Wigan snatched a dramatic last-minute victory to deny Leeds the chance to return to the top of the engage Super League.

The Rhinos, who kicked off the Easter programme with a nail-biting 18-14 win at Bradford, were on the receiving end in the last holiday fixture as Warriors centre Phil Bailey grabbed the match-winning try in the last move of a tense match.

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.

Hugely-influential half-backs Trent Barrett and Thomas Leuluai combined with skipper Sean O'Loughlin to work the ball out wide for Bailey to crash past Danny McGuire for the winning try and secure a win that lifts Wigan to fourth in the table.

It was the culmination of an heroic effort from the Warriors, who had two players, Great Britain forwards Stuart Fielden and Gareth Hock, sin-binned for technical offences.

The Rhinos, buoyant after their win over previous leaders Bradford, had enough opportunities to win the game comfortably but Wigan have an impressive record at Headingley and, stung by their emphatic derby defeat by St Helens, were certainly in the mood to spring an upset.

They were committed and ferocious in the tackle and, with Barrett pulling the strings, caused plenty of problems for the Leeds defence.

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.

A tense and tight half then suddenly came to life as play swung from end to end, with both sides creating and spurning chances.

Leeds, who had Ryan Bailey placed on report for a high tackle on Fielden and lost second rower Ali Lauitiiti with a leg injury, ought to have made more of a clean break by Sinfield while second rower Gareth Ellis failed to ground the ball when he reached 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 touched down a loose ball over the Wigan line but video referee Ian Smith ruled the ball had been grounded by a defender.

It looked a tough call 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.