Laying The Ghosts Of ‘87
My first experience of Wembley still traumatises me a little. I arrived at the then iconic national stadium - none of this arch business - a wide-eyed and awe-struck 11-year-old. I had been released from hospital just that week. Indeed there is a certain symmetry there. I have had three hospital appointments in five days leading up to this week’s semi-final at Bolton. Thankfully that is where the similarities end as the Saints 2019 vintage produced a much different result to the one we endured under the twin towers 32 years ago.
On that occasion two disallowed Mark Elia tries left Andy Platt in tears as well as a certain 11-year-old boy. I would get used to disappointment, not seeing Saints win the Challenge Cup for another nine years. Despite the years of success that followed under Shaun McRae, Ellery Hanley, Ian Millward and Daniel Anderson it has been even longer than that since Saints last visited Wembley for a Challenge Cup Final. When victory over Hull FC brought a third Challenge Cup triumph in a row few of us imagined that it would be a further 11 years - the whole of my lifetime at time of the Halifax loss - before Saints would return to the capital. So, expected as it was that we would beat Scott Grix’s side, now a mid-table Championship side as opposed to the defending league champions of 1987, the over-riding emotion from this otherwise fairly routine win was relief that the Wembley drought had finally come to an end. It also ended a run of six consecutive defeats in major semi-finals in the two major competitions that dominate modern rugby league in the northern hemisphere.
Defence Held The Key
Saints were not spectacular in attack. Far from it. They toiled for most of the day with ball in hand, trying to go around their part-time opponents without first earning the right by doing the hard yards up front. You have to give Halifax a lot of credit for that, but even with the score line at 8-2 at the break you never really got a sense that Saints were in any serious danger. For all their guts and endeavour Grix’s side never looked like breaking down a Saints defence that was shorn of one of Britain’s best defensive players in the injured Morgan Knowles.
Even the enforced switch to fullback for Jonny Lomax to cover the absence of Lachlan Coote didn’t weaken the rearguard too much, though it did take a little bit away from the fluency of attack. There would have been those who would have worried that the inclusion of Danny Richardson would make Saints a little more brittle. Barely a day goes by without someone on social media pointing out that Richardson cannot tackle the proverbial fish supper. Yet the young half stood up to the challenge in that department, as did Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook and Joseph Paulo who had to adapt to starting roles having played much of their rugby this year from the interchange bench.
Holbrook’s Last Hurrah?
As I write this several news sources have reported that Saints coach Justin Holbrook has agreed a deal to take over at Gold Coast Titans in the NRL from the start of 2020. It doesn’t seem like just over two years since Holbrook breezed into the club to find a team and a fan base desperately damaged by the limitations and subsequent departure of a club legend. When Kieron Cunningham left the building it was felt that it would take more than a quick fix to put the club back where it wanted to be.
It is testament to the job that he has done at Saints that Holbrook has been sought by NRL clubs so quickly. Within a few months of his arrival he had restored the club’s confidence, first by attracting Ben Barba for a memorable but all-too-brief spell, and then guiding pretty much the same group of players that had failed under Cunningham to within a golden-point of the 2017 Grand Final. A year later, with Barba an integral part of the side Holbrook raised Saints to such a level that they rode roughshod over the competition, only losing twice in 23 regular season games en route to the League Leaders Shield. Holbrook copped a fair bit of flak from those outside the club when Saints contrived to lose in both major semi-finals and the Barba situation blew up spectacularly, but even they had to admit that he had transformed his new side from one of a handful of playoff contenders into the most consistent and dominant team in the competition.
Just as he is beginning to learn the lessons of 2018, now regularly resting his stars at various times during the campaign when he had chosen not to do so that year, Holbrook is about to depart. It feels, even if Saints go on to fulfil what many fans see as their destiny by winning at Wembley and in the Old Trafford Grand Final in October, like a mission incomplete. Holbrook is such a powerful motivating force, such a prolific improver of rugby league players, that he could easily have built a dynasty at Saints. If Eamonn McManus and company make the right appointment to replace him that may still happen, but it will be a good deal more difficult without Holbrook at the helm. The lure of the NRL is great for someone like Holbrook both personally and professionally. He was born and raised there and it is home to him. Yet the curtailing of his tenure at Saints is a lost opportunity to build a lasting legacy.
How Will The Ship Sail Before The Big Day?
It’s been a strange old time for Saints. Against the backdrop of the speculation about Holbrook’s future this flat if ultimately fruitful performance came on the back of the much talked about defeat in London in which Saints rested 10 players and slumped to a 32-12 defeat. Neither of these performances have done Saints any tangible harm in terms of their prospects of winning major honours this term. They maintain a 10-point lead at the top of the Super League table and now have safe passage to the Wembley showpiece. Yet form cannot be turned on and off like a tap. Holbrook faces a difficult balancing act over the next few weeks to ensure that his players are physically and mentally ready for August 24.
That means not over-working his players but there is an argument too that he should be wary of letting them become under-cooked. How many star names will be asked to back up from the semi-final in this week’s home game with a Wakefield side that has lost nine out of its last 10 and is free-falling towards a real relegation scrap? A week later Saints travel to Warrington for a Thursday night game. Will either Holbrook or Steve Price want to show the other their full hand just a fortnight before the biggest game of the season to date? Before you know it it is then time to visit a desperate Leeds side on August 16 and the same questions remain. Will a full side be risked? Holbrook has more to think about than just which Australian city he would like to live and work in next year.
A New....Old Foe
When Saints walk out at Wembley in August 24 they will be introduced to a new experience. Incredibly, despite over 100 years of almost sibling rivalry to match anything the Gallagher brothers can offer, Saints and Warrington have never met in a Challenge Cup Final. That is all going to change after Price’s side edged Hull FC 22-14 in the day’s first semi-final at the University Of Bolton Stadium.
It’s an enticing prospect. There should be none of the fears about poor attendance which dogged the build-up to last year’s final when the Wolves were beaten by Catalans Dragons, surprise conquerors of Saints in the semi-final. This final is arguably happening a year later than most people expected it might, but when you have waited since the competition’s first final in 1897, a time when Jacob Rees-Mogg’s views would have appeared current, what’s another year? Critics may shudder at the prospect of another final contested by two teams separated by just a couple of junctions of the M62, but both clubs will bring the numbers and the noise which should ensure a vintage Challenge Cup atmosphere.
The presence of Widnes Vikings and Sheffield Eagles for the 1895 Cup Final should add to that, though it is a slight bug-bear that it has been decided that they will face each other following the main event rather than as a curtain raiser. The RFL’s obsession with double and triple header events continues, but anyone expecting the majority of Saints or Wire fans to stay on after their fate has been decided is likely to be disappointed. Win or lose both sets of fans face a long trip back up north following the final. Even the considerably shorter journey home from Bolton after the semi-final was motivation for most Hull FC and Warrington fans to disappear sharpish after their game ended at the weekend. The case against playing the 1895 Cup Final first is the commendable need to stick with tradition and stage the under-11s schoolboy final as a pre-cursor. But would an earlier start for that game and the Saints-Warrington clash have messed with tradition too much? If you think so, then perhaps you also might consider that the 1895 Cup Final should be scheduled for a different date entirely.
Saints v Halifax - Preview
Have you ever waited 11 years for anything? Maybe an item of post that isn’t a bill or a dental appointment, a genuinely engaging performance by Johnny Depp or perhaps a truly original reality TV series that isn’t exclusively populated by what Charlie Brooker once called ‘look-at-me-turdholes’
If you have, Saints know how you feel as their wait for a first Challenge Cup final appearance since 2008 goes on. They have a gilt-edged, gift-wrappped, delivered by Fedex opportunity to end that wait this Saturday when they take on Halifax in the Coral Challenge Cup semi-final at the University Of Bolton Stadium (July 27, kick-off 4.30pm).
Saints coach Justin Holbrook caused seven kinds of uproar in sending a scratch side to go out and get murdered by London Broncos last weekend, and has predictably made several changes to his 19-man squad for this one. Lachlan Coote has a knee injury which he sustained in the July 12 win over Wigan but all of Johnny Lomax, Tommy Makinson, Kevin Naiqama, Mark Percival, Theo Fages, Alex Walmsley, James Roby and Luke Thompson return to the fold for this one.
Coote’s fullback role had been occupied by Jack Welsby at London and despite the defeat there the smart money was on Holbrook retaining the youngster in the role. However, Welsby has not made the selection which leaves Lomax as the most likely candidate to replace the Scotland international who has lit Saints up post-Barba. Makinson has some experience at fullback but with Adam Swift not named there is no obvious alternative to fill Makinson’s right-wing slot should Holbrook make that switch, so expect him to stay put to form a strong-looking three-quarter line alongside Naiqama, Percival and Regan Grace in front of Lomax. Danny Richardson will therefore probably retain his place in the halves, but it will be Fages who is most likely to partner him after Joseph Paulo had what used be referred to as a ‘Wilkin’ at Trailfinders. Which is perhaps a little unfair given the cast of characters that Paulo was asked to work alongside. With no fewer than 12 of what you would call Saints first choice 17 not on duty that day it was always going to be difficult for Paulo to make the proverbial silk purse from a sow’s ear. Though there was a pig’s ear in there somewhere, for sure.
Saints’ pack will also be formidable. Roby has not been seen since Saints less embarrassing golden point defeat at London in early June and with Aaron Smith not named that is an indicator that the veteran hooker is fit enough to start. Backing him up should be James Bentley who produced some great performances in the role during Roby’s absence. As things stand, he may have forced his way up the pecking order and into the role of Roby understudy. England props Walmsley and Thompson will also return, leaving Matty Lees to be content with a place on the bench alongside Bentley, one of Kyle Amor and Jack Ashworth as well as irrepressible card-magnet Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook. Morgan Knowles is named despite suggestions that he has a slight knock, while Paulo should also feature in the back three along with Peyroux. Matty Costello will hope to challenge for a place on the bench unless there is a doubt about the fitness of one of the backs.
Halifax’s main injury concern surrounds ageless stand-off Scott Murrell. He has been named in coach Simon Grix’s 19-man squad despite suffering whiplash in his side’s 28-28 draw with Championship on Sunday (July 21). Draws. Remember those? Elsewhere in the Fax Machine (I got that from the 1987 Challenge Cup Final programme, no really) former Catalans and Hull KR back rower or hooker Kevin Larroyer stands out while Will Sharp and Ben Kavanaugh are two more with fairly recent Super League experience. James Woodburn-Hall has been on the radar of many Super League clubs this year after some impressive performances at centre while his partner in that department is none other than former Saint Steve Tyrer. The 30-year-old was born in St.Helens before making his debut for the club in 2007, and says he will be at Wembley for the final regardless of the result in this one. Tyrer is now Halifax’s record points scorer with 1632 points since joining them in 2012 following spells with Widnes (three times) Celtic Crusaders and Salford. Reaching this final would probably top anything that he has achieved so far, even if it would severely interfere with his ability to enjoy the final with a beer in his hand.
Halifax’s cup run is all the more surprising for the fact that they have struggled somewhat in the league this season. They sit only eighth in a Championship that has been dominated by Toronto Wolfpack. Nevertheless they would have expected better from a campaign that has seen them record only nine league wins from 22 outings, with 12 defeats and that draw with Dewsbury last time out. They started the campaign with current Saints assistant coach Richard Marshall in charge but he was rather harshly dismissed in April after a four-year spell in which he led the side to the old Super 8s Qualifiers three times. It was not long before he was snapped up by Saints to replace Sean Long after he received an offer from rugby union. Halifax’s loss could yet turn out to be very much Saints’ gain, with emotions running high no doubt for him against his old side in such a monumental game for the West Yorkshire side.
Anyone predicting anything other than a Saints win has not been paying much attention to the form of these two sides this term. Despite last week’s setback, a different Saints side (quite literally in most positions) will approach this one and it would be an indescribable shock if we see anything other than an end to that tortuous 11-year wait for a day out at Wembley. Saints by 40.
Squads;
St Helens;
1. Jonny Lomax 2. Tommy Makinson 3. Kevin Naiqama 4. Mark Percival 5. Regan Grace 6. Theo Fages 7. Danny Richardson 8. Alex Walmsley 9. James Roby 10. Luke Thompson 12. Joseph Paulo 13. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook 15. Morgan Knowles 16. Kyle Amor 17. Dominique Peyroux 19. Matty Lees 20. Jack Ashworth 22. James Bentley 24. Matty Costello.
Halifax;
Ed Barber, Chester Butler, Cooper, Jacob Fairbank, Ben Johnston, Ben Kavanagh, Ben Kaye, Kevin Larroyer, Brandon Moore, Elliot Morris, Scott Murrell, Shaun Robinson, James Saltonstall, Will Sharp, Adam Tangata, Steve Tyrer, James Woodburn-Hall.
Referee: Chris Kendall
If you have, Saints know how you feel as their wait for a first Challenge Cup final appearance since 2008 goes on. They have a gilt-edged, gift-wrappped, delivered by Fedex opportunity to end that wait this Saturday when they take on Halifax in the Coral Challenge Cup semi-final at the University Of Bolton Stadium (July 27, kick-off 4.30pm).
Saints coach Justin Holbrook caused seven kinds of uproar in sending a scratch side to go out and get murdered by London Broncos last weekend, and has predictably made several changes to his 19-man squad for this one. Lachlan Coote has a knee injury which he sustained in the July 12 win over Wigan but all of Johnny Lomax, Tommy Makinson, Kevin Naiqama, Mark Percival, Theo Fages, Alex Walmsley, James Roby and Luke Thompson return to the fold for this one.
Coote’s fullback role had been occupied by Jack Welsby at London and despite the defeat there the smart money was on Holbrook retaining the youngster in the role. However, Welsby has not made the selection which leaves Lomax as the most likely candidate to replace the Scotland international who has lit Saints up post-Barba. Makinson has some experience at fullback but with Adam Swift not named there is no obvious alternative to fill Makinson’s right-wing slot should Holbrook make that switch, so expect him to stay put to form a strong-looking three-quarter line alongside Naiqama, Percival and Regan Grace in front of Lomax. Danny Richardson will therefore probably retain his place in the halves, but it will be Fages who is most likely to partner him after Joseph Paulo had what used be referred to as a ‘Wilkin’ at Trailfinders. Which is perhaps a little unfair given the cast of characters that Paulo was asked to work alongside. With no fewer than 12 of what you would call Saints first choice 17 not on duty that day it was always going to be difficult for Paulo to make the proverbial silk purse from a sow’s ear. Though there was a pig’s ear in there somewhere, for sure.
Saints’ pack will also be formidable. Roby has not been seen since Saints less embarrassing golden point defeat at London in early June and with Aaron Smith not named that is an indicator that the veteran hooker is fit enough to start. Backing him up should be James Bentley who produced some great performances in the role during Roby’s absence. As things stand, he may have forced his way up the pecking order and into the role of Roby understudy. England props Walmsley and Thompson will also return, leaving Matty Lees to be content with a place on the bench alongside Bentley, one of Kyle Amor and Jack Ashworth as well as irrepressible card-magnet Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook. Morgan Knowles is named despite suggestions that he has a slight knock, while Paulo should also feature in the back three along with Peyroux. Matty Costello will hope to challenge for a place on the bench unless there is a doubt about the fitness of one of the backs.
Halifax’s main injury concern surrounds ageless stand-off Scott Murrell. He has been named in coach Simon Grix’s 19-man squad despite suffering whiplash in his side’s 28-28 draw with Championship on Sunday (July 21). Draws. Remember those? Elsewhere in the Fax Machine (I got that from the 1987 Challenge Cup Final programme, no really) former Catalans and Hull KR back rower or hooker Kevin Larroyer stands out while Will Sharp and Ben Kavanaugh are two more with fairly recent Super League experience. James Woodburn-Hall has been on the radar of many Super League clubs this year after some impressive performances at centre while his partner in that department is none other than former Saint Steve Tyrer. The 30-year-old was born in St.Helens before making his debut for the club in 2007, and says he will be at Wembley for the final regardless of the result in this one. Tyrer is now Halifax’s record points scorer with 1632 points since joining them in 2012 following spells with Widnes (three times) Celtic Crusaders and Salford. Reaching this final would probably top anything that he has achieved so far, even if it would severely interfere with his ability to enjoy the final with a beer in his hand.
Halifax’s cup run is all the more surprising for the fact that they have struggled somewhat in the league this season. They sit only eighth in a Championship that has been dominated by Toronto Wolfpack. Nevertheless they would have expected better from a campaign that has seen them record only nine league wins from 22 outings, with 12 defeats and that draw with Dewsbury last time out. They started the campaign with current Saints assistant coach Richard Marshall in charge but he was rather harshly dismissed in April after a four-year spell in which he led the side to the old Super 8s Qualifiers three times. It was not long before he was snapped up by Saints to replace Sean Long after he received an offer from rugby union. Halifax’s loss could yet turn out to be very much Saints’ gain, with emotions running high no doubt for him against his old side in such a monumental game for the West Yorkshire side.
Anyone predicting anything other than a Saints win has not been paying much attention to the form of these two sides this term. Despite last week’s setback, a different Saints side (quite literally in most positions) will approach this one and it would be an indescribable shock if we see anything other than an end to that tortuous 11-year wait for a day out at Wembley. Saints by 40.
Squads;
St Helens;
1. Jonny Lomax 2. Tommy Makinson 3. Kevin Naiqama 4. Mark Percival 5. Regan Grace 6. Theo Fages 7. Danny Richardson 8. Alex Walmsley 9. James Roby 10. Luke Thompson 12. Joseph Paulo 13. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook 15. Morgan Knowles 16. Kyle Amor 17. Dominique Peyroux 19. Matty Lees 20. Jack Ashworth 22. James Bentley 24. Matty Costello.
Halifax;
Ed Barber, Chester Butler, Cooper, Jacob Fairbank, Ben Johnston, Ben Kavanagh, Ben Kaye, Kevin Larroyer, Brandon Moore, Elliot Morris, Scott Murrell, Shaun Robinson, James Saltonstall, Will Sharp, Adam Tangata, Steve Tyrer, James Woodburn-Hall.
Referee: Chris Kendall
London Broncos v St Helens - Preview
Saints go in search of one of the three wins they need to wrap up another League Leaders Shield when they visit London Broncos in a Betfred Super League Round 23 clash on Sunday afternoon (July 21, kick-off 3.00pm).
Coach Justin Holbrook managed to take some of the attention away from his own future by announcing early in the week that he would rest ‘at least nine or ten’ of his first team players for the trip south. True to his word, he has named four potential debutants in his 19-man party with all of Lachlan Coote, Tommy Makinson, Kevin Naiqama, Mark Percival, Jonny Lomax, Theo Fages, Alex Walmsley and Luke Thompson left out. James Roby has not yet returned from having surgery which has kept him out for the last month or so and won’t be back either, while Zeb Taia is still unavailable with a shoulder problem. All of which leaves room in the squad for the untested quartet of loose forward Callum Hazzard, halfback Lewis Dodd, hooker Josh Eaves and centre Josh Simm.
Attempting to work out exactly who will make the final line-up is a bit of a mug’s game, but being a seasoned mug of some repute I’m happy to give it a go. Jack Welsby is recalled for the first time since Saints lost 23-22 on their last visit to London in early June (I know…loop fixtures…..) and looks the prime candidate for the fullback role vacated by Coote. Makinson’s right wing berth will go to Adam Swift in his final season as a Saint, a chance for him to add to his fine record of 86 tries in 128 appearances. Regan Grace is not one of those rested by Holbrook and should start on the other wing, with Simm perhaps forming a centre partnership with Matty Costello.
In the halves Dodd has a more than fair chance of starting alongside Danny Richardson, 2018 Dream Team member and recent Saints first team exile. James Bentley has been doing a sterling job at hooker in the last few weeks but Holbrook also has Aaron Smith to call on as well as Eaves in that position. Dominique Peyroux is named in the 19 but was among those mentioned by Holbrook when he listed those who probably would not play. Should that be the case Morgan Knowles may be partnered in the second row by Joe Batchelor, with Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook at loose forward. Matty Lees, Kyle Amor and Jack Ashworth are the only other three recognised props so McCarthy-Scarsbrook may yet be needed there which could allow Hazzard his opportunity. Joseph Paulo is in the squad after missing last week’s derby win over Wigan but with all this resting and wrapping in cotton wool going on it would be a surprise if he is rushed back from his calf injury with the Coral Challenge Cup semi-final meeting with Halifax looming next weekend.
London have made just one change to their squad and it involves an on-loan Saint who would ironically have come in very handy given the raft of changes made by Holbrook. Ryan Morgan is out and will be replaced by the returning Olsi Krasniqi. Alex Walker and Rob Butler missed last week’s 35-22 defeat at Hull FC and could be in line for a return for a Broncos side that is potentially in the unusual position of having to deal with the favourites tag. What success they have had this season has been achieved in the knowledge that nobody expects them to win from week to week, much less escape relegation. Yet if Saints throw in all of their new blood the expectation will be all on London to put the youngsters in their place.
Key to that will be men like Rhys Williams, Elliot Kear and Kieran Dixon in the backs, along with Jordan Abdull in the halves. Morgan Smith dropped the winning goal at Trailfinders in the Broncos golden-point win a month ago but is currently out. Expect James Cunningham to again be influential at hooker or scrum half along with forwards Eddie Battye, Jay Pitts and Luke Yates. Former Saint Greg Richards is a Grand Final winner from our 2014 vintage under Nathan Brown.
And so to the thorny question of the rights, wrongs and not-so-sures of Holbrook’s selection. There were no complaints when Saints played at London without Coote, Lomax, Makinson, Walmsley and Taia In June. The timing of it, with just six games left and so much closer to the hour of reckoning for the other clubs involved with London in the relegation scrap has certainly had some influence on their reaction to it. Yet this Tinkerman-ery is on a different level if we see four debutants and almost twice as many absent regulars as we saw in June. Added to that, the senior players who have been retained are not the real star quality game changers of the back-line or the front row. The best of them is probably Knowles, but he is not winning any game by himself. Richardson’s selection could go either way too. The young half could take umbrage at having been thrown in with a much weakened squad, or he could see it as an opportunity to remind the coach of his capabilities just ahead of the run towards the playoffs and, hopefully, a Wembley final. It is possible for Holbrook to pick a 17 capable of winning this game, but equally, it is possible that he will expose the young players to what could turn out to be a miserable debut experience which doesn’t seem to do anybody any good.
What will not be a concern is the grumbling coming from elsewhere in Super League. Fans of Hull KR, Huddersfield, Leeds and maybe now even Wakefield will be fretting about Saints’ line-up. They will view it as unduly interfering with the battle going on to avoid the drop to the Championship. Yet the counter-argument is that Saints, 10 points clear at the top of the table and in about as much danger of moving anywhere as Donald Trump, have earned the right to rest their star turns. The memories of last season, when Holbrook went with the same group of players on a much more consistent basis only to see them falter in both semi-finals, is enough to persuade many that the changes are being made for the right reasons and that the aim is not to disrespect the competition or in any way influence the relegation issue. Those involved in that little scrap will have had 29 games of their own by the end of the regular season to save themselves, and should they fail to do so they would be well advised to look squarely in the mirror.
Yet if I’m honest fielding a severely weakened team, should that happen, does not sit well with me. All it does is highlight the absolute folly of a league system which fails so palpably to reward the most consistent side throughout the regular season. If we were playing under the old ‘first past the post rules’ which governed the top flight throughout most of my early years watching rugby league then I dare say a few of those with their feet up this weekend would have been pressed into action. The system allows it, which doesn’t really do the image of the game too much good. Equally, the likes of Hull FC and Catalans Dragons and arguably even Wigan have been doddering along at their own pace all year yet still retain hopes of reaching the Grand Final and taking the prize at Saints expense. If Holbrook has it in his power to do something to reduce the chances of that happening then perhaps exercising that power will produce a just result in the end.
For now it is all guess work, which is pretty much all you can say about how Saints might line-up and further, how they might get on against Danny Ward’s side. Pride suggests they will put the effort in. The defeat in June will have stung and those involved in that game who have been included again this time will no doubt have that somewhere in the recesses of their minds. Yet with bookmakers everywhere shortening the odds on London to pull off a second victory of the season over the table-toppers the whole thing just has a bad feel about it from a Saints standpoint. London by eight.
Squads;
London Broncos;
1. Alex Walker 2. Rhys Williams 3. Ben Hellewell 4. Elliott Kear 5. Kieran Dixon 6. Jordan Abdull 7. James Cunningham 8. Eddie Battye 10. Mark Ioane 12. Jay Pitts 13. Sadiq Adibiyi 14. Matty Fozard 15. Greg Richards 16. Matt Gee 17. Matty Fleming 20. Luke Yates 23. Rob Butler 26. Sam Davis 30. Olsi Krasniqi
St Helens;
5. Regan Grace 7. Danny Richardson 12. Joseph Paulo 13. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook 15. Morgan Knowles 16. Kyle Amor 17. Dominique Peyroux 18. Adam Swift 19. Matty Lees 20. Jack Ashworth 21. Aaron Smith 22. James Bentley 24. Matty Costello 25. Joe Batchelor 27. Josh Eaves 28. Callum Hazard 29. Jack Welsby 30. Josh Simm 31. Lewis Dodd
Referee: Tom Grant
Coach Justin Holbrook managed to take some of the attention away from his own future by announcing early in the week that he would rest ‘at least nine or ten’ of his first team players for the trip south. True to his word, he has named four potential debutants in his 19-man party with all of Lachlan Coote, Tommy Makinson, Kevin Naiqama, Mark Percival, Jonny Lomax, Theo Fages, Alex Walmsley and Luke Thompson left out. James Roby has not yet returned from having surgery which has kept him out for the last month or so and won’t be back either, while Zeb Taia is still unavailable with a shoulder problem. All of which leaves room in the squad for the untested quartet of loose forward Callum Hazzard, halfback Lewis Dodd, hooker Josh Eaves and centre Josh Simm.
Attempting to work out exactly who will make the final line-up is a bit of a mug’s game, but being a seasoned mug of some repute I’m happy to give it a go. Jack Welsby is recalled for the first time since Saints lost 23-22 on their last visit to London in early June (I know…loop fixtures…..) and looks the prime candidate for the fullback role vacated by Coote. Makinson’s right wing berth will go to Adam Swift in his final season as a Saint, a chance for him to add to his fine record of 86 tries in 128 appearances. Regan Grace is not one of those rested by Holbrook and should start on the other wing, with Simm perhaps forming a centre partnership with Matty Costello.
In the halves Dodd has a more than fair chance of starting alongside Danny Richardson, 2018 Dream Team member and recent Saints first team exile. James Bentley has been doing a sterling job at hooker in the last few weeks but Holbrook also has Aaron Smith to call on as well as Eaves in that position. Dominique Peyroux is named in the 19 but was among those mentioned by Holbrook when he listed those who probably would not play. Should that be the case Morgan Knowles may be partnered in the second row by Joe Batchelor, with Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook at loose forward. Matty Lees, Kyle Amor and Jack Ashworth are the only other three recognised props so McCarthy-Scarsbrook may yet be needed there which could allow Hazzard his opportunity. Joseph Paulo is in the squad after missing last week’s derby win over Wigan but with all this resting and wrapping in cotton wool going on it would be a surprise if he is rushed back from his calf injury with the Coral Challenge Cup semi-final meeting with Halifax looming next weekend.
London have made just one change to their squad and it involves an on-loan Saint who would ironically have come in very handy given the raft of changes made by Holbrook. Ryan Morgan is out and will be replaced by the returning Olsi Krasniqi. Alex Walker and Rob Butler missed last week’s 35-22 defeat at Hull FC and could be in line for a return for a Broncos side that is potentially in the unusual position of having to deal with the favourites tag. What success they have had this season has been achieved in the knowledge that nobody expects them to win from week to week, much less escape relegation. Yet if Saints throw in all of their new blood the expectation will be all on London to put the youngsters in their place.
Key to that will be men like Rhys Williams, Elliot Kear and Kieran Dixon in the backs, along with Jordan Abdull in the halves. Morgan Smith dropped the winning goal at Trailfinders in the Broncos golden-point win a month ago but is currently out. Expect James Cunningham to again be influential at hooker or scrum half along with forwards Eddie Battye, Jay Pitts and Luke Yates. Former Saint Greg Richards is a Grand Final winner from our 2014 vintage under Nathan Brown.
And so to the thorny question of the rights, wrongs and not-so-sures of Holbrook’s selection. There were no complaints when Saints played at London without Coote, Lomax, Makinson, Walmsley and Taia In June. The timing of it, with just six games left and so much closer to the hour of reckoning for the other clubs involved with London in the relegation scrap has certainly had some influence on their reaction to it. Yet this Tinkerman-ery is on a different level if we see four debutants and almost twice as many absent regulars as we saw in June. Added to that, the senior players who have been retained are not the real star quality game changers of the back-line or the front row. The best of them is probably Knowles, but he is not winning any game by himself. Richardson’s selection could go either way too. The young half could take umbrage at having been thrown in with a much weakened squad, or he could see it as an opportunity to remind the coach of his capabilities just ahead of the run towards the playoffs and, hopefully, a Wembley final. It is possible for Holbrook to pick a 17 capable of winning this game, but equally, it is possible that he will expose the young players to what could turn out to be a miserable debut experience which doesn’t seem to do anybody any good.
What will not be a concern is the grumbling coming from elsewhere in Super League. Fans of Hull KR, Huddersfield, Leeds and maybe now even Wakefield will be fretting about Saints’ line-up. They will view it as unduly interfering with the battle going on to avoid the drop to the Championship. Yet the counter-argument is that Saints, 10 points clear at the top of the table and in about as much danger of moving anywhere as Donald Trump, have earned the right to rest their star turns. The memories of last season, when Holbrook went with the same group of players on a much more consistent basis only to see them falter in both semi-finals, is enough to persuade many that the changes are being made for the right reasons and that the aim is not to disrespect the competition or in any way influence the relegation issue. Those involved in that little scrap will have had 29 games of their own by the end of the regular season to save themselves, and should they fail to do so they would be well advised to look squarely in the mirror.
Yet if I’m honest fielding a severely weakened team, should that happen, does not sit well with me. All it does is highlight the absolute folly of a league system which fails so palpably to reward the most consistent side throughout the regular season. If we were playing under the old ‘first past the post rules’ which governed the top flight throughout most of my early years watching rugby league then I dare say a few of those with their feet up this weekend would have been pressed into action. The system allows it, which doesn’t really do the image of the game too much good. Equally, the likes of Hull FC and Catalans Dragons and arguably even Wigan have been doddering along at their own pace all year yet still retain hopes of reaching the Grand Final and taking the prize at Saints expense. If Holbrook has it in his power to do something to reduce the chances of that happening then perhaps exercising that power will produce a just result in the end.
For now it is all guess work, which is pretty much all you can say about how Saints might line-up and further, how they might get on against Danny Ward’s side. Pride suggests they will put the effort in. The defeat in June will have stung and those involved in that game who have been included again this time will no doubt have that somewhere in the recesses of their minds. Yet with bookmakers everywhere shortening the odds on London to pull off a second victory of the season over the table-toppers the whole thing just has a bad feel about it from a Saints standpoint. London by eight.
Squads;
London Broncos;
1. Alex Walker 2. Rhys Williams 3. Ben Hellewell 4. Elliott Kear 5. Kieran Dixon 6. Jordan Abdull 7. James Cunningham 8. Eddie Battye 10. Mark Ioane 12. Jay Pitts 13. Sadiq Adibiyi 14. Matty Fozard 15. Greg Richards 16. Matt Gee 17. Matty Fleming 20. Luke Yates 23. Rob Butler 26. Sam Davis 30. Olsi Krasniqi
St Helens;
5. Regan Grace 7. Danny Richardson 12. Joseph Paulo 13. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook 15. Morgan Knowles 16. Kyle Amor 17. Dominique Peyroux 18. Adam Swift 19. Matty Lees 20. Jack Ashworth 21. Aaron Smith 22. James Bentley 24. Matty Costello 25. Joe Batchelor 27. Josh Eaves 28. Callum Hazard 29. Jack Welsby 30. Josh Simm 31. Lewis Dodd
Referee: Tom Grant
5 Talking Points From Saints 32 Wigan Warriors 10
Back In Your Box
Leading into this one Wigan had been undergoing something of a revival. A five-game winning streak had rocketed them back into the top four. A Super League title defence that had been nothing short of embarrassing was gaining a fair amount of respectability. The thing about this league is that you only have to finish in the top five to have a crack at making Old Trafford via the playoff series. Leeds have twice won the Grand Final from fifth and it was victory over the Rhinos that sparked Wigan’s winning run as Hull KR (twice), Huddersfield and Salford were all vanquished. The Wigan fans were excited by their prospects, noting that their trip to Saints would be a good test of their credentials.
Some social media voices were particularly loud, promising Grand Final success and another appearance in a World Club Challenge. All that may still happen, but on the evidence of this second gear stroll over the old enemy it is a lot further away from reality than many cherry and whites had hoped and believed. Unwilling to give any ground despite the ease with which they were tossed aside like Boris Johnson tossing aside a policy that has become inconvenient to his bumble towards Downing Street, some Wigan fans insisted that the lack of senior forwards was the sole reason for their downfall. But men like Tony Clubb, Ben Flower, Joe Greenwood and Sean O’Loughlin have been key players in the shit show that has been Wigan’s 2019 campaign to this point. What makes anyone think that when this group of under-achieving chancers return they will set the world on fire? The old ‘we had injuries’ argument is the last refuge of the desperate and one that completely ignores the fact that Saints were without an all-time great in James Roby and one of the best back rowers in the competition over the last two years in Zeb Taia.
It’s important to win with a bit of humility and class, something which Wigan fans have been infamously and palpably incapable of since their domination of the sport in my 80s childhood. The fact that they still can’t accept their failings in the aftermath of this half-arsed, routine spanking is one of the reasons their club is so unpopular not just with Saints fans but with most fans around the country. They need to get back in their box until they have proved that they have a team that is anywhere near Saints’ level.
Saints Attack Off Key
The terrifying thing if you’re a Wigan fan is that despite winning by 22 points Saints didn’t play anywhere near their best. Had the attack had it’s usual fluency and poise Justin Holbrook’s side could easily have bettered the 40 points they rattled past Hull FC last week. In part because they had the bulk of possession Saints actually came up with just as many errors as Wigan, both sides coughing it up 16 times. Had it not been a full house with all the intensity and passion that brings, and had it been any other opposition than the noisy neighbours the game could quite fairly have been described as scrappy. Balls flew over sidelines with alarming regularity as the offensive timing of both teams consistently went awry.
Defence and the ability to take the chances that came their way proved the difference for Saints. On the face of it 36 missed tackles is an unimpressive statistic. Indeed it is worse than Wigan’s tally of 35. Holbrook may want to get the tackle bags out for an extended period in training this week especially for Kevin Naiqama and Dominique Peyroux who managed to butcher six each, with the usually reliable Morgan Knowles not far behind with four.
But despite these lapses it was Saints’ ability to stop Wigan making significant ground when they had the ball and the home side’s ability to defend their line which set them apart. James Bentley again deputised for Roby and turned in a very solid performance making 39 tackles while missing only two. That level of work rate meant that only Liam Farrell managed to break through the 100-metre barrier for Wigan. The next best efforts were from Zak Hardaker with 98 and George Williams with 88. Wigan’s pack, under-strength though it was, was monstered by Saints for whom Luke Thompson, Matty Lees and the impressive Kyle Amor all clocked up a century of metres made. Alex Walmsley almost joined them on 98. Collectively they laid a platform for Tommy Makinson to make 185, Mark Percival 116 and Jonny Lomax 102.
Was The TV Decision Vindicated?
The lack of television coverage of this one was a source of much chagrin among both the Saints and Wigan following in the days leading up to game. Sky chose instead to broadcast Hull FC’s game of two halves against London Broncos on Thursday and the relegation dogfight between Leeds Rhinos and Hull KR on Friday. It represented the first time in the summer era that a Saints-Wigan derby had not been televised. The outrage was loud and boring with scores of people lining up on social media with sorry tales about why they could not be there in person, as if fans of other clubs aren’t afflicted with the same work commitments, financial constraints and mobility issues as Saints and Wigan fans.
Doesn’t the bloke who works till 7.00pm on a Friday have the same right to be able to see his side play as his Saints or Wigan equivalents? Sky are not here to make sure Saints and Wigan fans who can’t attend can still see every game. For that to be the case the club would need to have broadcasting rights to its own games and show them on their own dedicated channel. Finances dictate that that won’t happen any time soon. The awful truth is that the game needs the cash injection that it receives from Sky if it wants to continue to operate at a fully professional level.
Their remit is to broadcast games which are in the best interests of the league and of fans of all clubs, not just an elite pair of bullies stamping their feet about the way things have always been. Leeds v Hull KR was an infinitely better, closer contest with far more riding on it and was a sound choice. The same cannot be said for the Hull-London game in all honesty but Thursday games are chosen far further in advance and so become more difficult to move. Had it been moved to make way for the derby the complaints would still have raged about having to play in the least popular time slot since the broadcaster experimented with Monday night games. We’re a spoiled generation of fans.
The absence of the Sky cameras offered a first opportunity to see a derby without the irritant of the video referee. It was all the better for it. How refreshing was it to be able to celebrate Saints’ five tries without immediately turning to look at a giant screen in the north east corner to make sure their isn’t some tiny discrepancy about to crush your joy? Video reviews have sucked the spontaneity out of the match-going experience, a fate that it will soon afflict on football. And it wasn’t as if Ben Thaler needed the help. Only Hardaker’s try would possibly have been subject to any scrutiny from the video referee. The Wigan fullback seemed to use his hands in charging down Lomax’s kick before dribbling his way to the line for the Warriors’ only try. Personally I’m prepared to give him and Thaler the benefit of the doubt on those calls if it means we have a faster flowing game and I can be back across Precky Bridge and in my car before 10.00pm.
Is Holbrook Going?
When weren’t debating the merits or otherwise of the Sky Sports schedules this week we were fretting about the future of Holbrook. A story broke early in the week linking the Saints coach to the Canterbury Bulldogs in the NRL. Ordinarily this might be dismissed as the column-filling ravings of the Australian press but some of the quotes attributed to Holbrook on the matter are cause for concern. Where initially it seemed just a matter of time before Holbrook penned a new deal at Saints he has since admitted that the matter is in the hands of his management and that it will be resolved ‘in the next few weeks’.
This is quite a shift from Holbrook’s initial position which was that he was happy and didn’t want to go anywhere else. Flipping responsibility on to his management team might suggest that he has something to tell us that we won’t like. It looks like an attempt to distance himself from the decision about his own future, as if it’s somehow not his call to make. Sure I’d love to stay but you know....my management team....
Causing further unease are comments made immediately after this one by Holbrook. He spoke of how emotional it was for him to hear the Saints fans sing ‘we want you to stay’ as he and the players went to thank the fans at the end of the game. If he was intending to stay I venture to suggest that he would not be feeling that way. Even if he was feeling overwhelmed by the support he might at least have something reassuring to say. Losing Holbrook would be a shattering blow to Saints. His excellent work in rebuilding the confidence of this group of players has Saints on the cusp of the glory that should have been their’s a year ago. This should be the start of something, not the end of an era. A replacement would be found. Saints is a club of great reputation and coaching it is one of the top jobs in the sport. Yet whoever Eamonn McManus found to replace Holbrook would need time to bed in his own ideas, shape the squad to his liking and introduce a new philosophy. All of that could slow down the progress that has been made under Holbrook and the club must do everything in its power to avoid that scenario. Just how much power it has is something that is open to question.
Three More Wins.
Warrington’s hilarious feat of losing at home to Salford for the second time this season has all but sealed another League Leaders Shield for Holbrook and his troops. It means that Saints have a 10-point lead over the Wolves with just seven games of the regular season to play. My rudimentary grasp of maths suggests that Warrington can only reach a maximum of 44 points by then, meaning three more wins will be enough for another muted amble around the stadium formerly known as Langtree Park with the trophy disparagingly referred to by many as the hubcap. Usually by those whose teams aren’t about to win it for a second year in succession.
All the hard work is done. Victory over Wigan means that Saints have beaten all of the other top four sides at the start of Round 22 during the last three weeks. Of those only Warrington threatened to derail Saints’ charge to the line. Hull FC and Wigan were despatched with minimum fuss. Next up is a second visit of the season to inaccessible, quite-good-for-an-amateur-set-up Ealing Trailfinders to take on the Broncos. Saints might have revenge on their minds after a golden point loss there in June, one of only two regular season losses in 2019. But they must also balance that with the need to be ready for the Challenge Cup semi-final date with Halifax a week later. As unlikely as it is we do not want a repeat of last year when our hubris was our undoing in a traumatic thrashing by Catalans Dragons at Bolton. Wigan aren’t the only set of fans who are sometimes blind to their own fallibility.
Holbrook would be wise not to rush Roby back with Bentley and Aaron Smith doing such a fine job in his stead, while the cotton wool should probably come out for Lachlan Coote too after he was withdrawn 20 minutes from the end of this one as a precaution. Makinson and Lomax are also unlikely to be risked on a pitch that makes the Astro turf at Boundary Road look like the lush grass of Wembley Stadium. Yet even with those absences and with Taia still out with a shoulder injury Saints should have enough to secure the win against a London side that has shown signs of feeling the effects of a long season in recent weeks.
Leading into this one Wigan had been undergoing something of a revival. A five-game winning streak had rocketed them back into the top four. A Super League title defence that had been nothing short of embarrassing was gaining a fair amount of respectability. The thing about this league is that you only have to finish in the top five to have a crack at making Old Trafford via the playoff series. Leeds have twice won the Grand Final from fifth and it was victory over the Rhinos that sparked Wigan’s winning run as Hull KR (twice), Huddersfield and Salford were all vanquished. The Wigan fans were excited by their prospects, noting that their trip to Saints would be a good test of their credentials.
Some social media voices were particularly loud, promising Grand Final success and another appearance in a World Club Challenge. All that may still happen, but on the evidence of this second gear stroll over the old enemy it is a lot further away from reality than many cherry and whites had hoped and believed. Unwilling to give any ground despite the ease with which they were tossed aside like Boris Johnson tossing aside a policy that has become inconvenient to his bumble towards Downing Street, some Wigan fans insisted that the lack of senior forwards was the sole reason for their downfall. But men like Tony Clubb, Ben Flower, Joe Greenwood and Sean O’Loughlin have been key players in the shit show that has been Wigan’s 2019 campaign to this point. What makes anyone think that when this group of under-achieving chancers return they will set the world on fire? The old ‘we had injuries’ argument is the last refuge of the desperate and one that completely ignores the fact that Saints were without an all-time great in James Roby and one of the best back rowers in the competition over the last two years in Zeb Taia.
It’s important to win with a bit of humility and class, something which Wigan fans have been infamously and palpably incapable of since their domination of the sport in my 80s childhood. The fact that they still can’t accept their failings in the aftermath of this half-arsed, routine spanking is one of the reasons their club is so unpopular not just with Saints fans but with most fans around the country. They need to get back in their box until they have proved that they have a team that is anywhere near Saints’ level.
Saints Attack Off Key
The terrifying thing if you’re a Wigan fan is that despite winning by 22 points Saints didn’t play anywhere near their best. Had the attack had it’s usual fluency and poise Justin Holbrook’s side could easily have bettered the 40 points they rattled past Hull FC last week. In part because they had the bulk of possession Saints actually came up with just as many errors as Wigan, both sides coughing it up 16 times. Had it not been a full house with all the intensity and passion that brings, and had it been any other opposition than the noisy neighbours the game could quite fairly have been described as scrappy. Balls flew over sidelines with alarming regularity as the offensive timing of both teams consistently went awry.
Defence and the ability to take the chances that came their way proved the difference for Saints. On the face of it 36 missed tackles is an unimpressive statistic. Indeed it is worse than Wigan’s tally of 35. Holbrook may want to get the tackle bags out for an extended period in training this week especially for Kevin Naiqama and Dominique Peyroux who managed to butcher six each, with the usually reliable Morgan Knowles not far behind with four.
But despite these lapses it was Saints’ ability to stop Wigan making significant ground when they had the ball and the home side’s ability to defend their line which set them apart. James Bentley again deputised for Roby and turned in a very solid performance making 39 tackles while missing only two. That level of work rate meant that only Liam Farrell managed to break through the 100-metre barrier for Wigan. The next best efforts were from Zak Hardaker with 98 and George Williams with 88. Wigan’s pack, under-strength though it was, was monstered by Saints for whom Luke Thompson, Matty Lees and the impressive Kyle Amor all clocked up a century of metres made. Alex Walmsley almost joined them on 98. Collectively they laid a platform for Tommy Makinson to make 185, Mark Percival 116 and Jonny Lomax 102.
Was The TV Decision Vindicated?
The lack of television coverage of this one was a source of much chagrin among both the Saints and Wigan following in the days leading up to game. Sky chose instead to broadcast Hull FC’s game of two halves against London Broncos on Thursday and the relegation dogfight between Leeds Rhinos and Hull KR on Friday. It represented the first time in the summer era that a Saints-Wigan derby had not been televised. The outrage was loud and boring with scores of people lining up on social media with sorry tales about why they could not be there in person, as if fans of other clubs aren’t afflicted with the same work commitments, financial constraints and mobility issues as Saints and Wigan fans.
Doesn’t the bloke who works till 7.00pm on a Friday have the same right to be able to see his side play as his Saints or Wigan equivalents? Sky are not here to make sure Saints and Wigan fans who can’t attend can still see every game. For that to be the case the club would need to have broadcasting rights to its own games and show them on their own dedicated channel. Finances dictate that that won’t happen any time soon. The awful truth is that the game needs the cash injection that it receives from Sky if it wants to continue to operate at a fully professional level.
Their remit is to broadcast games which are in the best interests of the league and of fans of all clubs, not just an elite pair of bullies stamping their feet about the way things have always been. Leeds v Hull KR was an infinitely better, closer contest with far more riding on it and was a sound choice. The same cannot be said for the Hull-London game in all honesty but Thursday games are chosen far further in advance and so become more difficult to move. Had it been moved to make way for the derby the complaints would still have raged about having to play in the least popular time slot since the broadcaster experimented with Monday night games. We’re a spoiled generation of fans.
The absence of the Sky cameras offered a first opportunity to see a derby without the irritant of the video referee. It was all the better for it. How refreshing was it to be able to celebrate Saints’ five tries without immediately turning to look at a giant screen in the north east corner to make sure their isn’t some tiny discrepancy about to crush your joy? Video reviews have sucked the spontaneity out of the match-going experience, a fate that it will soon afflict on football. And it wasn’t as if Ben Thaler needed the help. Only Hardaker’s try would possibly have been subject to any scrutiny from the video referee. The Wigan fullback seemed to use his hands in charging down Lomax’s kick before dribbling his way to the line for the Warriors’ only try. Personally I’m prepared to give him and Thaler the benefit of the doubt on those calls if it means we have a faster flowing game and I can be back across Precky Bridge and in my car before 10.00pm.
Is Holbrook Going?
When weren’t debating the merits or otherwise of the Sky Sports schedules this week we were fretting about the future of Holbrook. A story broke early in the week linking the Saints coach to the Canterbury Bulldogs in the NRL. Ordinarily this might be dismissed as the column-filling ravings of the Australian press but some of the quotes attributed to Holbrook on the matter are cause for concern. Where initially it seemed just a matter of time before Holbrook penned a new deal at Saints he has since admitted that the matter is in the hands of his management and that it will be resolved ‘in the next few weeks’.
This is quite a shift from Holbrook’s initial position which was that he was happy and didn’t want to go anywhere else. Flipping responsibility on to his management team might suggest that he has something to tell us that we won’t like. It looks like an attempt to distance himself from the decision about his own future, as if it’s somehow not his call to make. Sure I’d love to stay but you know....my management team....
Causing further unease are comments made immediately after this one by Holbrook. He spoke of how emotional it was for him to hear the Saints fans sing ‘we want you to stay’ as he and the players went to thank the fans at the end of the game. If he was intending to stay I venture to suggest that he would not be feeling that way. Even if he was feeling overwhelmed by the support he might at least have something reassuring to say. Losing Holbrook would be a shattering blow to Saints. His excellent work in rebuilding the confidence of this group of players has Saints on the cusp of the glory that should have been their’s a year ago. This should be the start of something, not the end of an era. A replacement would be found. Saints is a club of great reputation and coaching it is one of the top jobs in the sport. Yet whoever Eamonn McManus found to replace Holbrook would need time to bed in his own ideas, shape the squad to his liking and introduce a new philosophy. All of that could slow down the progress that has been made under Holbrook and the club must do everything in its power to avoid that scenario. Just how much power it has is something that is open to question.
Three More Wins.
Warrington’s hilarious feat of losing at home to Salford for the second time this season has all but sealed another League Leaders Shield for Holbrook and his troops. It means that Saints have a 10-point lead over the Wolves with just seven games of the regular season to play. My rudimentary grasp of maths suggests that Warrington can only reach a maximum of 44 points by then, meaning three more wins will be enough for another muted amble around the stadium formerly known as Langtree Park with the trophy disparagingly referred to by many as the hubcap. Usually by those whose teams aren’t about to win it for a second year in succession.
All the hard work is done. Victory over Wigan means that Saints have beaten all of the other top four sides at the start of Round 22 during the last three weeks. Of those only Warrington threatened to derail Saints’ charge to the line. Hull FC and Wigan were despatched with minimum fuss. Next up is a second visit of the season to inaccessible, quite-good-for-an-amateur-set-up Ealing Trailfinders to take on the Broncos. Saints might have revenge on their minds after a golden point loss there in June, one of only two regular season losses in 2019. But they must also balance that with the need to be ready for the Challenge Cup semi-final date with Halifax a week later. As unlikely as it is we do not want a repeat of last year when our hubris was our undoing in a traumatic thrashing by Catalans Dragons at Bolton. Wigan aren’t the only set of fans who are sometimes blind to their own fallibility.
Holbrook would be wise not to rush Roby back with Bentley and Aaron Smith doing such a fine job in his stead, while the cotton wool should probably come out for Lachlan Coote too after he was withdrawn 20 minutes from the end of this one as a precaution. Makinson and Lomax are also unlikely to be risked on a pitch that makes the Astro turf at Boundary Road look like the lush grass of Wembley Stadium. Yet even with those absences and with Taia still out with a shoulder injury Saints should have enough to secure the win against a London side that has shown signs of feeling the effects of a long season in recent weeks.
St Helens v Wigan - Preview
Saints look to take a step closer to sealing another League Leaders Shield when they host Wigan Warriors in a Betfred Super League Round 22 clash on Friday night (July 12, kick-off 7.45pm).
Unlike all of the previous meetings between these two old foes in the Super League era this one is not available to view from the comfort of your armchair. With Leeds Rhinos still struggling to avoid relegation to the Championship Sky have chosen to broadcast their meeting with the similarly threatened Hull KR instead. This has been the cause of much whining and screaming from fans of Saints and Wigan, outraged that their 743rd squabble of another Every Minute Matters campaign has been snubbed. If there is a question for Sky to answer it is about why they have chosen Hull v London Broncos for live broadcast ahead of the derby. Yet broadly it is A Good Thing that Super League TV audiences will be served an alternative to what has by now become routine.
In fact, were it not for Wigan’s recent upturn in fortunes the whole episode would be in real danger of drowning in its own meh-ery. Saints are not only over the hills but several fields away from all others in what used to be the race to finish top of the pile. A defeat to their nearest and dearest would see their supremacy over Adrian Lam’s side cut to a mere 14 points. That’s seven wins which in a 29-game season is...well....you do the maths as they now say.
The only thing giving this one an edge is the fact that Wigan have picked up wins in their last five and have risen above the mediocrity that engulfs the rest of the league to move into a faintly respectable fourth position. But while two wins over Hull KR and victories over Huddersfield, Salford and the Rhinos are not enough to convince me that the Warriors are a clear and present danger to Saints’ ambitions the Wigan faithful disagree. They have flooded social media with talk of a late bid for Grand Final glory and of plans for another World Club Challenge. They are buoyed further by the announcement this week that Jackson Hastings will join them from Salford next season. The buzz around that has even dampened any negativity around George Williams finally announcing his decision to move to Canberra Raiders. Throw in a new one-year deal for Lam and anticipation hasn’t been this high in Wigan since The Verve played Haigh Hall in 1998. All of which has at least whetted the appetite for putting them back in their box.
Justin Holbrook has spent much of the week fielding questions about his own future. It being a whole year since they made an attempt to derail Saints’ season so the Australian press got to work this week by linking Holbrook to a currently struggling Canterbury Bulldogs side. More vague quotes in the press from Holbrook about how things will be resolved ‘in the next few weeks’ have done nothing to ease our anxiety around his position, especially since a new contract seemed a formality a week or two ago. Holbrook has re-introduced the winning culture that went temporarily AWOL towards the end of the Kieron Cunningham reign. To lose him now would be a shattering blow, particularly since it looks ever more likely with each passing week that his hard work will come into fruition in 2019.
Taking time out from gossip and interrogation to name his 19-man squad Holbrook has made two changes to the party which travelled to and won impressively at Hull FC last week. Most significant is the return of James Roby after a four-week injury absence. Holbrook is not yet certain whether Roby will be fit enough to start the game but that’s ok since the other change sees back-up hooker Aaron Smith return after suffering a concussion at Warrington a fortnight ago. The men to make way are Joseph Paulo who has a calf strain along with centre Matty Costello.
Paulo’s absence could mean that James Bentley will see some action in the back row. The former Bradford Bull has been deputising for Robyn and Smith at hooker over the last two weeks but will look to challenge for a back row spot along with Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook with Zeb Taia still sidelined with a shoulder problem. Morgan Knowles and Dominique Peyroux pick themselves in that area of the team, while whichever of Roby and Smith gets the nod will be flanked by the twin threat of Luke Thompson and Alex Walmsley in a formidable front three. They are backed up by Matty Lees, Kyle Amor and Jack Ashworth who would all start for many Super League clubs.
At the back Saints seem fairly settled. Lachlan Coote will be the last line of defence behind a three-quarter line of Tommy Makinson, Kevin Naiqama, Mark Percival and Regan Grace, with Hull-bound Adam Swift also named in the party. Jonny Lomax has been Saints’ most influential creative force along with Coote this year and will again indulge in some weapons grade string-pulling alongside Theo Fages in the halves.
Lam’s ranks were boosted recently by the return of Liams Farrell and Marshall. Farrell has long been a vital cog in the machine, one of the few links to a time when the Warriors could boast a truly dominant pack. Meanwhile Marshall helped himself to a hat-trick in the 52-10 pummelling of Rovers last time out. He will line up opposite Joe Burgess with Oliver Gildart and the outgoing Dan Sarginson forming the centre partnership. Behind them Zak Hardaker is at last making more headlines on the field than off it. Williams will partner Thomas Leuluai in the halves, a stuttering alliance which represents another key area where Saints have the edge. If Wigan need a change in that area then responsibility will likely fall on inconsistent, injury-prone poor man’s Rangi Chase Jarrod Sammut.
Farrell apart Wigan’s pack looks outmatched by Saints’. Tony Clubb is a grandly over-rated individual who has in any case seen better days, while Romain Navarette is as likely to cough up possession as he is to get over the line to gain and make metres. Between them Sam Powell is reliable enough but about as far away from Roby as it is possible to be without actually being Tommy Lee. Joe Bullock is a prop of great promise but lacks the experience to take on Thompson and Walmsley if Clubb and Navarette aren’t hitting their very best form. Willie Isa will have a key role, albeit one likely to involve a lot of rule-breaking. I wonder if those let down by this week’s TV choices have considered how fascinating it will be to see this one played out without a video referee for the first time in 23 years.
Outside of that little lot and with Sean O’Loughlin taking his traditional late season break before the playoffs Wigan will be relying on youth. As well as Bullock, Oliver Partington, Morgan Smithies, Jake Shorrocks, Chris Hankinson and Liam Byrne are all in Lam’s 19-man selection.
Saints and Wigan have met twice already this season. Opening night saw Saints record a 22-12 home win before they eased to a 36-10 success on Good Friday. Social media bluster and TV-related rows aside there’s no reason to expect anything other than another Saints win in what the Saints marketing team are insisting on referring to as Bad Friday. Indeed. It doesn’t get any worse. Thankfully we have a great team on the field. Saints by 20.
Squads;
St Helens;
Jonny Lomax 2. Tommy Makinson 3. Kevin Naiqama 4. Mark Percival 5. Regan Grace 6. Theo Fages 8. Alex Walmsley 9. James Roby 10. Luke Thompson 13. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook 15. Morgan Knowles 16. Kyle Amor 17. Dominique Peyroux 18. Adam Swift 19. Matty Lees 20. Jack Ashworth 21. Aaron Smith 22. James Bentley 23. Lachlan Coote
Wigan Warriors;
3. Dan Sarginson 4. Oliver Gildart 5. Joe Burgess 6. George Williams 7. Thomas Leuluai 8. Tony Clubb 9. Sam Powell 12 Liam Farrell 14. Romain Navarette 15. Willie Isa 17. Liam Marshall 20. Zak Hardaker 22. Joe Bullock 23. Chris Hankinson 24. Oliver Partington 27. Jarrod Sammut 36. Liam Byrne 37. Jake Shorrocks 38. Morgan Smithies
Referee: Ben Thaler
Unlike all of the previous meetings between these two old foes in the Super League era this one is not available to view from the comfort of your armchair. With Leeds Rhinos still struggling to avoid relegation to the Championship Sky have chosen to broadcast their meeting with the similarly threatened Hull KR instead. This has been the cause of much whining and screaming from fans of Saints and Wigan, outraged that their 743rd squabble of another Every Minute Matters campaign has been snubbed. If there is a question for Sky to answer it is about why they have chosen Hull v London Broncos for live broadcast ahead of the derby. Yet broadly it is A Good Thing that Super League TV audiences will be served an alternative to what has by now become routine.
In fact, were it not for Wigan’s recent upturn in fortunes the whole episode would be in real danger of drowning in its own meh-ery. Saints are not only over the hills but several fields away from all others in what used to be the race to finish top of the pile. A defeat to their nearest and dearest would see their supremacy over Adrian Lam’s side cut to a mere 14 points. That’s seven wins which in a 29-game season is...well....you do the maths as they now say.
The only thing giving this one an edge is the fact that Wigan have picked up wins in their last five and have risen above the mediocrity that engulfs the rest of the league to move into a faintly respectable fourth position. But while two wins over Hull KR and victories over Huddersfield, Salford and the Rhinos are not enough to convince me that the Warriors are a clear and present danger to Saints’ ambitions the Wigan faithful disagree. They have flooded social media with talk of a late bid for Grand Final glory and of plans for another World Club Challenge. They are buoyed further by the announcement this week that Jackson Hastings will join them from Salford next season. The buzz around that has even dampened any negativity around George Williams finally announcing his decision to move to Canberra Raiders. Throw in a new one-year deal for Lam and anticipation hasn’t been this high in Wigan since The Verve played Haigh Hall in 1998. All of which has at least whetted the appetite for putting them back in their box.
Justin Holbrook has spent much of the week fielding questions about his own future. It being a whole year since they made an attempt to derail Saints’ season so the Australian press got to work this week by linking Holbrook to a currently struggling Canterbury Bulldogs side. More vague quotes in the press from Holbrook about how things will be resolved ‘in the next few weeks’ have done nothing to ease our anxiety around his position, especially since a new contract seemed a formality a week or two ago. Holbrook has re-introduced the winning culture that went temporarily AWOL towards the end of the Kieron Cunningham reign. To lose him now would be a shattering blow, particularly since it looks ever more likely with each passing week that his hard work will come into fruition in 2019.
Taking time out from gossip and interrogation to name his 19-man squad Holbrook has made two changes to the party which travelled to and won impressively at Hull FC last week. Most significant is the return of James Roby after a four-week injury absence. Holbrook is not yet certain whether Roby will be fit enough to start the game but that’s ok since the other change sees back-up hooker Aaron Smith return after suffering a concussion at Warrington a fortnight ago. The men to make way are Joseph Paulo who has a calf strain along with centre Matty Costello.
Paulo’s absence could mean that James Bentley will see some action in the back row. The former Bradford Bull has been deputising for Robyn and Smith at hooker over the last two weeks but will look to challenge for a back row spot along with Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook with Zeb Taia still sidelined with a shoulder problem. Morgan Knowles and Dominique Peyroux pick themselves in that area of the team, while whichever of Roby and Smith gets the nod will be flanked by the twin threat of Luke Thompson and Alex Walmsley in a formidable front three. They are backed up by Matty Lees, Kyle Amor and Jack Ashworth who would all start for many Super League clubs.
At the back Saints seem fairly settled. Lachlan Coote will be the last line of defence behind a three-quarter line of Tommy Makinson, Kevin Naiqama, Mark Percival and Regan Grace, with Hull-bound Adam Swift also named in the party. Jonny Lomax has been Saints’ most influential creative force along with Coote this year and will again indulge in some weapons grade string-pulling alongside Theo Fages in the halves.
Lam’s ranks were boosted recently by the return of Liams Farrell and Marshall. Farrell has long been a vital cog in the machine, one of the few links to a time when the Warriors could boast a truly dominant pack. Meanwhile Marshall helped himself to a hat-trick in the 52-10 pummelling of Rovers last time out. He will line up opposite Joe Burgess with Oliver Gildart and the outgoing Dan Sarginson forming the centre partnership. Behind them Zak Hardaker is at last making more headlines on the field than off it. Williams will partner Thomas Leuluai in the halves, a stuttering alliance which represents another key area where Saints have the edge. If Wigan need a change in that area then responsibility will likely fall on inconsistent, injury-prone poor man’s Rangi Chase Jarrod Sammut.
Farrell apart Wigan’s pack looks outmatched by Saints’. Tony Clubb is a grandly over-rated individual who has in any case seen better days, while Romain Navarette is as likely to cough up possession as he is to get over the line to gain and make metres. Between them Sam Powell is reliable enough but about as far away from Roby as it is possible to be without actually being Tommy Lee. Joe Bullock is a prop of great promise but lacks the experience to take on Thompson and Walmsley if Clubb and Navarette aren’t hitting their very best form. Willie Isa will have a key role, albeit one likely to involve a lot of rule-breaking. I wonder if those let down by this week’s TV choices have considered how fascinating it will be to see this one played out without a video referee for the first time in 23 years.
Outside of that little lot and with Sean O’Loughlin taking his traditional late season break before the playoffs Wigan will be relying on youth. As well as Bullock, Oliver Partington, Morgan Smithies, Jake Shorrocks, Chris Hankinson and Liam Byrne are all in Lam’s 19-man selection.
Saints and Wigan have met twice already this season. Opening night saw Saints record a 22-12 home win before they eased to a 36-10 success on Good Friday. Social media bluster and TV-related rows aside there’s no reason to expect anything other than another Saints win in what the Saints marketing team are insisting on referring to as Bad Friday. Indeed. It doesn’t get any worse. Thankfully we have a great team on the field. Saints by 20.
Squads;
St Helens;
Jonny Lomax 2. Tommy Makinson 3. Kevin Naiqama 4. Mark Percival 5. Regan Grace 6. Theo Fages 8. Alex Walmsley 9. James Roby 10. Luke Thompson 13. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook 15. Morgan Knowles 16. Kyle Amor 17. Dominique Peyroux 18. Adam Swift 19. Matty Lees 20. Jack Ashworth 21. Aaron Smith 22. James Bentley 23. Lachlan Coote
Wigan Warriors;
3. Dan Sarginson 4. Oliver Gildart 5. Joe Burgess 6. George Williams 7. Thomas Leuluai 8. Tony Clubb 9. Sam Powell 12 Liam Farrell 14. Romain Navarette 15. Willie Isa 17. Liam Marshall 20. Zak Hardaker 22. Joe Bullock 23. Chris Hankinson 24. Oliver Partington 27. Jarrod Sammut 36. Liam Byrne 37. Jake Shorrocks 38. Morgan Smithies
Referee: Ben Thaler
5 Talking Points From Saints 36 Leeds Rhinos 10
The Sign Of A Champion Side
Despite a comfortable enough 36-10 win over Leeds Rhinos the general consensus was that Saints had under-performed. Following an early blitz when Saints went 12-0 up inside four minutes through tries from Kevin Naiqama and Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook there were long periods of scrappiness from Justin Holbrook’s side. The Rhinos never really looked like winning but nor did Saints build on the promise of that early salvo. It took two more tries in a three-minute spell at the end by James Bentley and McCarthy-Scarsbrook to put a little gloss on what was a fairly ugly win at times.
Saints came up with 20 errors on the night with Alex Walmsley and Aaron Smith the main culprits with three each. Leeds added 16 of their own making for a bitty, stop-start affair. That was probably more to the liking of Richard Agar’s men who coming in had been expected to struggle given the way their season has gone so far. They have won just 6 of their 18 league encounters in 2019 and find themselves in a real battle to avoid relegation. To that end they may take a lot of positives from the way they managed to frustrate the league leaders for large parts of the game.
For Saints there shouldn’t be too much concern. They registered their second consecutive win since going down to London on June 9 and did so despite the continuation of Holbrook’s rotation policy which saw both Morgan Knowles and Joseph Paulo given the week off. With James Roby injured and Mark Percival and Zeb Taia both meeting with varying degrees of physical misfortune it was clearly not Saints at full tilt. But if you can win this comfortably when you are not playing particularly well it has to give you confidence. Is this a sign of a champion team?
Did Holbrook Get The Selection Right?
We seem to be asking this question more and more every week as the coach presses on with his bid to manage the workload of his players. Most of Saints’ top-line players have found themselves left out of the reckoning at some stage this season. That’s quite a significant departure from last season when Holbrook went with his strongest team week after week after week until it finally ran out of batteries and fell in a heap. By September Saints were so bad that Tom Lineham was jogging through them with impunity.
It is important to learn from that and Holbrook’s team selections over the last month or so indicate that he has. I would just slightly question the wisdom of resting both Knowles and Paulo in the same week. These are the only specialist loose forwards in the squad who offer anything like that balance of work-rate and creativity that you’d want from your 13. McCarthy-Scarsbrook stepped in admirably but when he plays there he does so as an auxiliary prop forward. He doesn’t have the handling skills or the game sense for the role and in any case he was forced to fill in at the second row position when Taia left the scene. With Roby out it might just have been prudent to include one of Knowles or Paulo just to give the attack that little bit of poise and composure that seemed to be lacking at times.
In Praise Of LMS
On the subject of big Louie it is time to give him some of what the annoying ‘yoof’ might refer to as ‘props’. Regular readers will know that if I had any say in the matter the London-born forward would have begun plying his trade elsewhere some years ago. Yet he was probably the star turn for Saints in this one.
Only Smith came up with more than McCarthy-Scarsbrook’s 33 tackles. He missed only three and although four Saints forwards made more ground than the former Broncos man a return of 80 metres from 11 carries is more than decent for a player playing half the game at loose forward and the other half in the second row. He also threw in three offloads, making only one error. Yet it was the two tries he scored, first taking Lachlan Coote’s pass to go over untouched and add to Naiqama’s early score and then crashing through four would-be tacklers to seal the win which his legions of fans will be most happy with. No doubt we could have done without the Michael McIntyre tribute act in celebration of his second but nobody can accuse enthusiasm’s McCarthy-Scarsbrook of failing to enjoy his work.
LMS is not likely to be a starter when everyone is fit but he will certainly play a key role in Saints’ bid to reach both Wembley and Old Trafford.
Taia Injury A Major Blow
Men like McCarthy-Scarsbrook may need to play an even more pivotal role over the coming weeks following the injury to Taia. The former Catalans Dragons man hit the deck like a female Cameroon footballer after a heavy second half challenge. At first glance it looked like Taia may have just taken one in the face from one of Leeds’ band of gnarled and frustrated head-hunting forwards but when he was led from the field in obvious pain by the medical staff, holding his arm perfectly still as he walked, it seemed evident that something more was amiss.
As it turned out Taia had dislocated his shoulder and faces an anxious wait before scans later this week will determine the extent of the damage. The obvious, whacking great Dumbo in the room is the prospect of a serious lay-off forcing Taia to miss the anticipated trip to Wembley. Saints aren’t there yet, still needing to beat Halifax to get to a first Challenge Cup final in 11 years, but it would be a brave punter who bets against them overcoming the Championship side in Bolton in July 27.
Taia’s absence Wembley would not only be a crushing blow for him but also a pretty savage smack on the head for the team. He has been outstanding this season, earning a new one-year deal at the club when many thought he would be moved on. Even in this game which ended early for him he racked up 120 metres on nine carries and effected 18 tackles. His partnership on that left edge of Saints attack with Mark Percival and Regan Grace will be out of commission for a while with Percival also leaving this one early with a tight hamstring. Saints should have the squad to cope for now but you fancy we’d rather face the knockout games at the end of the year with Taia than without him.
Plane Arrogance Or Good Marketing?
The next assignment facing the Taia-less, tireless Saints is a trip to Warrington on Friday night (June 28). It is first versus second and could go a long way to helping Saints wrap up a second consecutive League Leaders Shield. We had a loud reminder that this challenge was on the horizon as some wayward wolf saw fit to fly a plane over the stadium sporting a banner which read ‘The Wolves Are Waiting’ throughout the first 20 minutes of this one.
The first point to make is that it greatly reduced my enjoyment of that opening period of the game. I had come to watch a rugby league match not to see a display from the red fucking arrows. The low drone of the aeroplane was quite nauseating.
Other than that I don’t take too much offence to it. Some fans have complained that it is arrogant and that a reminder of it should be all Holbrook needs to help motivate his players next week. But when you’re six points adrift and preparing for what will be your last chance to stay in the race for top spot I’m not sure you have too much to be arrogant about. Others say it is just good marketing and have applauded Warrington for a number of similar publicity stunts before big games this term. I can see that argument but I would ask Warrington exactly who they think they are marketing the game to? Saints fans in the ground for the Leeds game already know about the Wire game as you would expect do most fans watching on Sky Sports.
Perhaps they might have considered taking a flight path somewhere over Warrington town centre.
Despite a comfortable enough 36-10 win over Leeds Rhinos the general consensus was that Saints had under-performed. Following an early blitz when Saints went 12-0 up inside four minutes through tries from Kevin Naiqama and Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook there were long periods of scrappiness from Justin Holbrook’s side. The Rhinos never really looked like winning but nor did Saints build on the promise of that early salvo. It took two more tries in a three-minute spell at the end by James Bentley and McCarthy-Scarsbrook to put a little gloss on what was a fairly ugly win at times.
Saints came up with 20 errors on the night with Alex Walmsley and Aaron Smith the main culprits with three each. Leeds added 16 of their own making for a bitty, stop-start affair. That was probably more to the liking of Richard Agar’s men who coming in had been expected to struggle given the way their season has gone so far. They have won just 6 of their 18 league encounters in 2019 and find themselves in a real battle to avoid relegation. To that end they may take a lot of positives from the way they managed to frustrate the league leaders for large parts of the game.
For Saints there shouldn’t be too much concern. They registered their second consecutive win since going down to London on June 9 and did so despite the continuation of Holbrook’s rotation policy which saw both Morgan Knowles and Joseph Paulo given the week off. With James Roby injured and Mark Percival and Zeb Taia both meeting with varying degrees of physical misfortune it was clearly not Saints at full tilt. But if you can win this comfortably when you are not playing particularly well it has to give you confidence. Is this a sign of a champion team?
Did Holbrook Get The Selection Right?
We seem to be asking this question more and more every week as the coach presses on with his bid to manage the workload of his players. Most of Saints’ top-line players have found themselves left out of the reckoning at some stage this season. That’s quite a significant departure from last season when Holbrook went with his strongest team week after week after week until it finally ran out of batteries and fell in a heap. By September Saints were so bad that Tom Lineham was jogging through them with impunity.
It is important to learn from that and Holbrook’s team selections over the last month or so indicate that he has. I would just slightly question the wisdom of resting both Knowles and Paulo in the same week. These are the only specialist loose forwards in the squad who offer anything like that balance of work-rate and creativity that you’d want from your 13. McCarthy-Scarsbrook stepped in admirably but when he plays there he does so as an auxiliary prop forward. He doesn’t have the handling skills or the game sense for the role and in any case he was forced to fill in at the second row position when Taia left the scene. With Roby out it might just have been prudent to include one of Knowles or Paulo just to give the attack that little bit of poise and composure that seemed to be lacking at times.
In Praise Of LMS
On the subject of big Louie it is time to give him some of what the annoying ‘yoof’ might refer to as ‘props’. Regular readers will know that if I had any say in the matter the London-born forward would have begun plying his trade elsewhere some years ago. Yet he was probably the star turn for Saints in this one.
Only Smith came up with more than McCarthy-Scarsbrook’s 33 tackles. He missed only three and although four Saints forwards made more ground than the former Broncos man a return of 80 metres from 11 carries is more than decent for a player playing half the game at loose forward and the other half in the second row. He also threw in three offloads, making only one error. Yet it was the two tries he scored, first taking Lachlan Coote’s pass to go over untouched and add to Naiqama’s early score and then crashing through four would-be tacklers to seal the win which his legions of fans will be most happy with. No doubt we could have done without the Michael McIntyre tribute act in celebration of his second but nobody can accuse enthusiasm’s McCarthy-Scarsbrook of failing to enjoy his work.
LMS is not likely to be a starter when everyone is fit but he will certainly play a key role in Saints’ bid to reach both Wembley and Old Trafford.
Taia Injury A Major Blow
Men like McCarthy-Scarsbrook may need to play an even more pivotal role over the coming weeks following the injury to Taia. The former Catalans Dragons man hit the deck like a female Cameroon footballer after a heavy second half challenge. At first glance it looked like Taia may have just taken one in the face from one of Leeds’ band of gnarled and frustrated head-hunting forwards but when he was led from the field in obvious pain by the medical staff, holding his arm perfectly still as he walked, it seemed evident that something more was amiss.
As it turned out Taia had dislocated his shoulder and faces an anxious wait before scans later this week will determine the extent of the damage. The obvious, whacking great Dumbo in the room is the prospect of a serious lay-off forcing Taia to miss the anticipated trip to Wembley. Saints aren’t there yet, still needing to beat Halifax to get to a first Challenge Cup final in 11 years, but it would be a brave punter who bets against them overcoming the Championship side in Bolton in July 27.
Taia’s absence Wembley would not only be a crushing blow for him but also a pretty savage smack on the head for the team. He has been outstanding this season, earning a new one-year deal at the club when many thought he would be moved on. Even in this game which ended early for him he racked up 120 metres on nine carries and effected 18 tackles. His partnership on that left edge of Saints attack with Mark Percival and Regan Grace will be out of commission for a while with Percival also leaving this one early with a tight hamstring. Saints should have the squad to cope for now but you fancy we’d rather face the knockout games at the end of the year with Taia than without him.
Plane Arrogance Or Good Marketing?
The next assignment facing the Taia-less, tireless Saints is a trip to Warrington on Friday night (June 28). It is first versus second and could go a long way to helping Saints wrap up a second consecutive League Leaders Shield. We had a loud reminder that this challenge was on the horizon as some wayward wolf saw fit to fly a plane over the stadium sporting a banner which read ‘The Wolves Are Waiting’ throughout the first 20 minutes of this one.
The first point to make is that it greatly reduced my enjoyment of that opening period of the game. I had come to watch a rugby league match not to see a display from the red fucking arrows. The low drone of the aeroplane was quite nauseating.
Other than that I don’t take too much offence to it. Some fans have complained that it is arrogant and that a reminder of it should be all Holbrook needs to help motivate his players next week. But when you’re six points adrift and preparing for what will be your last chance to stay in the race for top spot I’m not sure you have too much to be arrogant about. Others say it is just good marketing and have applauded Warrington for a number of similar publicity stunts before big games this term. I can see that argument but I would ask Warrington exactly who they think they are marketing the game to? Saints fans in the ground for the Leeds game already know about the Wire game as you would expect do most fans watching on Sky Sports.
Perhaps they might have considered taking a flight path somewhere over Warrington town centre.
Saints v Leeds Rhinos - Preview
A classic rivalry is renewed this weekend, albeit with the two combatants in varying states of health, as Leeds travel to St Helens for a Betfred Super League Round 19 meeting on Friday night (June 21, kick-off 7.45pm).
Ordinarily this would be a high-stakes, top of the table clash but although Saints have kept up their end of the bargain winning 16 of their 18 league outings so far the Rhinos have toiled. Still coach-less after the sacking of David Furner in early May Leeds have won just six times so far in 2019 and find themselves locked in a three-way tie at the bottom of the league with London Broncos and Hull KR ahead of the meeting between those two on Thursday night (June 20). With one club sure to go down to the Championship at the end of the season Leeds’ need is desperate.
Unfortunately for them Justin Holbrook’s side returned to form with a 38-2 dismissal of Huddersfield Giants last weekend. There had been a blip as an under-strength side went to London a week previously and left with a 23-22 Golden Point defeat, but all the signs from the Giants game were that with everyone back on deck Saints will be as formidable as they have been for most of the regular season so far. That London defeat was only their second of the year, the other coming in Perpignan in early April when they went down 18-10 to Catalans Dragons.
Holbrook has taken the opportunity that his side’s lead at the top of the Super League table affords him to rest a few players over recent weeks. Five players missed the trip to London while last week it was the turn of Regan Grace, Dominique Peyroux and Matty Lees to miss out along with the injured James Roby. The latter remains side-lined but Grace and Lees return to the 19-man squad for this one and Peyroux is expected to be restored to the starting line-up. That looks even more likely given that Joseph Paulo, who replaced Peyroux in the team last week, is one of those to be stood down for this week as Holbrook continues his rotation policy in a bid to keep everyone fresh for the real do or die games at the end of the season. Adam Swift also misses out after starting against both London and Huddersfield in his final year as a Saint before his move to Hull FC.
Lachlan Coote is the subject of much talk of a Great Britain call-up in the wake of Wayne Bennett’s gum-flapping about heritage players. The Scottish international is the best fullback in Super League this year and, along with the likes of Roby and Jonny Lomax is capable of transforming Saints into a different proposition altogether with his mere presence. Grace’s return and Swift’s omission should mean that the Welshman will start on the left wing outside of Mark Percival, with Kevin Naiqama and Tommy Makinson forming the centre-wing partnership on the right hand side.
There is no place in the squad for Danny Richardson for a second consecutive week so expect Lomax to start at stand-off and Theo Fages to continue at scrum-half. Alex Walmsley and Luke Thompson have reignited their devastating front row combination since the return to fitness of the latter who has also been the subject of Bennett’s wisdom this week. Thompson was widely linked with a move to the NRL and in particular South Sydney Roosters where Bennett moonlights as the head coach when he is not picking John Bateman to play at centre in international rugby league. Bennett’s musings about the possibility of Thompson making it big down under did not go down very well with Saints Chairman Eamonn McManus, a man never short of a word or two on most rugby-league issues, who let it be known in no uncertain terms that he did not welcome any approaches for Thompson while he is still under contract to Saints. Thompson is tied to Saints until the end of next season after which you would not begrudge him the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of James Graham, Bateman and the Burgess brothers and test himself in the strongest competition there is at domestic level. But those who say that McManus is behaving childishly in complaining about the perceived ‘tapping up’ of Thompson are also those who do not watch him dominate games for their team on a weekly basis. Thompson is the real deal and any club chairman not doing everything in his power to retain his services is not doing his job properly. Perhaps we could have done without Super League big cheese Robert Elstone’s comments on the subject but on the other hand that bastion of all things wonderful the NRL takes the view that any players leaving its exalted boundaries does not get selected for Australia. Why should we not go that extra mile to keep our best players in our competition if it is at all possible?
With Roby out Aaron Smith should continue at hooker with Peyroux slotting into his usual second row berth alongside Zeb Taia. Behind them Morgan Knowles will tackle anything within a 100-mile radius at loose forward. The bench options are boosted by the news that Jack Ashworth’s one match ban for a Grade A offence in the Huddersfield game has been overturned on appeal, which if nothing else is one in the eye for the Facebook conspiracy theorists who insist that every disciplinary decision is made with the expressed intention of shafting Saints. Ashworth should make the bench and be joined by regular pine-dweller Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Lees and one of Kyle Amor, James Bentley or Matty Costello.
Leeds come in off the back of a 23-14 defeat to Wigan that was perhaps a little more encouraging in terms of the performance but still left them in dire straits in terms of the mathematics of the competition. You don't get anything for making a decent fist of it. Their major absentee for this one will be Tui Lolohea who is on international duty with Tonga. Jack Walker and Ash Handley are named in the 19 selected by interim coach Richard Agar but both have injury clouds hanging over them and could miss out. Kallum Watkins is included ahead of his planned move to Gold Coast Titans in July while others to watch out for are former Australian test forward Trent Merrin, hooking duo Matt Parcell and Brad Dwyer and blockbusting, battering ram Konrad Hurrell at left centre. Hurrell produced an explosive performance when Leeds visited Saints in February as the Rhinos took a 22-10 half-time lead. Neither he nor they could sustain that level in the second half as they eventually went down 27-22.
If Leeds’ three-quarter line which also features former England man Tom Briscoe is a match for most at this level then it is perhaps in the trenches where they will be found out. Props Adam Cuthbertson and Brad Singleton are capable but are not in the kind of form which should trouble their Saints counterparts, while Watkins and Liam Sutcliffe have been used at various times in the second row which is clearly not ideal. Stevie Ward appears to have more injury problems than Sean O’Loughlin and Daniel Sturridge combined and is again on the list of no-shows for Leeds.
That means the gaps will have to be filled by the more inexperienced men like Cameron Smith (not that one), Mikolaj Oledzki and recently imported Ava Seumanufagai. The latter played over 100 games in the NRL in a four-year spell at Wests Tigers but only mustered 13 in his two-year stint with Cronulla Sharks before joining the Rhinos. Wellington Albert is also included in the 19 along with young three-quarter Harry Newman who may start should Agar decide to continue to employ Watkins as a second row forward. Brett Ferres and Richard Myler offer experience to the Leeds outfit but there has to be serious questions about the kind of quality that either are providing at this stage of their careers. Myler may have an even more difficult time without Lolohea although Agar does have the option of deploying Sutcliffe in the halves should he be able to fill the gaps in the side elsewhere.
There are too many ifs and buts about the Leeds squad at the moment to really see them storming into St Helens and emerging with the two competition points. They have a decent record overall at Saints, the only team to win there during the regular season last year when Ben Barba was riding roughshod over everything in his path. Before that you only have to go back to 2015 for Leeds’ last win at the stadium formerly known as Langtree Park when they blitzed Keiron Cunningham’s side 41-16 on their way to a domestic treble that this season has seemed a world away for Rhinos fans. Yet even in defeat at Saints they have gone close in recent years, their last three defeats there coming by a combined total of 11 points. It could be a close one just because these fixtures often tend to be, but anything but a Saints win would qualify as a fairly sizeable shock.
Squads;
St Helens;
1. Jonny Lomax 2. Tommy Makinson 3. Kevin Naiqama 4. Mark Percival 5. Regan Grace 6. Theo Fages 8. Alex Walmsley 10. Luke Thompson 11. Zeb Taia 13. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook 15. Morgan Knowles 16. Kyle Amor 17. Dominique Peyroux 19. Matty Lees 20. Jack Ashworth 21. Aaron Smith 22. James Bentley 23. Lachlan Coote 24. Matty Costello
Leeds Rhinos;
Jack Walker, Tom Briscoe, Kallum Watkins, Konrad Hurrell, Ash Handley, Richie Myler, Adam Cuthbertson, Matt Parcell, Brad Singleton, Trent Merrin, Brad Dwyer, Liam Sutcliffe, Brett Ferres, Mikolaj Oledzki, Cameron Smith, James Donaldson, Harry Newman, Wellington Albert, Ava Seumanufagai.
Referee: Ben Thaler
Ordinarily this would be a high-stakes, top of the table clash but although Saints have kept up their end of the bargain winning 16 of their 18 league outings so far the Rhinos have toiled. Still coach-less after the sacking of David Furner in early May Leeds have won just six times so far in 2019 and find themselves locked in a three-way tie at the bottom of the league with London Broncos and Hull KR ahead of the meeting between those two on Thursday night (June 20). With one club sure to go down to the Championship at the end of the season Leeds’ need is desperate.
Unfortunately for them Justin Holbrook’s side returned to form with a 38-2 dismissal of Huddersfield Giants last weekend. There had been a blip as an under-strength side went to London a week previously and left with a 23-22 Golden Point defeat, but all the signs from the Giants game were that with everyone back on deck Saints will be as formidable as they have been for most of the regular season so far. That London defeat was only their second of the year, the other coming in Perpignan in early April when they went down 18-10 to Catalans Dragons.
Holbrook has taken the opportunity that his side’s lead at the top of the Super League table affords him to rest a few players over recent weeks. Five players missed the trip to London while last week it was the turn of Regan Grace, Dominique Peyroux and Matty Lees to miss out along with the injured James Roby. The latter remains side-lined but Grace and Lees return to the 19-man squad for this one and Peyroux is expected to be restored to the starting line-up. That looks even more likely given that Joseph Paulo, who replaced Peyroux in the team last week, is one of those to be stood down for this week as Holbrook continues his rotation policy in a bid to keep everyone fresh for the real do or die games at the end of the season. Adam Swift also misses out after starting against both London and Huddersfield in his final year as a Saint before his move to Hull FC.
Lachlan Coote is the subject of much talk of a Great Britain call-up in the wake of Wayne Bennett’s gum-flapping about heritage players. The Scottish international is the best fullback in Super League this year and, along with the likes of Roby and Jonny Lomax is capable of transforming Saints into a different proposition altogether with his mere presence. Grace’s return and Swift’s omission should mean that the Welshman will start on the left wing outside of Mark Percival, with Kevin Naiqama and Tommy Makinson forming the centre-wing partnership on the right hand side.
There is no place in the squad for Danny Richardson for a second consecutive week so expect Lomax to start at stand-off and Theo Fages to continue at scrum-half. Alex Walmsley and Luke Thompson have reignited their devastating front row combination since the return to fitness of the latter who has also been the subject of Bennett’s wisdom this week. Thompson was widely linked with a move to the NRL and in particular South Sydney Roosters where Bennett moonlights as the head coach when he is not picking John Bateman to play at centre in international rugby league. Bennett’s musings about the possibility of Thompson making it big down under did not go down very well with Saints Chairman Eamonn McManus, a man never short of a word or two on most rugby-league issues, who let it be known in no uncertain terms that he did not welcome any approaches for Thompson while he is still under contract to Saints. Thompson is tied to Saints until the end of next season after which you would not begrudge him the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of James Graham, Bateman and the Burgess brothers and test himself in the strongest competition there is at domestic level. But those who say that McManus is behaving childishly in complaining about the perceived ‘tapping up’ of Thompson are also those who do not watch him dominate games for their team on a weekly basis. Thompson is the real deal and any club chairman not doing everything in his power to retain his services is not doing his job properly. Perhaps we could have done without Super League big cheese Robert Elstone’s comments on the subject but on the other hand that bastion of all things wonderful the NRL takes the view that any players leaving its exalted boundaries does not get selected for Australia. Why should we not go that extra mile to keep our best players in our competition if it is at all possible?
With Roby out Aaron Smith should continue at hooker with Peyroux slotting into his usual second row berth alongside Zeb Taia. Behind them Morgan Knowles will tackle anything within a 100-mile radius at loose forward. The bench options are boosted by the news that Jack Ashworth’s one match ban for a Grade A offence in the Huddersfield game has been overturned on appeal, which if nothing else is one in the eye for the Facebook conspiracy theorists who insist that every disciplinary decision is made with the expressed intention of shafting Saints. Ashworth should make the bench and be joined by regular pine-dweller Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Lees and one of Kyle Amor, James Bentley or Matty Costello.
Leeds come in off the back of a 23-14 defeat to Wigan that was perhaps a little more encouraging in terms of the performance but still left them in dire straits in terms of the mathematics of the competition. You don't get anything for making a decent fist of it. Their major absentee for this one will be Tui Lolohea who is on international duty with Tonga. Jack Walker and Ash Handley are named in the 19 selected by interim coach Richard Agar but both have injury clouds hanging over them and could miss out. Kallum Watkins is included ahead of his planned move to Gold Coast Titans in July while others to watch out for are former Australian test forward Trent Merrin, hooking duo Matt Parcell and Brad Dwyer and blockbusting, battering ram Konrad Hurrell at left centre. Hurrell produced an explosive performance when Leeds visited Saints in February as the Rhinos took a 22-10 half-time lead. Neither he nor they could sustain that level in the second half as they eventually went down 27-22.
If Leeds’ three-quarter line which also features former England man Tom Briscoe is a match for most at this level then it is perhaps in the trenches where they will be found out. Props Adam Cuthbertson and Brad Singleton are capable but are not in the kind of form which should trouble their Saints counterparts, while Watkins and Liam Sutcliffe have been used at various times in the second row which is clearly not ideal. Stevie Ward appears to have more injury problems than Sean O’Loughlin and Daniel Sturridge combined and is again on the list of no-shows for Leeds.
That means the gaps will have to be filled by the more inexperienced men like Cameron Smith (not that one), Mikolaj Oledzki and recently imported Ava Seumanufagai. The latter played over 100 games in the NRL in a four-year spell at Wests Tigers but only mustered 13 in his two-year stint with Cronulla Sharks before joining the Rhinos. Wellington Albert is also included in the 19 along with young three-quarter Harry Newman who may start should Agar decide to continue to employ Watkins as a second row forward. Brett Ferres and Richard Myler offer experience to the Leeds outfit but there has to be serious questions about the kind of quality that either are providing at this stage of their careers. Myler may have an even more difficult time without Lolohea although Agar does have the option of deploying Sutcliffe in the halves should he be able to fill the gaps in the side elsewhere.
There are too many ifs and buts about the Leeds squad at the moment to really see them storming into St Helens and emerging with the two competition points. They have a decent record overall at Saints, the only team to win there during the regular season last year when Ben Barba was riding roughshod over everything in his path. Before that you only have to go back to 2015 for Leeds’ last win at the stadium formerly known as Langtree Park when they blitzed Keiron Cunningham’s side 41-16 on their way to a domestic treble that this season has seemed a world away for Rhinos fans. Yet even in defeat at Saints they have gone close in recent years, their last three defeats there coming by a combined total of 11 points. It could be a close one just because these fixtures often tend to be, but anything but a Saints win would qualify as a fairly sizeable shock.
Squads;
St Helens;
1. Jonny Lomax 2. Tommy Makinson 3. Kevin Naiqama 4. Mark Percival 5. Regan Grace 6. Theo Fages 8. Alex Walmsley 10. Luke Thompson 11. Zeb Taia 13. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook 15. Morgan Knowles 16. Kyle Amor 17. Dominique Peyroux 19. Matty Lees 20. Jack Ashworth 21. Aaron Smith 22. James Bentley 23. Lachlan Coote 24. Matty Costello
Leeds Rhinos;
Jack Walker, Tom Briscoe, Kallum Watkins, Konrad Hurrell, Ash Handley, Richie Myler, Adam Cuthbertson, Matt Parcell, Brad Singleton, Trent Merrin, Brad Dwyer, Liam Sutcliffe, Brett Ferres, Mikolaj Oledzki, Cameron Smith, James Donaldson, Harry Newman, Wellington Albert, Ava Seumanufagai.
Referee: Ben Thaler
5 Talking Points From Saints 38 Huddersfield Giants 2
Marshall Moves In
Sean Long’s Saints departure all happened so quickly. Last weekend it was announced that the legendary half would be leaving his role as Justin Holbrook’s assistant to take up a similar position in rugby union. By Monday, just hours after the disappointing loss to London Broncos, it became apparent that Long would be making the move with immediate effect.
Almost as quick was Saints’ move to replace Long. On Wednesday it was revealed that former Halifax Head Coach Richard Marshall will be the new man. Marshall was appointed Head Coach of Saints’ Coral Challenge Cup semi-final opponents in 2015 but left the role earlier this year in fairly controversial circumstances. After it became clear that he would not be offered a new deal by Halifax Marshall announced his departure from the club having led them to three top three finishes during his four seasons at the Shay. It is ironic that he could now play a part in bringing to an end his old club’s incredible cup run. Not that there is any chicken counting going on at That Saints Blog You Quite Like.
Marshall has also spent time as an assistant at Warrington during Tony Smith’s time at the Wolves and has coached England’s Academy squad. His track record is impressive, with an emphasis on youth that should see him excel at working with the great many youngsters who come through to first team level at Saints. He’s got off to a fine start, taking up the role for the first time for this rather routine dismissal of a disappointing Giants outfit. His contract runs to the end of 2020, by which time we should have some idea of whether he is a Saints Head Coach in waiting or just passing through.
Long Moves On
Long was rightly afforded the opportunity to say farewell to the Saints fans before kick-off of this one. As he recalled the great moments of his time with the club, most of which were as a player if truth be told, his departure suddenly became a little more real. All at once it sunk in that one of the club’s greatest ever players, one of the best of the Super League era despite being laughably discarded by his hometown club across the lump, would no longer be part of the furniture. I personally will rue losing the opportunity to shout ‘get your boots back on, Sean’ whenever some unfortunate halfback successor doomed to a career in Long’s shadow throws an errant pass or shanks an attempted 40/20 straight into the back of the South Stand. We may be seriously good at the moment but we shall not see a halfback as good as Long in the Red Vee for an awfully long time to come.
Recounting those great memories from Wide To West to the winning drop-goal in the 2002 Grand Final against Bradford Bulls every pause was met with a standing ovation from a clearly appreciative and emotional crowd.
Coote For GB
At the end of this season there is something a little bit different to look forward to. For the first time since 2007 there will be a GB Lions tour as Wayne Bennett’s side take on Tonga and Papua New Guinea either side of two tests against New Zealand in the autumn. Wherever you stand on the issue of selecting players born outside the British Isles there is nevertheless a compelling case for the inclusion of Lachlan Coote at fullback.
Coote qualifies through his Scottish heritage, having made three appearances for Scotland in 2016. Like the original character in the song now used by the Saints fans to celebrate his brilliance Coote was electric against Simon Woolford’s side. He scored the first try of the game after the Giants had taken the lead through an Oliver Russell penalty before helping himself to no fewer than four assists. He now leads the league in assists with 19 and has also reached double figures for tries. He ripped off another 128 metres on 15 carries against the Giants and made five of his seven goal attempts for a personal tally of 14 points. Only Warrington’s Stefan Ratchford and Hull FC’s Marc Sneyd have landed more than Coote’s 64 goals in Super League in 2019.
Not so long ago Saints had a real balance problem in attack. The potent strike threat of Zeb Taia, Mark Percival and Regan Grace on the left was scarcely matched on the opposite flank. That has all changed this year thanks to Coote, whose ability to pass accurately from left to right may sound like a fairly basic requirement among Super League playmakers but is actually something of a rare commodity. If Bennett is looking for a player who reads the game well defensively, scores tries, makes tries and is equally adept passing to either side he should take a look at Coote. There isn’t a British-qualified fullback in better form right now.
The Rotation Continues
Undeterred by last week's blush-inducer at Trailfinders Holbrook continued his policy of resting players for the visit of the Giants. Although he welcomed back all of Coote, Tommy Makinson, Jonny Lomax, Alex Walmsley and Zeb Taia Holbrook decided he could do without Regan Grace, Matty Lees and Dominique Peyroux this week. The latter two make a lot of sense. Those semi-final defeats from last year seem to have persuaded Holbrook that shuffling the pack in order to peak at the right time of the season is the way to go. Peyroux has played a lot of minutes in 2019 and at 30 years of age he is at a time of his career where he could really benefit from the odd week off.
Lees is much younger at just 21 but it won't do him any harm to be taken out of the firing line for a week or two. And Saints have plenty of options at prop. Kyle Amor came in for this one and ended the game just a few metres short of a 100-metre performances while Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook and Luke Thompson have returned to fitness to give Holbrook yet more front row options even in the absence of James Roby. Lees has been playing more minutes in recent weeks due to the injuries to Thompson and McCarthy-Scarsbrook so perhaps he will benefit from a breather now that his more experienced colleagues have returned to the fold.
Perhaps the most surprising decision was the omission of Regan Grace. Something that has irked me for a long time now is Saints' insistence on using their smaller wingers and centres to cart the ball out of their own end early in a tackle set while the big men stand around with their hands on their hips, ambling back onside if the mood takes them. This is particularly difficult for the slightly built Grace and while we still have Adam Swift on the books ahead of his move to Hull FC for 2020 we have the luxury of being able to sit the Welsh star down for a week and not have it impact too much on results and performance.
A break might be of benefit to Grace but I'm yet to be convinced that a winger needs a rest in quite the same way that a forward does, even taking into account the extra work that is demanded of Saints' backs. They might have to muck in while in possession deep in their own half, but they still don't have to make anywhere near as many tackles on defence as the men up front. With Mark Percival recently returned to action after his injury there's an argument that he and Grace need as many games together as possible to reignite that spark between them that was just beginning to light after a couple of years of looking as though they had only met each other a few minutes before kick-off.
Can Anyone Catch Saints?
Irrespective of whether Holbrook chooses to continue resting players it may well be that Saints have already done enough to secure a second consecutive League Leaders Shield. Their lead at the top of the Betfred Super League table was cut to just four points when they went down at London last weekend but this victory, coupled with Warrington's surprise and some might say hilarious defeat by Hull KR at the weekend means that Holbrook's side have re-established their six-point buffer. With eleven games to go, the meeting between Saints and Warrington at the Haliwell Jones Stadium in a fortnight's time looks like a potentially pivotal moment. Like the climactic battle between Anakin and Obi-Wan in Revenge Of The Sith. Just as there are another 97 Star Wars films thereafter there will be another nine games remaining in the endless meh-ery of the weekly rounds after the top two collide. Yet if Saints win that and stretch the lead to eight points the fat lady will not quite be singing, but she will be in the aisles warming up the vocal chords. It would leave Wire with only those nine games to claw back the deficit on a Saints side that hasn't looked like losing often this term.
If Saints keep wining they will sew up the League Leaders Shield at Leeds Rhinos on August 15 regardless of what Warrington do between now and then. However, should Saints lose at Steve Price's side then the gap will be four once more and the Wolves may have the scent of something. The first priority for Holbrook will be to beat Leeds this weekend as they arrive in St.Helens on the back of some improved form despite their narrow defeat by Wigan on Friday night. Leeds were one of only two teams to beat Saints last season in the regular season and pushed them very close earlier this year when they lead 22-10 at the break only to capitulate in the second half as Konrad Hurrell's batteries ran out.
Sean Long’s Saints departure all happened so quickly. Last weekend it was announced that the legendary half would be leaving his role as Justin Holbrook’s assistant to take up a similar position in rugby union. By Monday, just hours after the disappointing loss to London Broncos, it became apparent that Long would be making the move with immediate effect.
Almost as quick was Saints’ move to replace Long. On Wednesday it was revealed that former Halifax Head Coach Richard Marshall will be the new man. Marshall was appointed Head Coach of Saints’ Coral Challenge Cup semi-final opponents in 2015 but left the role earlier this year in fairly controversial circumstances. After it became clear that he would not be offered a new deal by Halifax Marshall announced his departure from the club having led them to three top three finishes during his four seasons at the Shay. It is ironic that he could now play a part in bringing to an end his old club’s incredible cup run. Not that there is any chicken counting going on at That Saints Blog You Quite Like.
Marshall has also spent time as an assistant at Warrington during Tony Smith’s time at the Wolves and has coached England’s Academy squad. His track record is impressive, with an emphasis on youth that should see him excel at working with the great many youngsters who come through to first team level at Saints. He’s got off to a fine start, taking up the role for the first time for this rather routine dismissal of a disappointing Giants outfit. His contract runs to the end of 2020, by which time we should have some idea of whether he is a Saints Head Coach in waiting or just passing through.
Long Moves On
Long was rightly afforded the opportunity to say farewell to the Saints fans before kick-off of this one. As he recalled the great moments of his time with the club, most of which were as a player if truth be told, his departure suddenly became a little more real. All at once it sunk in that one of the club’s greatest ever players, one of the best of the Super League era despite being laughably discarded by his hometown club across the lump, would no longer be part of the furniture. I personally will rue losing the opportunity to shout ‘get your boots back on, Sean’ whenever some unfortunate halfback successor doomed to a career in Long’s shadow throws an errant pass or shanks an attempted 40/20 straight into the back of the South Stand. We may be seriously good at the moment but we shall not see a halfback as good as Long in the Red Vee for an awfully long time to come.
Recounting those great memories from Wide To West to the winning drop-goal in the 2002 Grand Final against Bradford Bulls every pause was met with a standing ovation from a clearly appreciative and emotional crowd.
Coote For GB
At the end of this season there is something a little bit different to look forward to. For the first time since 2007 there will be a GB Lions tour as Wayne Bennett’s side take on Tonga and Papua New Guinea either side of two tests against New Zealand in the autumn. Wherever you stand on the issue of selecting players born outside the British Isles there is nevertheless a compelling case for the inclusion of Lachlan Coote at fullback.
Coote qualifies through his Scottish heritage, having made three appearances for Scotland in 2016. Like the original character in the song now used by the Saints fans to celebrate his brilliance Coote was electric against Simon Woolford’s side. He scored the first try of the game after the Giants had taken the lead through an Oliver Russell penalty before helping himself to no fewer than four assists. He now leads the league in assists with 19 and has also reached double figures for tries. He ripped off another 128 metres on 15 carries against the Giants and made five of his seven goal attempts for a personal tally of 14 points. Only Warrington’s Stefan Ratchford and Hull FC’s Marc Sneyd have landed more than Coote’s 64 goals in Super League in 2019.
Not so long ago Saints had a real balance problem in attack. The potent strike threat of Zeb Taia, Mark Percival and Regan Grace on the left was scarcely matched on the opposite flank. That has all changed this year thanks to Coote, whose ability to pass accurately from left to right may sound like a fairly basic requirement among Super League playmakers but is actually something of a rare commodity. If Bennett is looking for a player who reads the game well defensively, scores tries, makes tries and is equally adept passing to either side he should take a look at Coote. There isn’t a British-qualified fullback in better form right now.
The Rotation Continues
Undeterred by last week's blush-inducer at Trailfinders Holbrook continued his policy of resting players for the visit of the Giants. Although he welcomed back all of Coote, Tommy Makinson, Jonny Lomax, Alex Walmsley and Zeb Taia Holbrook decided he could do without Regan Grace, Matty Lees and Dominique Peyroux this week. The latter two make a lot of sense. Those semi-final defeats from last year seem to have persuaded Holbrook that shuffling the pack in order to peak at the right time of the season is the way to go. Peyroux has played a lot of minutes in 2019 and at 30 years of age he is at a time of his career where he could really benefit from the odd week off.
Lees is much younger at just 21 but it won't do him any harm to be taken out of the firing line for a week or two. And Saints have plenty of options at prop. Kyle Amor came in for this one and ended the game just a few metres short of a 100-metre performances while Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook and Luke Thompson have returned to fitness to give Holbrook yet more front row options even in the absence of James Roby. Lees has been playing more minutes in recent weeks due to the injuries to Thompson and McCarthy-Scarsbrook so perhaps he will benefit from a breather now that his more experienced colleagues have returned to the fold.
Perhaps the most surprising decision was the omission of Regan Grace. Something that has irked me for a long time now is Saints' insistence on using their smaller wingers and centres to cart the ball out of their own end early in a tackle set while the big men stand around with their hands on their hips, ambling back onside if the mood takes them. This is particularly difficult for the slightly built Grace and while we still have Adam Swift on the books ahead of his move to Hull FC for 2020 we have the luxury of being able to sit the Welsh star down for a week and not have it impact too much on results and performance.
A break might be of benefit to Grace but I'm yet to be convinced that a winger needs a rest in quite the same way that a forward does, even taking into account the extra work that is demanded of Saints' backs. They might have to muck in while in possession deep in their own half, but they still don't have to make anywhere near as many tackles on defence as the men up front. With Mark Percival recently returned to action after his injury there's an argument that he and Grace need as many games together as possible to reignite that spark between them that was just beginning to light after a couple of years of looking as though they had only met each other a few minutes before kick-off.
Can Anyone Catch Saints?
Irrespective of whether Holbrook chooses to continue resting players it may well be that Saints have already done enough to secure a second consecutive League Leaders Shield. Their lead at the top of the Betfred Super League table was cut to just four points when they went down at London last weekend but this victory, coupled with Warrington's surprise and some might say hilarious defeat by Hull KR at the weekend means that Holbrook's side have re-established their six-point buffer. With eleven games to go, the meeting between Saints and Warrington at the Haliwell Jones Stadium in a fortnight's time looks like a potentially pivotal moment. Like the climactic battle between Anakin and Obi-Wan in Revenge Of The Sith. Just as there are another 97 Star Wars films thereafter there will be another nine games remaining in the endless meh-ery of the weekly rounds after the top two collide. Yet if Saints win that and stretch the lead to eight points the fat lady will not quite be singing, but she will be in the aisles warming up the vocal chords. It would leave Wire with only those nine games to claw back the deficit on a Saints side that hasn't looked like losing often this term.
If Saints keep wining they will sew up the League Leaders Shield at Leeds Rhinos on August 15 regardless of what Warrington do between now and then. However, should Saints lose at Steve Price's side then the gap will be four once more and the Wolves may have the scent of something. The first priority for Holbrook will be to beat Leeds this weekend as they arrive in St.Helens on the back of some improved form despite their narrow defeat by Wigan on Friday night. Leeds were one of only two teams to beat Saints last season in the regular season and pushed them very close earlier this year when they lead 22-10 at the break only to capitulate in the second half as Konrad Hurrell's batteries ran out.
Saints v Huddersfield Giants - Preview
Like Michael Gove, Saints will look to put recent embarrassment behind them when they host Huddersfield Giants in a Betfred Super League Round 18 clash on Friday night (June 14, kick-off 7.45pm).
It’s been a bad week for Justin Holbrook’s men. At the weekend they suffered the double whammy of managing to lose at bottom of the league London Broncos and of learning that club legend Sean Long would be ending his (ahem) long association with Saints to join Harlequins in rugby union. By Monday what started as a whisper had turned to the end of Long’s stay as assistant coach to Holbrook with immediate effect.
None of which is the best preparation for what looks another tough game against an improving Huddersfield outfit. The only way Saints could possibly have prepared worse for this one is if they had spent the week fielding awkward questions about their crass remarks about post boxes, or launched a campaign beside a photograph of literally the worst Prime Minister the western world will hopefully ever see.
Happily help is on its way. Holbrook rested all of Lachlan Coote, Tommy Makinson, Jonny Lomax, Alex Walmsley and Zeb Taia for the game in the capital but all are named in the 19-man party for the visit of Simon Woolford’s men. Jack Welsby was rather hung out to dry at fullback last week and misses out altogether on selection, which should see Coote slot back into the role as the last line of defence from where he is also one of Saints most creative players in attack. There’ll be a change on the wing as Regan Grace gets a rest, so expect Adam Swift to switch wings from the right where he played against London to the left where he has played most of his rugby for Saints in any case. The Hull-bound Swift will likely feature in a three-quarter line alongside the restored Makinson, Kevin Naiqama and Mark Percival.
Danny Richardson has featured in the last two for Saints, deputising for Theo Fages in the cup win over Wakefield on June 1 and then playing alongside the Frenchman as Lomax took a breather last weekend. However, the Widnesian halfback misses out this week as Holbrook looks to reunite the Fages-Lomax partnership which has brought so much success so far this season. It is perhaps surprising that Richardson does not even make the 19 but that is a reflection of the strength in depth that Holbrook now has at his disposal, especially after the return to fitness of Percival and Luke Thompson.
The latter will form a formidable front row partnership with Walmsley but James Roby has been ruled out for around a month after undergoing groin surgery. His place looks like going to Aaron Smith although James Bentley is also in the 19 and could be used to spell Smith at times. Taia’s return boosts the back row that should also feature Dominique Peyroux and Morgan Knowles as Joseph Paulo reverts back to a spot on the bench alongside Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook and any pairing from Bentley, Jack Ashworth, Kyle Amor and Matty Costello. Matty Lees is another who is being granted a rest this week as Holbrook looks to keep all of his men fresh for the all-important finale of the season. Saints have a Challenge Cup semi-final with Halifax at the end of July and will almost certainly be involved in the Super League playoffs in September, so trying to get everyone to peak at that time rather than now is one of the key tasks that Holbrook faces.
So what will Huddersfield bring? Well they won’t be bringing England’s star of the 2017 World Cup Jermaine McGillvary. The winger misses out through injury and is the glaring omission from Woolford’s 19-man selection. Experience comes in the form of former Saints Lee Gaskell, Jordan Turner and Paul Clough as well as the likes of Aaron Murphy, Joe Wardle, Alex Mellor and Sebastine Ikahihifo. Matt Frawley is in contention for a return at halfback alongside Gaskell, while in Kruise Leeming, Matty English, Ukuma Ta’ai and Adam O’Brien the Giants have plenty of quality in the pack.
They key with Huddersfield, like many Super League sides in 2019 has been consistency, or lack of it. The Giants have won just seven of their 17 league outings so far and have won three of their last six. That run includes a 55-2 flogging of Hull FC at the Magic Weekend at Anfield but also a 50-19 loss to Warrington at the end of April. They have lost two games in that run by a single point however, and so have shown enough to suggest that on their day they could turn it on and spring a surprise.
The sides met in the league in mid-March with Saints rather strolling to a 42-16 win but it was much closer when they clashed in the sixth round of the Challenge Cup in May when Naiqama’s second half score earned Saints a narrow 22-16 win. Both those matches took place at the John Smith’s Stadium so it will be a different challenge for Woolford and his charges to come into St Helens, were the home side have not lost at all this season, and head back east with the two points.
Most logic suggests that the Giants will come up short. Saints should be a hungry outfit after the blush-inducing shenanigans at Trailfinders last weekend and with up to five top-line players set to come in and boost the strength of the team it is difficult to imagine them faltering again. Roby is a huge loss to Saints for the direction he gives them and the quality of his service from dummy half, but if Smith can show the form that he has done when stepping into Roby’s shoes on previous occasions then Saints should have too much for a Giants outfit which is just too hit and miss to really lift itself among the playoff contenders.
Squads;
St Helens;
1. Jonny Lomax, 2. Tommy Makinson, 3. Kevin Naiqama, 4. Mark Percival, 6. Theo Fages, 8. Alex Walmsley, 10. Luke Thompson 11. Zeb Taia, 12. Joseph Paulo, 13. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook 15. Morgan Knowles, 16. Kyle Amor, 17. Dom Peyroux, 18, Adam Swift, 20. Jack Ashworth, 21. Aaron Smith, 22. James Bentley, 23. Lachlan Coote, 24. Matty Costello.
Huddersfield Giants;
1. Darnell McIntosh 4. Jordan Turner 6. Lee Gaskell 7. Matt Frawley 8. Paul Clough 9. Kruise Leeming 10. Suaia Matagi 11. Aaron Murphy 12. Alex Mellor 13. Michael Lawrence 14. Adam O'Brien 17. Ukuma Ta'ai 19. Matty English 20. Jake Wardle 23. Oliver Russell 26. Sebastine Ikahihifo 29. Sam Hewitt 32. 35. Joe Wardle
Referee: Scott Mikalauskas
It’s been a bad week for Justin Holbrook’s men. At the weekend they suffered the double whammy of managing to lose at bottom of the league London Broncos and of learning that club legend Sean Long would be ending his (ahem) long association with Saints to join Harlequins in rugby union. By Monday what started as a whisper had turned to the end of Long’s stay as assistant coach to Holbrook with immediate effect.
None of which is the best preparation for what looks another tough game against an improving Huddersfield outfit. The only way Saints could possibly have prepared worse for this one is if they had spent the week fielding awkward questions about their crass remarks about post boxes, or launched a campaign beside a photograph of literally the worst Prime Minister the western world will hopefully ever see.
Happily help is on its way. Holbrook rested all of Lachlan Coote, Tommy Makinson, Jonny Lomax, Alex Walmsley and Zeb Taia for the game in the capital but all are named in the 19-man party for the visit of Simon Woolford’s men. Jack Welsby was rather hung out to dry at fullback last week and misses out altogether on selection, which should see Coote slot back into the role as the last line of defence from where he is also one of Saints most creative players in attack. There’ll be a change on the wing as Regan Grace gets a rest, so expect Adam Swift to switch wings from the right where he played against London to the left where he has played most of his rugby for Saints in any case. The Hull-bound Swift will likely feature in a three-quarter line alongside the restored Makinson, Kevin Naiqama and Mark Percival.
Danny Richardson has featured in the last two for Saints, deputising for Theo Fages in the cup win over Wakefield on June 1 and then playing alongside the Frenchman as Lomax took a breather last weekend. However, the Widnesian halfback misses out this week as Holbrook looks to reunite the Fages-Lomax partnership which has brought so much success so far this season. It is perhaps surprising that Richardson does not even make the 19 but that is a reflection of the strength in depth that Holbrook now has at his disposal, especially after the return to fitness of Percival and Luke Thompson.
The latter will form a formidable front row partnership with Walmsley but James Roby has been ruled out for around a month after undergoing groin surgery. His place looks like going to Aaron Smith although James Bentley is also in the 19 and could be used to spell Smith at times. Taia’s return boosts the back row that should also feature Dominique Peyroux and Morgan Knowles as Joseph Paulo reverts back to a spot on the bench alongside Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook and any pairing from Bentley, Jack Ashworth, Kyle Amor and Matty Costello. Matty Lees is another who is being granted a rest this week as Holbrook looks to keep all of his men fresh for the all-important finale of the season. Saints have a Challenge Cup semi-final with Halifax at the end of July and will almost certainly be involved in the Super League playoffs in September, so trying to get everyone to peak at that time rather than now is one of the key tasks that Holbrook faces.
So what will Huddersfield bring? Well they won’t be bringing England’s star of the 2017 World Cup Jermaine McGillvary. The winger misses out through injury and is the glaring omission from Woolford’s 19-man selection. Experience comes in the form of former Saints Lee Gaskell, Jordan Turner and Paul Clough as well as the likes of Aaron Murphy, Joe Wardle, Alex Mellor and Sebastine Ikahihifo. Matt Frawley is in contention for a return at halfback alongside Gaskell, while in Kruise Leeming, Matty English, Ukuma Ta’ai and Adam O’Brien the Giants have plenty of quality in the pack.
They key with Huddersfield, like many Super League sides in 2019 has been consistency, or lack of it. The Giants have won just seven of their 17 league outings so far and have won three of their last six. That run includes a 55-2 flogging of Hull FC at the Magic Weekend at Anfield but also a 50-19 loss to Warrington at the end of April. They have lost two games in that run by a single point however, and so have shown enough to suggest that on their day they could turn it on and spring a surprise.
The sides met in the league in mid-March with Saints rather strolling to a 42-16 win but it was much closer when they clashed in the sixth round of the Challenge Cup in May when Naiqama’s second half score earned Saints a narrow 22-16 win. Both those matches took place at the John Smith’s Stadium so it will be a different challenge for Woolford and his charges to come into St Helens, were the home side have not lost at all this season, and head back east with the two points.
Most logic suggests that the Giants will come up short. Saints should be a hungry outfit after the blush-inducing shenanigans at Trailfinders last weekend and with up to five top-line players set to come in and boost the strength of the team it is difficult to imagine them faltering again. Roby is a huge loss to Saints for the direction he gives them and the quality of his service from dummy half, but if Smith can show the form that he has done when stepping into Roby’s shoes on previous occasions then Saints should have too much for a Giants outfit which is just too hit and miss to really lift itself among the playoff contenders.
Squads;
St Helens;
1. Jonny Lomax, 2. Tommy Makinson, 3. Kevin Naiqama, 4. Mark Percival, 6. Theo Fages, 8. Alex Walmsley, 10. Luke Thompson 11. Zeb Taia, 12. Joseph Paulo, 13. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook 15. Morgan Knowles, 16. Kyle Amor, 17. Dom Peyroux, 18, Adam Swift, 20. Jack Ashworth, 21. Aaron Smith, 22. James Bentley, 23. Lachlan Coote, 24. Matty Costello.
Huddersfield Giants;
1. Darnell McIntosh 4. Jordan Turner 6. Lee Gaskell 7. Matt Frawley 8. Paul Clough 9. Kruise Leeming 10. Suaia Matagi 11. Aaron Murphy 12. Alex Mellor 13. Michael Lawrence 14. Adam O'Brien 17. Ukuma Ta'ai 19. Matty English 20. Jake Wardle 23. Oliver Russell 26. Sebastine Ikahihifo 29. Sam Hewitt 32. 35. Joe Wardle
Referee: Scott Mikalauskas
5 Talking Points From London Broncos 23 Saints 22
That Team Selection
Saints came into this one six points clear at the top of the Betfred Super League table. They had not suffered defeat since going down 18-10 to Catalans Dragons in Perpignan in early April, a winning run of nine matches in all competitions. By contrast the Broncos were rock bottom of the standings with only four wins from their first 16 Super League outings. With all this in mind, and remembering the criticism he received for choosing not to rest players last year when Saints strolled to the League Leaders Shield before faltering at the semi-final stage of both the Super League playoffs and the Challenge Cup, coach Justin Holbrook decided to freshen things up.
On reflection it is tempting to suggest that he used a little too much freshener. Jonny Lomax and Tommy Makinson were always likely to be left out for this one. Their history of knee-related mishaps makes playing on the pretend grass of London's Trailfinders Sports Club ground fraught with risk. Yet when the 19-man squad was announced for this trip on Friday (June 7) it was also missing the names of Alex Walmsley and Zeb Taia. Going into the game without four of your best players is a stretch if you are serious about winning, but come game day Holbrook had also decided that he could do without fullback Lachlan Coote. The Scottish international has been one of Saints best players so far this term but his place in the side went to the far less experienced Jack Welsby.
Whenever you take this kind of gamble you are leaving yourself open to criticism should it backfire. It was not all that surprising when it did so. Saints are ahead of the competition at the moment, but not so far that they can afford to rest those five highly influential players without experiencing a drop-off in performance. London fully deserved their golden-point win, given to them by Morgan Smith's drop-goal after the last of several thousand handling errors by Saints deep in their own territory. Holbrook will maintain that the side he fielded should have been good enough to win against the league's bottom side and that his side just didn't play well on the day. That much is true, but a full-strength Saints side would likely have beaten London even if they had been well below their best. Those five players are all difference makers.
How Much Does It Matter?
As much as we can criticise Holbrook for a perceived arrogance in fielding a weakened team, we should also remember the logic behind it is sound given the cards he has been dealt. He hardly rested any players in 2018 only to find that they didn't have enough in the tank when the big knockout games came around. Understandably burned by this experience he is not about to let it happen again. If a slightly embarrassing defeat at London is the price to pay for everyone being fit and available to deliver when it really matters in September and October then I'm sure that's a deal that Holbrook would make.
The only way to stop coaches fielding weakened teams at certain parts of the regular season is to do away with the playoff and Grand Final system which currently determines the champions. If Holbrook had gone into this one knowing that finishing top of the league was the be all and end all of winning a title then I'm quite sure we would have seen Coote, Walmsley and Taia at least. Were Warrington a bit closer in pursuit in a first-past-the-post system then he may even have risked Lomax and Makinson, dodgy knees or not. But like it or not (and I don't) we don't have such a system in place. In the circumstances Holbrook is 100% right in trying to make sure that his squad is at its fittest at the back end of the season when there are no second chances. Except the one you get in the slightly convoluted but effective top five playoff system. But you know what I mean? If Saints captain James Roby holds aloft the Challenge Cup and/or Super League trophy come the end of the season then nobody is going to remember the day we went to London, played like a drain and got the nothing we deserved. Super League history is littered with examples in which sides have slipped to chastening defeats, sometimes taken severe hammerings, yet peaked at the right time to leave with the silver at the end of the year.
Morgan Bites Back
One of the main reasons for Saints' defeat was a Saints player. No, I'm not going to harp on about a certain knock-on in extra time. It happens. It just happens to some more than others. I refer, of course to Ryan Morgan, whose two tries played a huge role in helping the Broncos secure what could be a vital two points in their fight against an immediate return to the Championship. Morgan was sent out on loan to the Broncos when Kevin Naiqama arrived at Saints from Wests Tigers at the start of this season. Since then he hasn't done an awful lot to suggest that Holbrook's decision to upgrade to the Fijian captain was a bad one. Yet he was clearly motivated for this one, first seizing on a Laurel & Hardy moment from Welsby and Regan Grace before knocking the normally defensively reliable Theo Fages into a week next Thursday in crashing over for his second.
Morgan also managed a couple of offloads, a pair of tackle busts and a clean break but it wasn't just in attack where he contributed. His 23 tackles were more than all but five of his team mates managed and more than any other back in Broncos black. Along with Luke Yates who managed a quite stupefying 58 tackles and the always industrious James Cunningham Morgan was one of the better performers for Danny Ward's side.
Yet that is not to say that Holbrook made a mistake in loaning Morgan out or that he should have insisted on a clause preventing Morgan from playing against his parent club. Even with the impending departure of Adam Swift it is highly unlikely that Morgan will feature again in a Saints shirt, so you can effectively call his move to the capital a permanent transfer with the proviso that the Broncos have their own decision to make on what to do with him once his initial loan period ends. Naiqama has not convinced everyone in the short time that he has been at Saints but he remains a better bet than Morgan on that right edge. Even if there are plans for Morgan to return my feeling is that if you loan a player to another club for a full season you should honour that and not start inserting conditions into the deal about who he can and cannot play against. If you want him, keep him. If you don't let him play elsewhere without any restrictions. Holbrook did that and the decision has taken a little nibble out of his backside on this occasion. But again, nobody will be mentioning that if the top prizes head to St Helens in 2019.
The Long Goodbye
Things change quickly in sport. It turns out that this insipid, disappointing display was the last in which Sean Long would be involved for Saints. After more than a decade as a player putting up ridiculous statistics and almost redefining the scrum-half position and then five years as an assistant coach Long has left the club with immediate effect to take on a similar role with Harlequins in rugby union. He spoke of always harbouring a desire to coach in the other code and will now get that opportunity with the London-based outfit. Reports that he did not get back on the team bus for the journey back north are unconfirmed.
It is sad to see a club legend depart. We all remember our mixed feelings when Keiron Cunningham's time as a Saint came to an end. We all knew it was the right thing for him and the club but there was nevertheless a sadness attached to the prospect of facing the future without an iconic figure who has been part of the very fabric of the club over a sustained period of time. The same applies to Long. Not being privy to exactly what goes on in the Saints camp in terms of their preparation I cannot sit here and say that he will be as irreplaceable as an assistant coach as he has been as a halfback, but the indisputable truth is that he has been there through the last two years of vast improvement under Holbrook and that his work at Saints has obviously caught the eye of the cash-rich rah-rahs. Long must have been doing something right.
I loathe rugby union with all of my being. If I had the choice between getting rid of it or Michael Gove I would agonise over it for days before finally, reluctantly agreeing to let Gove off the hook. Yet for all he has done for Saints over the last 22 years on and off I can only wish Long nothing but the very best of luck in his new role. His departure does though raise yet more questions for our game on how we can work to stop the very best talent that we have crossing the divide. The recent Shaun Edwards saga at Wigan highlighted sharply how union is viewed by even the greats among rugby league as a more favourable career option. If they are not leaving league to play union they are leaving league to coach in union. We must do something and we needed to do it yesterday.
Trailfinders - It's Not For Everyone
Huge numbers of Saints fans travelled south for this one and the general consensus is that, despite the defeat, a fabulous time was had by all. The Broncos have been lauded by many fans and writers for their hospitality and the quality of their set-up at Trailfinders Sports Club in Ealing. However, those people want to try experiencing it while having to use a wheelchair to do so.
The only thing that the Broncos got right in this regard was the parking. Having booked well in advance I had a car park pass which allowed me to park directly outside the clubhouse. Access to the bar from there could not have been easier. Yet I had come to see a rugby league match, which is where the problems started. The stewards there tried their level best to be helpful but the awful truth is that Trailfinders is not an accessible venue for wheelchair users. Not unless they are eight foot six inches tall and can therefore see over large crowds of people who are standing in their way at ground level. If you can find a gap between the people then you are met with a barrier which is too high to see over and which is filled in beneath with advertising boardings so that you cannot see through it either. I had to go all the way around to the other side of the ground to a raised patch of grass to get an elevated view. It was not dissimilar to my memories of watching my friends and family play under-11s football in Sherdley Park 30 years ago.
Adding to the whole wretched scenario was the fact that even from the raised area there were obstacles which rendered large parts of the pitch invisible to me. If it were not my fellow Saints standing on the grass in front of me blocking my view it was what can only be described as a whacking great shed which houses the benches and the scoreboard.
Now if this sounds moany consider this. We are not talking about an amateur club here. If these were the facilities at my local amateur side I would probably grin and bear it. Those clubs do not have the resources to insert viewing platforms or lifts. But this is Super League. I wasn't expecting Wembley stadium but I was expecting to at least have an unobstructed view of more than half of the pitch. Surely in 2019 we cannot have this at a top flight club? If this were not London or some other expansion area which we are led to believe that Super League 'needs' then it simply wouldn't be allowed. It is inadequate for top class sport in this country and far from praising its quaint little nod to amateur rugby league someone should be asking the top brass at the Broncos what the merry hell they think they are doing excluding disabled people in the 21st century.
For more on what it is really like to be a rugby league fan with access issues please click here. to read Hull FC fan Rachael Tomlinson's blog.
Saints came into this one six points clear at the top of the Betfred Super League table. They had not suffered defeat since going down 18-10 to Catalans Dragons in Perpignan in early April, a winning run of nine matches in all competitions. By contrast the Broncos were rock bottom of the standings with only four wins from their first 16 Super League outings. With all this in mind, and remembering the criticism he received for choosing not to rest players last year when Saints strolled to the League Leaders Shield before faltering at the semi-final stage of both the Super League playoffs and the Challenge Cup, coach Justin Holbrook decided to freshen things up.
On reflection it is tempting to suggest that he used a little too much freshener. Jonny Lomax and Tommy Makinson were always likely to be left out for this one. Their history of knee-related mishaps makes playing on the pretend grass of London's Trailfinders Sports Club ground fraught with risk. Yet when the 19-man squad was announced for this trip on Friday (June 7) it was also missing the names of Alex Walmsley and Zeb Taia. Going into the game without four of your best players is a stretch if you are serious about winning, but come game day Holbrook had also decided that he could do without fullback Lachlan Coote. The Scottish international has been one of Saints best players so far this term but his place in the side went to the far less experienced Jack Welsby.
Whenever you take this kind of gamble you are leaving yourself open to criticism should it backfire. It was not all that surprising when it did so. Saints are ahead of the competition at the moment, but not so far that they can afford to rest those five highly influential players without experiencing a drop-off in performance. London fully deserved their golden-point win, given to them by Morgan Smith's drop-goal after the last of several thousand handling errors by Saints deep in their own territory. Holbrook will maintain that the side he fielded should have been good enough to win against the league's bottom side and that his side just didn't play well on the day. That much is true, but a full-strength Saints side would likely have beaten London even if they had been well below their best. Those five players are all difference makers.
How Much Does It Matter?
As much as we can criticise Holbrook for a perceived arrogance in fielding a weakened team, we should also remember the logic behind it is sound given the cards he has been dealt. He hardly rested any players in 2018 only to find that they didn't have enough in the tank when the big knockout games came around. Understandably burned by this experience he is not about to let it happen again. If a slightly embarrassing defeat at London is the price to pay for everyone being fit and available to deliver when it really matters in September and October then I'm sure that's a deal that Holbrook would make.
The only way to stop coaches fielding weakened teams at certain parts of the regular season is to do away with the playoff and Grand Final system which currently determines the champions. If Holbrook had gone into this one knowing that finishing top of the league was the be all and end all of winning a title then I'm quite sure we would have seen Coote, Walmsley and Taia at least. Were Warrington a bit closer in pursuit in a first-past-the-post system then he may even have risked Lomax and Makinson, dodgy knees or not. But like it or not (and I don't) we don't have such a system in place. In the circumstances Holbrook is 100% right in trying to make sure that his squad is at its fittest at the back end of the season when there are no second chances. Except the one you get in the slightly convoluted but effective top five playoff system. But you know what I mean? If Saints captain James Roby holds aloft the Challenge Cup and/or Super League trophy come the end of the season then nobody is going to remember the day we went to London, played like a drain and got the nothing we deserved. Super League history is littered with examples in which sides have slipped to chastening defeats, sometimes taken severe hammerings, yet peaked at the right time to leave with the silver at the end of the year.
Morgan Bites Back
One of the main reasons for Saints' defeat was a Saints player. No, I'm not going to harp on about a certain knock-on in extra time. It happens. It just happens to some more than others. I refer, of course to Ryan Morgan, whose two tries played a huge role in helping the Broncos secure what could be a vital two points in their fight against an immediate return to the Championship. Morgan was sent out on loan to the Broncos when Kevin Naiqama arrived at Saints from Wests Tigers at the start of this season. Since then he hasn't done an awful lot to suggest that Holbrook's decision to upgrade to the Fijian captain was a bad one. Yet he was clearly motivated for this one, first seizing on a Laurel & Hardy moment from Welsby and Regan Grace before knocking the normally defensively reliable Theo Fages into a week next Thursday in crashing over for his second.
Morgan also managed a couple of offloads, a pair of tackle busts and a clean break but it wasn't just in attack where he contributed. His 23 tackles were more than all but five of his team mates managed and more than any other back in Broncos black. Along with Luke Yates who managed a quite stupefying 58 tackles and the always industrious James Cunningham Morgan was one of the better performers for Danny Ward's side.
Yet that is not to say that Holbrook made a mistake in loaning Morgan out or that he should have insisted on a clause preventing Morgan from playing against his parent club. Even with the impending departure of Adam Swift it is highly unlikely that Morgan will feature again in a Saints shirt, so you can effectively call his move to the capital a permanent transfer with the proviso that the Broncos have their own decision to make on what to do with him once his initial loan period ends. Naiqama has not convinced everyone in the short time that he has been at Saints but he remains a better bet than Morgan on that right edge. Even if there are plans for Morgan to return my feeling is that if you loan a player to another club for a full season you should honour that and not start inserting conditions into the deal about who he can and cannot play against. If you want him, keep him. If you don't let him play elsewhere without any restrictions. Holbrook did that and the decision has taken a little nibble out of his backside on this occasion. But again, nobody will be mentioning that if the top prizes head to St Helens in 2019.
The Long Goodbye
Things change quickly in sport. It turns out that this insipid, disappointing display was the last in which Sean Long would be involved for Saints. After more than a decade as a player putting up ridiculous statistics and almost redefining the scrum-half position and then five years as an assistant coach Long has left the club with immediate effect to take on a similar role with Harlequins in rugby union. He spoke of always harbouring a desire to coach in the other code and will now get that opportunity with the London-based outfit. Reports that he did not get back on the team bus for the journey back north are unconfirmed.
It is sad to see a club legend depart. We all remember our mixed feelings when Keiron Cunningham's time as a Saint came to an end. We all knew it was the right thing for him and the club but there was nevertheless a sadness attached to the prospect of facing the future without an iconic figure who has been part of the very fabric of the club over a sustained period of time. The same applies to Long. Not being privy to exactly what goes on in the Saints camp in terms of their preparation I cannot sit here and say that he will be as irreplaceable as an assistant coach as he has been as a halfback, but the indisputable truth is that he has been there through the last two years of vast improvement under Holbrook and that his work at Saints has obviously caught the eye of the cash-rich rah-rahs. Long must have been doing something right.
I loathe rugby union with all of my being. If I had the choice between getting rid of it or Michael Gove I would agonise over it for days before finally, reluctantly agreeing to let Gove off the hook. Yet for all he has done for Saints over the last 22 years on and off I can only wish Long nothing but the very best of luck in his new role. His departure does though raise yet more questions for our game on how we can work to stop the very best talent that we have crossing the divide. The recent Shaun Edwards saga at Wigan highlighted sharply how union is viewed by even the greats among rugby league as a more favourable career option. If they are not leaving league to play union they are leaving league to coach in union. We must do something and we needed to do it yesterday.
Trailfinders - It's Not For Everyone
Huge numbers of Saints fans travelled south for this one and the general consensus is that, despite the defeat, a fabulous time was had by all. The Broncos have been lauded by many fans and writers for their hospitality and the quality of their set-up at Trailfinders Sports Club in Ealing. However, those people want to try experiencing it while having to use a wheelchair to do so.
The only thing that the Broncos got right in this regard was the parking. Having booked well in advance I had a car park pass which allowed me to park directly outside the clubhouse. Access to the bar from there could not have been easier. Yet I had come to see a rugby league match, which is where the problems started. The stewards there tried their level best to be helpful but the awful truth is that Trailfinders is not an accessible venue for wheelchair users. Not unless they are eight foot six inches tall and can therefore see over large crowds of people who are standing in their way at ground level. If you can find a gap between the people then you are met with a barrier which is too high to see over and which is filled in beneath with advertising boardings so that you cannot see through it either. I had to go all the way around to the other side of the ground to a raised patch of grass to get an elevated view. It was not dissimilar to my memories of watching my friends and family play under-11s football in Sherdley Park 30 years ago.
Adding to the whole wretched scenario was the fact that even from the raised area there were obstacles which rendered large parts of the pitch invisible to me. If it were not my fellow Saints standing on the grass in front of me blocking my view it was what can only be described as a whacking great shed which houses the benches and the scoreboard.
Now if this sounds moany consider this. We are not talking about an amateur club here. If these were the facilities at my local amateur side I would probably grin and bear it. Those clubs do not have the resources to insert viewing platforms or lifts. But this is Super League. I wasn't expecting Wembley stadium but I was expecting to at least have an unobstructed view of more than half of the pitch. Surely in 2019 we cannot have this at a top flight club? If this were not London or some other expansion area which we are led to believe that Super League 'needs' then it simply wouldn't be allowed. It is inadequate for top class sport in this country and far from praising its quaint little nod to amateur rugby league someone should be asking the top brass at the Broncos what the merry hell they think they are doing excluding disabled people in the 21st century.
For more on what it is really like to be a rugby league fan with access issues please click here. to read Hull FC fan Rachael Tomlinson's blog.
5 Talking Points From Saints 48 Wakefield Trinity 10
Saints - Now Even Stronger
The way in which Saints dismissed Castleford Tigers in last week’ Magic Weekend clash at Anfield seemed to impress everybody. It was a clinical dismantling of Daryl Powell’s side which had everyone nodding in agreement at the notion that Justin Holbrook’s men are on a different level to the rest of Super League right now. It was hard to see how they could improve too much, and although there were numerous errors and scrappy periods in this 48-10 Coral Challenge Cup demolition of Wakefield Trinity there were also ominous signs for those sides trying to bridge the gap to Saints.
For the first time since the Easter weekend Holbrook was able to call on the services of England internationals Luke Thompson and Mark Percival. Neither was spectacular. Thompson was solid enough after missing the last six games in league and cup through injury, while seven matches have gone by since Percival last crabbed his way along an opposition defensive line at first team level. But imagine planning to face what is already the standout team in the country and then being tapped on the shoulder and told ‘oh, by the way....the best prop and centre in the competition are turning up this week to add to the mob that destroyed Cas last week’. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook also returned to the 17 to add further depth to Holbrook’s options. It was almost unfair.
It was always going to be a tough ask for a Trinity side missing David Fifita and still shorn of the talents of Bill Tupou, Tom Johnstone and Tinirau Arona, even if their first choice halfback pairing of Danny Brough and Jacob Miller were reunited. Brough was trying everything to haul his side into the game but was mithered to death by Morgan Knowles among others. Knowles was everywhere in the first half, perhaps enjoying his best game of the season so far. Twice Brough resorted to kicking on play one as Saints’ punishing defence took hold. Meanwhile on the other side of the ball enough breaks were made and enough passes stuck to give the score line a bit of gloss by the end.
Holbrook Holds His Horses
That extra strength in depth was something that Holbrook didn’t feel the need for in the first 40 minutes. Remarkably, it wasn’t until the start of the second half that McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Joseph Paulo and Matty Lees were introduced from the interchange bench. Alex Walmsley, Thompson and Knowles were the men to initially make way for a Saints side which had already built a 26-6 lead by then. Standard practice in this era of multiple interchanges is to introduce some fresh horses midway through the first half. Twenty minutes is generally considered to be the optimum time span for front rowers in particular to make an impact before their energy starts to wane. Critics of the modern game say that particular convention is coaching by numbers and that we are losing the art of reactive game management.
Now, it might just be that Holbrook forgot about his bench. Things were going reasonably well and coaches do have an awful lot to think about during a game. Especially during the first half when they are plotting which words of wisdom to impart on their troops at the break. However, my suspicion is that this was a deliberate blitz strategy by Holbrook. Throw your biggest guns onto the field and charge at the opposition, who remember are depleted, for 40 minutes and then take the opportunity to give them a more prolonged rest in the second half. Having not played for so long it was arguably a risk to test Thompson’s stamina with a stint of that length, but he seemed to come through it ok. He does need minutes after his lay-off so why not get them in fewer, longer spells? And why give the opposition a break from the absolute wrecking ball that is a Walmsley until you feel he absolutely needs the rest? It will be fascinating to see if this approach was specifically designed for a banged up Wakefield or whether it will become a regular feature of Holbrook’s management of games.
Taia Proves His Worth
It’s been a fairly busy week on the squad-building front for Saints with the futures of two first team members decided, albeit with vastly differing outcomes. First it was announced that Adam Swift would be leaving the club at the end of the year after signing a two-year contract with Hull FC. That was followed by the altogether happier news that Zeb Taia has agreed a new one-year deal which will keep him at the club until the end of 2020.
Taia isn’t everyone’s favourite. The grumbling has only recently died down from those who felt he was an inadequate replacement for Joe Greenwood when the latter decided to try his hand in the NRL with Gold Coast Titans. That he subsequently pitched up at Wigan only ramped up the ire even further. In the aftermath of Greenwood’s departure Taia has been branded lazy and a liability by some, while others have added a couple of years on to his actual age of 34 to serve as evidence that he should be moved on.
Yet here he was running the show against Chris Chester’s men in this one. He ran all over Trinity all afternoon, setting up tries for Regan Grace and Jonny Lomax and helping himself to another as he took Paulo’s pass to crash through the visitors’ defensive line and stroll over untouched. It was quite the cap to quite the performance.
The match day sponsors chose Lomax as Man Of The Match, something I couldn’t get on board with after he signalled 10 minutes to referee Chris Kendall before he had the chance to pull out the yellow card for Ryan Hampshire’s professional foul late in the first half. This is not how we conduct ourselves. It isn’t football, littered as The Beautiful Game now is with absurdly paid prima donnas waving imaginary cards at officials. Taia took the TV award and deservedly so. If this is the sort of form he is going to display then why wouldn’t we want him in our ranks for another 12 months at least?
While I’m perched atop the soapbox a word too on the classless treatment of Danny Kirmond who went off injured in the first half. Kirmond met with two mischiefs in the space of a few minutes, the first of which was a leg injury for which Kendall mistakenly stopped the game with Saints in a scoring position, believing the Wakefield man might be suffering from a head injury. After a long delay Kirmond began to hobble towards the sideline before deciding he might instead try to run it off. He jogged back into the defensive line whereupon the widespread booing which may have started in response to Kendall’s mis-diagnosis began again. It was accompanied with some wholly unnecessary abuse by those near me in the north stand which continued, sad to say, when Kirmond was forced from the field moments later.
Is this where we’re at now? Even if the initial reaction was to Kendall’s halting of play what are we booing that for? He’s not a doctor and he has no business taking chances with the health of the players.
Where Were You When We Were Good?
We’ve established what a joy it is to watch Saints at the moment. This game was no different as they ran in another eight tries shared out between eight different players. Taia was putting on a clinic while Lomax, Grace, Knowles, Lachlan Coote and Tommy Makinson also stood out. Holbrook’s outfit is a well oiled machine at the moment. One you’d pay good money to see.
Only many people who normally do, didn’t. Saints average around 10,000 for a home Super League game yet could muster only a paltry 6,453 for this one. Chief among the reasons given for the no-shows appears to be the pricing of tickets. I paid £22 to secure my regular spot which I consider an absolutely reasonable fee in comparison with the going rate for tickets to watch other sports or bloody Beyoncé gigs.
Yet many disagreed. Season ticket holders are aggrieved at having to pay full whack for cup games and feel that some sort of loyalty incentive or discount would be fairer. Others feel that cup tickets should just be cheaper across the board. I would fully support the former and the latter is maybe worth considering to help boost attendances but on the other hand why are these games considered less valuable? We spend every summer barfing on about how the playoffs reduce the regular season games to the level of glorified friendlies yet we’re not willing to pay the going rate for the few games we do have at home that are genuinely crucial knockout affairs. The cup has gone stale we moan, right before we get straight on to Facebook to ask when we can buy Wembley tickets and whether we can park on Tesco next week.
Some suggested also that the Champions League Final had an effect, and pointed the finger at the club for the clash. But the Saints fan base consists not only of Liverpool fans but also largely of Manchester United, Everton and....post Sheikh....Manchester City supporters. It is unlikely that a drop-off of 3,500 fans can be attributed to Liverpool’s success. The outcry from many Saints around the playing of ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ at Magic last weekend would seem to suggest that actually there is fair amount of anti-Liverpool feeling among the fan base.
As far as the clash is concerned that is not likely to be the club’s doing. Television companies call the tune now and if they did not then we might very well be watching semi-pro players in our shiny stadium. And then people would complain about paying to watch a lower quality product.
Back To Bolton
Our win over Wakefield has taken us back to the Challenge Cup semi-finals, back to the double header at The University Of Bolton Stadium which lead-ballooned its way into our consciousness on its debut last year. I’m not going to remind you in any detail about our horrible capitulation to Catalans that day, nor bore you with any lazy revisionism about how it was all Ben Barba’s fault and how it will all be different this time because Lachlan Coote treats his wife better. Instead I shall focus on Halifax who it just so happens were paired with Saints in the last four after the artists formerly known as the Blue Sox held off Bradford Bulls 20-16 at Odsal.
We still owe Halifax one for me. My earliest Challenge Cup memory, long before the Yorkshire side had blue sox, is of the 1987 final at Wembley when Fax edged us out 19-18. Saints had two Mark Elia tries disallowed and my 11-year-old self was introduced to a culture of disappointment and bridesmaidism that wouldn’t change until the start of Super League in 1996. We’ll enter this one as the biggest racing certainty since sexist, God-chiselled businessman Anthony Joshua fought some fat lad called Ruiz. What? Oh.....
Favourites or not you have to respect the game and the opponent. It would probably take a couple of red cards and a fire drill to give Halifax any chance given the gulf in class, but we’re all surely too scarred by how twattish the Dragons made us look last year to start spouting about a first Wembley trip since 2008 just yet.
The way in which Saints dismissed Castleford Tigers in last week’ Magic Weekend clash at Anfield seemed to impress everybody. It was a clinical dismantling of Daryl Powell’s side which had everyone nodding in agreement at the notion that Justin Holbrook’s men are on a different level to the rest of Super League right now. It was hard to see how they could improve too much, and although there were numerous errors and scrappy periods in this 48-10 Coral Challenge Cup demolition of Wakefield Trinity there were also ominous signs for those sides trying to bridge the gap to Saints.
For the first time since the Easter weekend Holbrook was able to call on the services of England internationals Luke Thompson and Mark Percival. Neither was spectacular. Thompson was solid enough after missing the last six games in league and cup through injury, while seven matches have gone by since Percival last crabbed his way along an opposition defensive line at first team level. But imagine planning to face what is already the standout team in the country and then being tapped on the shoulder and told ‘oh, by the way....the best prop and centre in the competition are turning up this week to add to the mob that destroyed Cas last week’. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook also returned to the 17 to add further depth to Holbrook’s options. It was almost unfair.
It was always going to be a tough ask for a Trinity side missing David Fifita and still shorn of the talents of Bill Tupou, Tom Johnstone and Tinirau Arona, even if their first choice halfback pairing of Danny Brough and Jacob Miller were reunited. Brough was trying everything to haul his side into the game but was mithered to death by Morgan Knowles among others. Knowles was everywhere in the first half, perhaps enjoying his best game of the season so far. Twice Brough resorted to kicking on play one as Saints’ punishing defence took hold. Meanwhile on the other side of the ball enough breaks were made and enough passes stuck to give the score line a bit of gloss by the end.
Holbrook Holds His Horses
That extra strength in depth was something that Holbrook didn’t feel the need for in the first 40 minutes. Remarkably, it wasn’t until the start of the second half that McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Joseph Paulo and Matty Lees were introduced from the interchange bench. Alex Walmsley, Thompson and Knowles were the men to initially make way for a Saints side which had already built a 26-6 lead by then. Standard practice in this era of multiple interchanges is to introduce some fresh horses midway through the first half. Twenty minutes is generally considered to be the optimum time span for front rowers in particular to make an impact before their energy starts to wane. Critics of the modern game say that particular convention is coaching by numbers and that we are losing the art of reactive game management.
Now, it might just be that Holbrook forgot about his bench. Things were going reasonably well and coaches do have an awful lot to think about during a game. Especially during the first half when they are plotting which words of wisdom to impart on their troops at the break. However, my suspicion is that this was a deliberate blitz strategy by Holbrook. Throw your biggest guns onto the field and charge at the opposition, who remember are depleted, for 40 minutes and then take the opportunity to give them a more prolonged rest in the second half. Having not played for so long it was arguably a risk to test Thompson’s stamina with a stint of that length, but he seemed to come through it ok. He does need minutes after his lay-off so why not get them in fewer, longer spells? And why give the opposition a break from the absolute wrecking ball that is a Walmsley until you feel he absolutely needs the rest? It will be fascinating to see if this approach was specifically designed for a banged up Wakefield or whether it will become a regular feature of Holbrook’s management of games.
Taia Proves His Worth
It’s been a fairly busy week on the squad-building front for Saints with the futures of two first team members decided, albeit with vastly differing outcomes. First it was announced that Adam Swift would be leaving the club at the end of the year after signing a two-year contract with Hull FC. That was followed by the altogether happier news that Zeb Taia has agreed a new one-year deal which will keep him at the club until the end of 2020.
Taia isn’t everyone’s favourite. The grumbling has only recently died down from those who felt he was an inadequate replacement for Joe Greenwood when the latter decided to try his hand in the NRL with Gold Coast Titans. That he subsequently pitched up at Wigan only ramped up the ire even further. In the aftermath of Greenwood’s departure Taia has been branded lazy and a liability by some, while others have added a couple of years on to his actual age of 34 to serve as evidence that he should be moved on.
Yet here he was running the show against Chris Chester’s men in this one. He ran all over Trinity all afternoon, setting up tries for Regan Grace and Jonny Lomax and helping himself to another as he took Paulo’s pass to crash through the visitors’ defensive line and stroll over untouched. It was quite the cap to quite the performance.
The match day sponsors chose Lomax as Man Of The Match, something I couldn’t get on board with after he signalled 10 minutes to referee Chris Kendall before he had the chance to pull out the yellow card for Ryan Hampshire’s professional foul late in the first half. This is not how we conduct ourselves. It isn’t football, littered as The Beautiful Game now is with absurdly paid prima donnas waving imaginary cards at officials. Taia took the TV award and deservedly so. If this is the sort of form he is going to display then why wouldn’t we want him in our ranks for another 12 months at least?
While I’m perched atop the soapbox a word too on the classless treatment of Danny Kirmond who went off injured in the first half. Kirmond met with two mischiefs in the space of a few minutes, the first of which was a leg injury for which Kendall mistakenly stopped the game with Saints in a scoring position, believing the Wakefield man might be suffering from a head injury. After a long delay Kirmond began to hobble towards the sideline before deciding he might instead try to run it off. He jogged back into the defensive line whereupon the widespread booing which may have started in response to Kendall’s mis-diagnosis began again. It was accompanied with some wholly unnecessary abuse by those near me in the north stand which continued, sad to say, when Kirmond was forced from the field moments later.
Is this where we’re at now? Even if the initial reaction was to Kendall’s halting of play what are we booing that for? He’s not a doctor and he has no business taking chances with the health of the players.
Where Were You When We Were Good?
We’ve established what a joy it is to watch Saints at the moment. This game was no different as they ran in another eight tries shared out between eight different players. Taia was putting on a clinic while Lomax, Grace, Knowles, Lachlan Coote and Tommy Makinson also stood out. Holbrook’s outfit is a well oiled machine at the moment. One you’d pay good money to see.
Only many people who normally do, didn’t. Saints average around 10,000 for a home Super League game yet could muster only a paltry 6,453 for this one. Chief among the reasons given for the no-shows appears to be the pricing of tickets. I paid £22 to secure my regular spot which I consider an absolutely reasonable fee in comparison with the going rate for tickets to watch other sports or bloody Beyoncé gigs.
Yet many disagreed. Season ticket holders are aggrieved at having to pay full whack for cup games and feel that some sort of loyalty incentive or discount would be fairer. Others feel that cup tickets should just be cheaper across the board. I would fully support the former and the latter is maybe worth considering to help boost attendances but on the other hand why are these games considered less valuable? We spend every summer barfing on about how the playoffs reduce the regular season games to the level of glorified friendlies yet we’re not willing to pay the going rate for the few games we do have at home that are genuinely crucial knockout affairs. The cup has gone stale we moan, right before we get straight on to Facebook to ask when we can buy Wembley tickets and whether we can park on Tesco next week.
Some suggested also that the Champions League Final had an effect, and pointed the finger at the club for the clash. But the Saints fan base consists not only of Liverpool fans but also largely of Manchester United, Everton and....post Sheikh....Manchester City supporters. It is unlikely that a drop-off of 3,500 fans can be attributed to Liverpool’s success. The outcry from many Saints around the playing of ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ at Magic last weekend would seem to suggest that actually there is fair amount of anti-Liverpool feeling among the fan base.
As far as the clash is concerned that is not likely to be the club’s doing. Television companies call the tune now and if they did not then we might very well be watching semi-pro players in our shiny stadium. And then people would complain about paying to watch a lower quality product.
Back To Bolton
Our win over Wakefield has taken us back to the Challenge Cup semi-finals, back to the double header at The University Of Bolton Stadium which lead-ballooned its way into our consciousness on its debut last year. I’m not going to remind you in any detail about our horrible capitulation to Catalans that day, nor bore you with any lazy revisionism about how it was all Ben Barba’s fault and how it will all be different this time because Lachlan Coote treats his wife better. Instead I shall focus on Halifax who it just so happens were paired with Saints in the last four after the artists formerly known as the Blue Sox held off Bradford Bulls 20-16 at Odsal.
We still owe Halifax one for me. My earliest Challenge Cup memory, long before the Yorkshire side had blue sox, is of the 1987 final at Wembley when Fax edged us out 19-18. Saints had two Mark Elia tries disallowed and my 11-year-old self was introduced to a culture of disappointment and bridesmaidism that wouldn’t change until the start of Super League in 1996. We’ll enter this one as the biggest racing certainty since sexist, God-chiselled businessman Anthony Joshua fought some fat lad called Ruiz. What? Oh.....
Favourites or not you have to respect the game and the opponent. It would probably take a couple of red cards and a fire drill to give Halifax any chance given the gulf in class, but we’re all surely too scarred by how twattish the Dragons made us look last year to start spouting about a first Wembley trip since 2008 just yet.
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