Champions Saints moved within one win of capturing the League Leaders Shield with with a mostly trouble free 38-12 success over Hull Kingston Rovers.
Since wobbling wildly at Salford Kristian Woolf’s side have steadied their ship. Wins over Castleford, Hull FC and now the Robins have helped maintain a six-point lead over Wigan at the top of the table. With a little assistance from Wakefield whose 30-12 walloping of the Warriors on August 14 was among the more surprising outcomes of the 2022 season. Saints now require just one more win - with a visit to the DW Stadium next on the schedule - to secure a first top of the table finish under Woolf and a first since Justin Holbrook’s 2019 Grand Final-winning farewell season.
For Rovers this defeat - while probably not unexpected - left their playoff hopes hanging by a thread. In fact if it is possible to hang by anything weaker than a thread then that is about where they are. Interim coach Danny McGuire’s team now lie four points outside the top six with three games to play. They must win those remaining games against Wakefield, Wigan and Hull FC and hope that two of Leeds Rhinos, Salford Red Devils and Castleford Tigers falter badly in the run-in. Injuries have derailed the second half of KR’s campaign. Prior to that Tony Smith’s announcement of his intention to leave the club provided a further distraction especially when he then went with immediate effect rather than holding on until the end of the season. Against that backdrop it was always going to be hard for Rovers to emulate last season’s semi-final appearance.
Woolf was able to call on Jack Welsby for this one after the increasingly influential star missed last week’s 60-6 shoeing of Hull FC. Yet the coach was again without the injured Sione Mata’utia and the often suspended Curtis Sironen. Adding to the issues in the back row was the one game ban handed down to Morgan Knowles for a shoulder charge during Saints’ MKM Stadium cake walk. It meant that both James Bell and Jake Wingfield earned rare starts. Will Hopoate started back to back games for the first time in a month and for only the fourth time in his first season with Saints. Predictably, worryingly, he would not make it past half-time.
McGuire was without star man Shaun Kenny-Dowall and just as many backs as Saints were missing. None of Ben Crooks, Ethan Ryan, Sam Wood or Jordan Abdull were on deck. Matt Parcell was on the suspended list but with both Rowan Milnes and Mikey Lewis available Jez Litten was able to revert to the number nine role having been filling in at halfback. McGuire gave a debut to 17 year-old Connor Barley on the wing. Albert Vete was available off the bench but the visitors had to do without Korbin Sims and ex-Saint Greg Richards.
Saints made the faster start, presented with an opportunity after George King lost the ball on his own 20 metre line on the opening set of the game. Konrad Hurrell threatened the Rovers line before the ball was stripped from his grasp in a two-man tackle. Tommy Makinson is now firmly back on goal-kicking duties and slotted over an easy penalty to give Saints a 2-0 lead. Some may have been underwhelmed by the decision to take the two points given that Saints were at home against a side that they’d expect to beat and who arrived in a world of personnel pain. Yet so early on and with the game still scoreless it seemed reasonable to nudge a couple of points ahead and build from there.
Anyone unhappy at that decision didn’t have to wait long for a Saints try. They’d been helped out of their own end from the restart by a Robins hand getting to a pass intended for Makinson, giving Saints another set of six to build an attack. The end result of that was the winger’s 20th try of the season. James Roby, Jonny Lomax and Welsby all combined to allow Makinson to dive in at the right corner. A characteristically powerful surge from Alex Walmsley had brought the defence in a couple of plays earlier. Makinson landed a beautiful conversion from the right hand touchline and Saints led 8-0.
The home side missed out on the chance to add a second try when Hurrell could not take Hopoate’s bullet pass inside the Rovers 10 metre line. McGuire’s men then threatened to hit back when Lachlan Coote - returning to St Helens for the second time since his move east thanks to the vagaries of loop fixtures - found an intelligent pass to put Barley away on the right hand touchline. Yet the youngster understandably lacked a little bit of composure as his attempted pass inside to the supporting Lewis went forward. It was so far forward in fact that Lewis could not take it in.
Lewis’ evening wasn’t get any better. His next major involvement was a strange one. Makinson had got away again down the Saints right after a nice pass from Hurrell, but with the cover awaiting an opportunity to put him into touch Makinson kicked ahead. Lewis found himself closest to it for Rovers but instead of gathering it or even falling on it he came up with an eccentric kick which wobbled it’s way back towards Makinson’s wing. The Saints man succeeded where Lewis had failed in collecting it but credit goes to the Rovers man in recovering enough to help Coote bring Makinson down just short of the line. The ball came loose as Makinson attempted to stretch over in the tackle and the chance was lost.
But it would be foolish to think you can keep the best winger in the competition down for long. With a sense of inevitability Makinson soon added his second of the night. Saints had forced a dropout after Lomax’s kick was taken dead by Lewis. That after Saints had been gifted the field position when Jimmy Keinhorst went high on Roby. The finish was a little more straightforward this time as Roby, Lomax, Hopoate and Hurrell moved the ball quickly to offer enough space for Makinson to walk in at the corner. His 21st four-pointer of the season was his 168th for Saints in 284 appearances. A strike rate of 0.6 tries per game. Or to put it another way better than one in every two games.
It also leaves him third among all try scorers in Super League in 2022 behind only former Rover Ken Sio and someone called Bevan French. This is the third season that Makinson has broken through the 20-try barrier and the first since the last campaign unaffected by Covid in 2019. He is four short of his best ever season tally of 25 which was achieved during another Grand Final winning year in 2014. Unfortunately he could not add the extras to his latest work, missing for the one and only time all night as Saints’ lead stayed at 12-0.
Saints’ next try was probably the game highlight, and arguably the one which put the result beyond any genuine doubt. Welsby started and finished it, sending a glorious cut out ball to Bennison on the left before supporting the young winger and taking the return to score. It was genuinely a thing of beauty and showed just why Welsby’s name now routinely crops up when the conversation turns to the identity of Super League’s best players. Another Makinson conversion pushed Saints out to an 18-0 advantage.
Anything Welsby can do - Lomax can do just as well. The more senior halfback partner found a similar ball to Bennison who attempted to find Ben Davies with a low kick. Lewis - who to this point had spent far more time scrambling around trying to put out fires and avert danger than he had orchestrating KR attacks - was again in the way but could only knock the ball dead for a goal line dropout. The restart was botched by Coote. His drop-kick sailed over the touchline without ever threatening to hit grass on its way out. That gave Saints a penalty directly in front of the posts. An easy two was not an opportunity that Saints were going to turn down given that it would mean Rovers would need to score four times to mount a hugely unlikely comeback. Makinson did the honours for a 20-0 lead.
There was no further scoring before the break, though Saints might have added to their tally had Agnatius Paasi not put down Roby’s pass five metres from the try line. In response the hitherto quiet Milnes put a searching kick in behind the Saints defence but Welsby read it well and covered up the loose ball before a lurking Ryan Hall could latch on to it.
With the win all but sewn up the week’s big talking point from a Saints point of view came up when the teams emerged for the restart. Hopoate was not among the Saints 13. Welsby had to be shifted to fullback and Roby was again pressed into action alongside Lomax in the halves. Joey Lussick came off the bench to take over the hooking role from the captain. More reshuffling of the sort that hasn’t always worked out well for Woolf’s side, particularly in terms of their attack.
That is just how important Hopoate could be to this side. He offers balance, especially with Lewis Dodd out. With Welsby at fullback there is then no natural partner for Lomax. You could ask Roby to paint your house or fix your tumble dryer and he’d probably do a decent job, but there is no doubt that there is a drop off in fluidity in the Saints attack without a more natural half alongside Lomax. This has to be a major concern for Woolf going into not only the trip to Wigan on Friday (August 26) but also ahead of the knockout games to come. I say games. Plural. There may only be one if we can’t find better solutions to Hopoate’s absence and that of Dodd. It’s probably not going to stop Saints winning the League Leaders Shield - such is their advantage - but it is a real concern beyond that.
Perhaps still pondering his mistake close to the line at the end of the first half, Paasi set about making up for it early in the second. Taking the ball at his own 25 metre mark the Tongan prop was met by three Rovers defenders around the 30. He spun his way out of that tight spot before setting off on a riotous, anarchic 35m run which was only ended inside the visitors’ 40. That allowed Saints to force a goal-line dropout as Makinson’s kick into the in-goal made it too difficult for Coote to escape. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook had been held up just short on the previous play.
Coote was having a torrid time under his own sticks. Having already butchered one dropout leading to two more Saints points he managed it again. This time his clearance did not travel the requisite 10 metres. Two more points would have been a given but with a 20-0 lead Saints were in the mood to chance their collective arm a little more. Having been held up over the line by a posse of defenders Lussick made no mistake with his next opportunity. He burrowed over from dummy half for his fourth try of the season and his third in his last four games. With Roby being moved around to cover injuries perhaps it is no surprise that the greater number of minutes now being offered to the ex-Salford man is translating into more points. It was another easy conversion for Makinson for a 26-0 lead.
At which point a couple of things started to go against Saints. McCarthy-Scarsbrook was taken from the field for an HIA. I shall resist the temptation to make an achingly obvious gag about his brain. McCarthy-Scarsbrook’s exit (LMexit?) brought Matty Lees back into the action. Saints then fluffed an opportunity to score again as an excellent exchange of passes between Makinson and Hurrell came to nothing when the former’s pass to Lomax was ruled forward by referee Chris Kendall.
At which point the Robins scored. There was a touch of fortune in how they retained possession when Coote’s wayward looking pass was deflected into touch 10 metres inside the KR half. From the ensuing set Litten and Coote caused havoc in the Saints defence before Vete found Kane Linnett on his shoulder for a simple try. McGuire’s men were on the board, but a very kickable conversion was missed by the normally reliable Coote. It wasn’t only the dropouts which were proving challenging for the 3-time Grand Final winner. Rovers were not exactly back in the contest at 26-4 but they had at least saved themselves the ignominy of the duck egg.
Yet no sooner had they got on the scoreboard than KR were handing the initiative back to their hosts. Frankie Halton came up with an error inside his own 40, compounded by the rest of his team as Kendall pinged them for offside. That set up the position for another bit of Welsby magic, this time sending a looping pass out to Bennison. He hit it in stride and had the simple task of diving over for his third try of the season and his fourth in 14 first team appearances in a breakout year. Makinson proved that he can kick them from both touchlines when he’s at his best, popping over his sixth goal of the night. The lead was now 28 points at 32-4.
Sam Royle played three times on loan for Rovers recently. Getting a rare chance off the bench thanks to Saints’ back row issues he unfortunately found himself helping them again when he came up with an error from the restart. This time Coote’s kicking game did come up trumps as his short kick-off proved problematic for Royle.
That led to Rovers second try. Milnes kicked right to left making it a contest between two international wingers in Makinson and Hall. The former Leeds man was prevented from notching his 225th Super League try in pursuit of McGuire’s all-time record of 247. But in stopping Hall Makinson somehow managed to present possession straight to Keinhorst just a few metres out. Lomax put in a desperate tackle but Keinhorst - another of Hull KR’s former Rhinos herd - was able to shrug him off and score. Coote could not convert a more difficult attempt from out on the left so the gap was still 24 points at 32-8.
Another try for the visiting side hardly put the wind up Saints who were comfortable on the scoreboard, but it would have made Woolf a little more tetchy. This is a side built on the principle of doing everything possible to keep their line from being breached. Without going all Wigan Warriors about it, mind. So the ease with which another cross-field kick caused chaos in the Saints rearguard will have been a concern to the coach. This time it was Litten airing one out from left to right. Keinhorst - popping up everywhere by now - hauled it in and fed Halton who put Barley over for a debut score. On a night that few associated with Rovers will care to remember young Barley made himself the exception. A try scoring debut against the threepeat champions in their own back yard is a good story to tell wherever his career goes from here. Meanwhile Coote’s night to forget continued as he missed with another conversion. Whether linked to his fuzzy kicking performance or not, it was revealed after the game that Coote’s first season with Hull KR will end prematurely after a third concussion of the year.
KR are right to take every precaution possible with concussions, particularly with a player in the autumn of his career. We have seen first hand at Saints how similar issues put paid to Lance Hohaia’s playing days (with a little help from that infamous Wigan ‘defence’) while the denouement of Stevie Ward’s time at Leeds should still act as a cautionary tale. I wish any player all the luck in the world in overcoming these sorts of problems and especially Coote who has done more than most to make Saints the dominant force in the game since his 2019 arrival. Anyone who has the power to stop an entire fan base worrying about the departure of Ben Barba has something special about them.
Barley provided two more moments of genuine excitement before the end. First he made a scintillating break down the right straight from the restart after his own try. Then he went in again only to be denied a double when Kendall ruled that there had been an obstruction in the build-up. Sixty-five metres on eight carries with four tackle busts and that debut try is not a bad stat line for such a young man playing in a side which ultimately was well beaten.
As if to put the exclamation point on their dominance Saints had the last word. Davies crossed for their sixth try of the night. Chalk it up as another assist for Lomax who delivered the killer ball after receiving possession from Lussick. Lomax now has 18 assists in 2022. He is closing in on the 20 mark, a feat which has only been achieved by six men so far this season. One of those is Welsby, whose 25 assists place him behind only Jake Connor and Tui Lolohea on this year’s chart. For his part, Davies’ try was his sixth in 13 appearances in 2022. Not bad for a player who had made only two first team appearances - both in demonstrably weakened sides - coming into this season.
Another conversion gave Makinson his sixth goal of seven attempts and a personal points haul of 22. His success rate of 64.9% is an improvement on what it was just a couple of weeks ago, suggesting that some extra work on the training field is being done. Saints may need it if things get tight and there is no prospect of Dodd returning to action before the start of 2023.
The game ended how much of the first half had panned out, with Saints threatening to score. This time it was Welsby, hunting a second try as Lomax kicked straight from a scrum. Phoenix Laulu Togaga’e (easy for Bill Arthur to say) beat Welsby to it on what turned out to be the last play of the game.
As well as that impressive points total Makinson had a big night statistically. He led all comers in metres made with another 190. He now has 2,679 for the season which is more than all but five others in Super League and 170 ahead of Walmsley who is the next Saint on the list in ninth. Bennison showed his worth with 155 to add to his try while it was another big night for Paasi with 130. Welsby (109), Lees (105), Walmsley (102), McCarthy-Scarsbrook (102, yes really) and Davies (100) were the other Saints to hit the hundred mark. Tellingly, only centre Will Tate managed it for Rovers as he gained 118.
Joe Batchelor was fairly anonymous in attack but still managed to be Saints top tackler with 27. It was another night when topping 30 just wasn’t necessary for the league leaders. That extra juice in the tank may prove handy when the bigger games come along. Most of the defensive work was done by McGuire’s side with Saints dominating large parts of the game. Litten had the high mark with 38 tackles while Elliot Minchella and Halton both managed 36.
Saints got Rovers on the edges with Makinson (5) and Bennison (4) accounting for 9 of the team total of 12 breaks. By contrast Rovers managed only five with two of those coming from Barley late on. Litten also breached the Saints line on a couple of occasions. The error count was quite low with Rovers committing only seven and Saints nine. When you make only seven errors but concede six tries it does perhaps say something about your defensive resolve or the ruthlessness of your opponents. Or both. The offload count of 13 for Rovers and 11 for Saints may also suggest a closer game than the one we actually saw.
Kendall - finally sick of being blamed for everything from the cost of living to the colour scheme of the England Rugby League World Cup shirt - kept his whistle in his pocket for the most part as the visitors conceded eight penalties to only five by Saints. That is a commendable effort from the champions for whom discipline has been almost as big a headache as the injury list in recent times. For once there was not even the merest hint of a card, which again seems remarkable with Kendall in charge. Perhaps there has been yet another flip by his officiating overlords and we will see fewer as the season reaches its most serious stage. Perhaps…
And so - whether you care or not - one more win will earn top spot. Woolf has named a pretty strong squad for the visit to Wigan, our final away game of the regular season. This is slightly surprising as I expect him to rest players at some point before the playoffs and club bean counters tend to prefer you to do it for away games if you are going to do it at all. If weakened squads are announced for the two remaining home games against Wakefield and Toulouse they will be a hard sell. One name not included in the 21 for Wigan is that of Hopoate. There will be more reorganising for Woolf and more worry for this observer about the effect on our attack.
Perhaps the solution to the question of whether to play weakened teams is to rest a few in each of those home matches rather than stand everyone down en masse as Woolf did at Castleford earlier in the year. Yet the Wakefield game comes just three days after the derby as Super League continues with an increasingly unpopular policy of double header weekends. If anyone can see any possible motive for continuing with them besides the fact that they leave more dates free for equally unpopular loop fixtures (of which Hull KR and Wakefield at home are examples) then do holler.
The motive appears purely financial but if coaches respond by resting great swathes of their first team then fans will catch on and the money through the gate will surely not justify the down sides. It will be interesting to see if shadowy, corporate solution to everything IMG have any plans for loop fixtures and double headers following their recent fan lip service survey.
I’m normally a stickler for playing the strongest team possible but if Saints secure the League Leaders Shield by winning at Wigan I might just let any selection grumbles in the final two games pass. But I just can’t help but worry about our fullback/halfback situation with Hopoate out.
Saints: Hopoate, Makinson, Hurrell, Davies, Bennison, Welsby, Lomax, Walmsley, Roby, Lees, Bell, Batchelor, Wingfield. Interchanges: Lussick, Paasi, McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Royle
Hull KR: Coote, Barley, Tate, Keinhorst, Hall, Milnes, Lewis, Storton, Litten, King, Halton, Linnett, Minchella. Interchanges: Vete, Maher, Laulu Togaga’e, Fishwick
Referee: Chris Kendall
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