Saints have taken the first steps on the long road back to genuine contender status with the appointment of Paul Rowley as Head Coach.
The former Salford coach replaces Paul Wellens whose three season tenure was put out of its misery on October 9. It came after two seasons outside the top four and a Super League semi-final defeat to eventual champions Hull KR.
Making the last four probably sounds like success for many other clubs but unfortunately for Wellens Saints are one of those clubs held to a higher standard by their fans. It wasn't quite good enough especially considering the often tedious style of rugby that got them there.
I'm 100% behind the club's view that Rowley's time is now. Until financial meltdown struck at Salford this year the Red Devils were making great strides. They finished fourth last season before suffering a narrow defeat to Leigh Leopards in the playoffs. That followed finishes of 6th in 2022 and 7th in 2023 respectively. Salford had reached the Grand Final in Rowley's first season with the club as a coaching consultant in 2019. It feels like expectations and culture at Salford have elevated since the ex-Leigh and Toronto coach got involved. Saints need some of that.
A former Leigh and Halifax hooker who made almost 400 first team appearances, Rowley's coaching journey started at the bus stop in Wigan back when they were known as the Centurions. He won two Championship titles with Leigh which is no mean feat while working for boycott threatening crank Derek Beaumont.
Rowley had two seasons in charge at Toronto Wolfpack, guiding them into the Championship from League One but left before their ill-fated attempt to play in Super League. Then came Salford. Rowley has done great work with underdogs. Now we will find out how he operates under greater expectation to win.
Just as important as his achievements so far is the style with which his teams went about it. Salford played a much more expansive style of rugby under Rowley than we have seen from Saints since 2019 when Justin Holbrook left for Gold Coast.
That might not seem like much on the face of it but with players like Brodie Croft, Marc Sneyd, Nene McDonald and Tim Lafai in the side Salford were genuinely among the better teams in terms of entertainment value during Rowley's reign. That is surely going to resonate with a set of fans who have had three years of one out rugby without success under Wellens.
His experience will also add a layer of calmness that was absent with Wellens. With each passing defeat - usually against top three sides - Wellens would look increasingly stressed, fraught even. Despite his stellar playing career he never truly possessed the calmness under pressure that characterised his playing style. Rowley has seen it all before when it comes to adversity. He has dealt with far bigger problems in recent times than anything in Wellens' in-tray.
The kind of firefighting Rowley has been involved in during 2025 might raise a question about how he will deal with higher expectations. Nobody expected Salford to win games this term. It was an achievement to get a team on to the field week to week. Reports suggest players were often meeting for the first time in the lead in to some fixtures. That they managed to win even three games is a testament to Rowley's ability to get the best out of players and forge the kind of togetherness that is required to be successful.
He will face a level of pressure and expectation that he hasn't yet encountered. Three seasons of underachievement and dull rugby will have done nothing to dampen the expectations of some Saints fans. That now comes with the territory when you have a rich history of winning titles, particularly in the Super League era.
The job description is to win. You can do it ugly like Kristian Woolf and Daniel Anderson did - but you have to do it. Fans' social media meltdowns will still happen but he should get some leeway from his employers. They should be acutely aware that something of a rebuild is needed and for that you need time. He must be given that time even if Mike Rush is on podcasts complaining about outside noise.
With the top job sorted what of the rest of the coaching team? Lee Briers' attacking input has been difficult to discern. That's disappointing given how he made big improvements at both Wigan and Brisbane Broncos before coming home to St Helens. Some say Wellens wouldn't allow him to release what is now annoyingly known as the handbrake while others see Briers as having failed to make an impact. During the announcement of his arrival Rowley alluded to making changes to the attack which may hint that he'll want control of it himself.
He also highlighted the strength of Saints' defence and acknowledged the platform that it has given him on which to build. Only Hull KR and Leeds Rhinos conceded fewer points than Saints in the regular season. That kept them in games even as the attack stuttered and - occasionally - came to a total standstill.
Eamon O'Carroll deserves great credit for this but it might not be a guarantee of extending his time with the club should Rowley want to bring his own backroom team in. The recent appointment of his long time Salford assistant Kurt Haggerty as Head Coach at Bradford Bulls perhaps makes a full backroom overhaul less likely.
Recruitment will be key. Twelve players have left the club, some of whom will need replacing. Shane Wright and Deon Cross arrived during 2025 and will know Rowley well from their time at Salford. Aside from that South Sydney Rabbitohs back rower Jacob Host is the only new addition. There has to be more. Rush's assertion that he would like 75% of the squad to be home grown academy products is not realistic if you also want to challenge for the major honours.
Give us your thoughts on the appointment of Rowley. Can he rebuild effectively and get Saints back to the summit of Super League? Or would you have preferred an alternative? If so, let us know who you think could have been appointed.
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