No need to worry about hotel prices in London in early June as Saints were bounced out of the Challenge Cup by Warrington on Sunday afternoon (April 14).
It was a pretty punishing experience for Paul Wellens’ men who slipped to a second consecutive defeat in all competitions after last week’s reverse at Catalans Dragons. But if the Saints Head Coach thought his side had underperformed in Perpignan he was shown just how much poorer his side can be in what became a bit of a one-sided rout. It also marked the first time that Saints have failed to get past the last eight of the Challenge Cup since 2020 when they were beaten by…Warrington.
Wellens made two changes to his starting 13. Waqa Blake was reintroduced at centre after disciplinary issues saw him turning out for the reserves a week ago. That meant that his makeshift replacement Sione Mata’utia returned to a bench spot. The same fate befell Matt Whitley who - after starting the opening eight games of his debut season at Saints in league and cup - was replaced in the starting lineup by Joe Batchelor. Jake Wingfield missed out with a shoulder injury so alongside Whitley and Mata’utia on the bench were regulars James Bell and Moses Mbye.
Wolves boss Sam Burgess also made a couple of alterations to the line-up which had comprehensively beaten Leeds Rhinos last time out. Toby King came into the centres to replace Stefan Ratchford who was named as 18th man. Jordy Crowther switched from prop to loose forward to cover the absence of Ben Currie with Joe Philbin coming back into the front row.
Saints were first to create the faint whiff of a chance but having freed his arms for an offload Curtis Sironen sent it forward towards Blake. The Fijian was then involved at the other end when he was beaten by Connor Wrench from Matt Duffy’s pass but hustled back to prevent the Wire centre from finding Josh Thewlis with a scoring pass.
That spell of Warrington pressure did result in a try, however. George Williams forced Tommy Makinson to concede a goal-line dropout with a well placed kick before Saints gave up back to back restarts in the ensuing raid on their line. That pressure told when James Harrison charged to within five metres of the Saints line to set up the position for the game’s first score.
Danny Walker shifted it right to Williams then Leon Hayes and Dufty before the Wolves’ fullback found Thewlis for a walk-in. Dufty held on to it just long enough to put doubt into the mind of Saints winger Jon Bennison and give Thewlis an easy task. It was an early portent of how Burgess’ side would frequently break down Saints’ previously impregnable defence. Thewlis himself had the goal-kicking responsibility but couldn’t land his first attempt as the lead remained 4-0.
Jack Welsby’s restart went out on the full, offering a glimpse of what was to come at kick-offs as Saints minds became scrambled and the situation on the scoreboard worsened.
Before then the home side found a route back into the contest. Jonny Lomax kicked into space deep in Warrington territory and - whether due to his skilful mastery or a fortuitous bounce - the ball jagged away from Matty Ashton and towards Batchelor. The Saints back rower deftly batted it into the waiting arms of an unmarked Konrad Hurrell for an easy score. Bennison became Saints’ fifth goal-kicker of a season that is only eight games old. The result made you wonder why as he nailed the conversion from the south touchline to put Saints ahead 6-4.
Five minutes later Hurrell was involved in another try-scoring opportunity. This time the Tongan was the would-be creator, finding a flicked pass to Makinson which was ruled forward even as the Saints winger was diving in optimistically in the right hand corner.
This period when Saints were at least creating opportunities to score feels somewhat like a golden age in retrospect. Another chance was spurned when Bennison was released down the left edge by a combination of Welsby and Blake. The latter continued to support the break and was no doubt as surprised as I was when Bennison chose to kick ahead rather than pass. The nearest Saints player to it was suddenly Lewis Dodd but he was met with a textbook shot from Williams as the ball came free.
It was Williams’ turn to be on the end of some physicality soon after as he felt the full force of a Sironen challenge. Unfortunately the ball had long since departed from the ex-Wigan Warrior’s possession. It was 35 metres out but from bang in front Thewlis made no mistake with the penalty attempt to square things at 6-6.
Just when it looked like that would be the state of things at the break Burgess’ side took the lead. Again it was Wrench causing problems in the Saints defence. He busted through Blake and halfway through Dodd before his pass intended for Williams dropped too low and was hacked on by the stand-off. Welsby got in the way sufficiently to prevent a try but from the resulting dropout the visitors carted it towards the Saints line to set up Williams for the drop-goal which gave his side a 7-6 lead at halftime.
The semi-final draw was made at halftime, revealing that the prize for winning this one would be a last four meeting with Huddersfield Giants, with Wigan paired with Hull KR. Given the way Ian Watson’s side have gone about their business so far in 2024 that prospect should have enthused and inspired Saints. It did anything but.
The first sign of things going awry was perhaps the loss of Sironen early in the second half. The former Manly Sea Eagle picked up an arm injury which he never returned from and which threatens his participation beyond this game.
Still the game remained close for the meantime. There was another lead change when Daryl Clark forced some lazily retreating defenders to make tackles from offside positions. That allowed Bennison to step up to land his second goal of the day and give Saints a slender if decidedly shaky looking lead at 8-7.
This is where things started to really get away from our boys. Lomax attempted to make the ensuing restart dead in-goal by placing a foot behind the dead ball line as he caught the kick-off. Unfortunately the Saints skipper proved himself to be someone you wouldn’t want measuring your carpet, misjudging where his feet were placed and so only succeeding in taking it out for a goal-line dropout.
Ashton scored a try of ridiculous quality in the next possession. Fed by a combination of Sam Powell, Hayes, Williams and King the speedy wingman executed a stunning flying finish despite the attentions of Welsby attempting some desperate cover defence. Referee Jack Smith asked for confirmation from video referee Chris Kendall (note to Jonathan Davies - not the TMO) and the try was eventually, rightfully awarded. Thewlis made the blow worse by landing the extra two from the north sideline to open up a five-point lead for the Wolves at 13-8.
Lomax has taken a fair bit of criticism for the restart error which set up the position for Ashton’s effort. Fans have pointed to his vast experience - he debuted for Saints in 2009 and has since turned out 335 times in the red vee - as evidence that this sort of mistake should be beyond him. What is more, many have taken exception with the captain’s perceived reluctance to take responsibility for it. Lomax could be seen asking his teammates somewhat forcefully to communicate better with him to help prevent such basic gaffes.
It may have been a bit rich of the Saints stand-off to start berating others for his error, but might it not have simply been a misguided attempt to provide some leadership? There was something missing all afternoon from this Saints performance emotionally so maybe he thought a stern word about avoidable foul-ups - even those he was personally responsible for - might inject a bit of va va voom into his tepid troops.
The alternative would probably have been to raise a hand in apology and get on with it. That is probably the moral response. It’s probably what James Roby would have done but not Bobbie Goulding. So what type of leader do you want?
The quiet approach arguably wouldn’t have stirred an emotional response and there’s also an argument to say that it might have made others think that things were really going south if the captain is putting his hands up to acknowledge basic ineptitude. The rugby league equivalent of the captain accepting that we’re all going down with the stricken ship. But then there’s also an argument to say that a bit of self reflection and analysis from Lomax might have earned him more empathy from his colleagues and inspired them in a more subtle way. As it was the ship sank spectacularly.
The next indication of the way things were headed wasn’t far away. Bennison charged onto a Dodd pass deep inside his own territory but neglected to secure possession of the ball as he did so. Another set restart later and Wire were claiming what at that point would have been the game breaking try. Lachlan Fitzgibbon crashed over in the tackle of Morgan Knowles, Batchelor and Lomax.
Smith’s view was obscured enough for him to again call on the services of Kendall. Mercifully, it turned out that the big back rower had lost possession in the act of grounding the ball. Batchelor certainly had a hand - both literal and metaphorical - in dislodging it from Fitzgibbon’s grasp but Kendall explained that the Saints man was entitled to touch the ball in his attempt to prevent the try.
It was a short reprieve. Just as news was being delivered that Sironen would not be back Alex Walmsley was dropping a simple pass from Knowles to gift Wire more possession. Ashton was initially held up short but on the next play Williams sent a pinpoint kick across the field where Wrench gratefully grabbed it and touched down almost where he stood. Yet more video scrutiny was called for to determine whether anyone was in front of Williams at the kick or if Dufty had got a fingertip to it on its way to Wrench. The answer was in the negative on both counts. The extras were a formality for Thewlis to put his side 19-8 up.
And so back to short restarts and scrambled brains. Wellens looked a crestfallen figure in his post match press conference in which he referenced many things he did not like about his team’s performance. He made a particular point of questioning the decision to revert to short restarts relatively early in the second half and with the game still well within reach on the scoreboard. The players took it upon themselves to take this particular short cut, he revealed.
He thought it lazy, a sign of a team wanting a quick solution rather than rely on the hard work of kicking it deep, defending well and turning field position back in their favour. It may also have been a sign of a team terminally lacking the confidence and the belief that they could get back into it that way.
Ashton was denied a second try just after the hour mark. Fed by the ubiquitous, dominant Williams as well as King the Warrington winger dribbled ahead twice before winning the race to slam the ball down as it bobbled along the ground in the in-goal area. Over to Kendall again, who this time ruled that Ashton had brushed the ball forward with a hand just before getting his boot to it a second time. Smith’s initial hunch was no try and although the evidence didn’t seem compelling there was certainly enough of a suggestion that Ashton had touched it to persuade Kendall that he should not go against the on-field call.
Despite the fact that he was far less of a factor than you would normally expect an injury to Walmsley was another blow to Saints’ hopes. And perhaps not just in this one. Wellens revealed later that it’s a hamstring problem which is unlikely to have sorted itself out within the five days between this clash and the visit of Hull FC on Friday night (April 19).
Fourteen minutes remained when Williams came up with more bootcraft which by now was making Dodd’s bombs look positively pallid. The ex-Canberra Raider sent another crossfield arrow into dangerous territory where it clanged off the post and was cleaned up by Welsby at the expense of another goal-line dropout.
The fullback seemed to be on the end of a bit of a face rub while on the ground from Fitzgibbon which was the spark for players on both sides to run in for a bit of push and shove. Smith did nothing but give both captains a bit of a talking to which is curious in this era of harsher punishments as deterrents.
At which point Saints suffered a different sort of punishment. The short restart bug passed to the recently introduced Mbye as his dropout fell kindly into the arms of King to give Wire yet another short field.
A set restart gave them more opportunity to exploit it which they duly did when Powell hit Harrison close to the line and the prop crashed over for his side’s fourth try of the day.
It was somewhat needlessly checked with Kendall again, both because it looked a straightforward grounding and because at this point the result wasn’t especially in doubt. We will come on to my bug bear of style of play in good time but even the staunch advocates of the type of Woolfball that Wellens is currently perpetuating won’t have fancied this Saints side to come back from two scores down. It was now three as Harrison got the nod and Thewlis added two more points to make it 25-8.
And still Saints didn’t quit with the short restarts. The next one found King again, setting up the field position for his side’s final try. It was arguably the pick of the five as the ball was shifted right through Harrison and Williams to Dufty who got rid of Dodd with embarrassing ease.
Once the butt of our jokes on this ground as he was humiliated by Bennison’s infamous dummy, Dufty got a bit of his own back with the fend on Dodd and an effortless rounding of Welsby. The Wolves fullback began to lose his balance which prevented him scoring the try himself but he was able to stay upright long enough to hand it on to Williams who fell over the line to cap an outstanding performance. Thewlis’ last conversion ended the scoring at an eye-popping if slightly sobering 31-8. Wembley has rarely felt further away.
In many ways the gulf on the scoreboard is representative of the gulf in pace and guile between the two sides on the day. Bringing Blake back into the fold did little to improve Saints in these areas where they had struggled badly in the defeat in France. Contrast that with the quicksilver scheming of Williams allied to the speed of Wrench, Thewlis and Ashton. Warrington were far keener to shift the ball to an edge quickly to take advantage of their speed. Even when they dominate you rarely see Saints do this anywhere but in the opposition’s 20.
What is potentially more worrying about how Warrington achieved this result is that it may serve as a blueprint for others to follow. Saints’ normally miserly defence sprung leaks left, right and centre once the edge defenders were the ones being challenged. Wellens’ side can defend all day against sides who try to play field position with them with one out drudgery in the middle stripe of the field, but who else will be able to expose them if the mindset of opponents changes?
We’ve already seen a couple of harrowing examples of what can happen against Salford in recent years. Perhaps that has been put down to the Red Devils’ unusually expansive approach which nobody else dared try. But now? Others may follow suit. And there are others in Super League with more speed on the edges than Saints. Do not be mistaken about that. Worrying times.
If we acknowledge these shortcomings how much of them can we attribute to Wellens and his coaching ability? To my mind the calls for him to go coming from the more eccentric corners of social media are still premature. He is only a quarter of the way through his second season in charge. Is our sense of entitlement so great now that a coach has to make a final within that time frame to be tolerated? Even a club legend?
It feels like we’ve been here before on this question. Perhaps the real problem is that we now have a generation of fans who have only ever known success. For those of us of a different vintage it has not all been Super League Grand Finals, Wembley wins and World Club Challenges. Perhaps - as the song goes - if the younger generation hadn’t seen such riches they could live with being poor.
Wellens’ other big problem is his ageing squad. There is no getting away from that. If you take out Welsby, Dodd, Bennison and George Delaney the age profile of the rest of the 17 on duty for this one is unreasonably high.
Was Wellens ok with that when he took over or has he been told that - due to the contractual situations of the players already at the club - those are the cards he must play with? Was Blake - who looks nothing like a solution so far - his idea or was it a panic move by the hierarchy? Whose idea was it to sign Tee Ritson permanently? Surely not Wellens’ as he appears more likely to call me up to the 17 than opt for the Thai-born winger.
Hull FC at home might seem like the sort of fixture that you’ve always hated. An almost guaranteed win against a team in woeful form who’ll no doubt turn up in some infuriating shade of green. Do teams do that so that they can look back on the beating they took in years to come and pretend it isn’t them? Regardless, Saints’ form of the last two weeks has raised a lot of questions and when you couple that with the goings on at Hull during that period there is still some intrigue in the meeting.
Tony Smith - who for my money could still lead a side to silverware and do it in an entertaining fashion if given the right tools to work with - has been jettisoned after an appalling start to 2024 which has seen the black and whites regularly ship 50 points and win only once in seven league outings. Even more interesting is the appointment of Richie Myler as Director Of Rugby. What moves will he make to get FC out of the doldrums? What clout does he have? Will he make them wear a sensible away strip?
Yet because others have ran roughshod through FC this year the same will be expected of Saints. That despite the evidence of our eyes not only in the last two defeats but also in some of the underwhelming wins. At home to London. At home to Leigh. The away double header at Leeds. There’s a case that the 28-0 at Huddersfield and the derby day triumph over Wigan are the only days so far in 2024 when the criticism has quietened.
Which is fine as far as it goes. Not everyone has to be a happy clapper convinced that everything their club does is marvellous. I’ve been openly critical of the style of play since Woolf did away with entertainment in his relentless but admittedly impressive pursuit of Grand Final rings. Yet it is eye-opening how defeats like this one embolden some to share their previously unsaid and probably unconsidered hot takes. It’s at those times that noise around the coaching situation intensifies.
A win this week will be welcome but it’s unlikely to stop the soul searching.
Saints: Welsby, Makinson, Hurrell, Blake, Bennison, Lomax, Dodd, Walmsley, Clark, Delaney, Sironen, Batchelor, Knowles. Interchanges: Bell, Mbye, Mata’utia, Whitley
Warrington: Dufty, Thewlis, Wrench, King, Ashton, Williams, Hayes, Harrison, Walker, Philbin, Fitzgibbon, Nicholson, Crowther. Interchanges: Bullock, Powell, Holroyd, Wood
Referee: Jack Smith
Video Referee: Chris Kendall
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