 metres out.

Trailing 26-6 at the break, prop Adam Cuthbertson gave the Rhinos a glimmer of renewed hope when he took Brad Dwyer's pass to crash over for his side's second try and scrum-half Richie Myler claimed another shortly afterwards only to be brought back for a forward pass.

The Rhinos' spirits were finally broken on 57 minutes when man of the match Clark broke clear in midfield and sent Charnley racing over for his second try and Toby King piled on the agony with a long-range effort.

Roberts kept the scoreboard ticking over with another penalty but lost his 100 per cent record when he failed to convert the Wolves' seventh scored by centre Bryson Goodwin six minutes from the end.

Warrington might have brought up the half-century after Lineham went 80 metres for his second try but replacement marksman Ben Westwood missed the conversion from in front of the posts.

PA