Saints 20 Wigan Warriors 18 - Review

They left it late but Saints restored their four-point cushion at the top of the Super League pile with a thrilling derby win in Newcastle on Saturday (July 9).

Having come out on the wrong end of the scoreline against Catalans Dragons in France last time out this one took on extra significance for Kristian Woolf’s side. Defeat would have allowed Wigan to move level on points with Saints  at the top of the table while also gifting others an opportunity to close the gap. As it is the threepeaters now sit at the top with a degree of comfort thanks to this win and the weekend’s shock result which saw previously hapless Warrington hammer the Dragons.

Saints have had personnel problems throughout 2022 and Woolf found himself fighting fires again ahead of kick-off. Already without long term absentees Lewis Dodd and Mark Percival it was revealed earlier in the week that Tommy Makinson would also be missing for around a month with a hamstring problem. If all that were not tricky enough to deal there was more disruption when Alex Walmsley missed out due to the imminent arrival of the latest addition to his family. 

Walmsley is a talisman for Saints in the front row. Someone who can lead his team in metre making even on an off day and dominate games on a good day. He was bound to be missed. His place in the starting line-up went to Agnatius Paasi while Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook returned after a month out with a facial injury. He took a spot on the bench alongside Joey Lussick, Jake Wingfield and Dan Norman. All of which was tough on James Bell who missed out while Curtis Sironen and Joe Batchelor took the starting second row roles.

Percival’s regular left centre slot was again filled by Sione Mata’utia and with Konrad Hurrell returning after illness that meant no place in the 17 this week for Ben Davies. Will Hopoate was having one of his healthy weeks and occupied the fullback role allowing Jon Bennison to slot into Makinson’s right wing spot. 

Wigan welcomed back Cade Cust into the halves which meant that Jai Field reverted to fullback and Bevan French moved to the wing at the expense of Abbas Miski. Kai Pearce-Paul was out so Willie Isa partnered Jake Bibby in the centres. There was still no Tommy Leuluai so Cust was joined at halfback by Harry Smith. Joe Shorrocks started at loose forward with John Bateman and Liam Farrell forming a formidable looking second row.

When the action got under way it took time to develop into the thriller it became. The first half was not a classic as both sides made errors and missed opportunities. It was Saints who opened the scoring when - in a foreshadowing of the villainy to come - Brad Singleton went high on Jonny Lomax to give Bennison the chance to land the first two points of the game. Singleton’s challenge initially made contact with the shoulder but slid up, unlike his later effort. 

Wigan responded on the half hour. It could have been all so different had Batchelor managed to hang on when he lunged to intercept Cust’s pass inside Saints territory. As it was the Warriors kept possession and moved the ball downfield. When Smith and Field found French out wide the winger strolled in virtually untouched at the right hand corner. It went largely unnoticed at the time - including by referee Liam Moore -  but as Field released the pass to French he was contacted by Mata’utia. 

The former Newcastle Knight picked up a one match ban for what was considered a late hit. However that ban has since been successfully appealed leaving Mata’utia free to take part when Huddersfield Giants visit for another big top four clash this weekend. It is the second time a suspended Saints player has won an appeal in as many weeks after Matty Lees successfully challenged his suspension for an incident in the Catalans game. All of which has caused urine to reach boiling point across the league. 

Yet in Mata’utia’s case the decision seems fair enough. The challenge on Field was not late nor high, nor did it carry sufficient force to warrant another suspension. Yet perhaps it is still a surprise to see Mata’utia earn a reprieve given his less than impressive disciplinary record so far in 2022.  The suspension would have been his third of the year. Add that to his injury problems and it becomes clear why he has only managed to make 12 appearances so far in 2022. 

Smith added the extras to French’s try and Wigan led 6-2. They almost stretched that lead going into the break. Sam Powell thought he had grabbed a third try of the season when he was first to react to Bateman’s kick ahead after the ball had gone to ground. However, replays showed Powell was ahead of Bateman and therefore offside at the point when the ball was kicked. Wigan had to settle for a four-point advantage at the break at 6-2.

It didn’t take long for that lead to grow. Just two minutes into the second half Bateman scored Wigan’s second try. Field and Isa put French into space down the right wing and with Regan Grace bearing down on him French found a pinpoint kick back in-field which sat up perfectly for Bateman to collect and ease over. It was an impressive bit of skill from French in a game which to that point had sorely lacked it. Smith’s conversion had Saints in a bit of trouble, trailing by 10 points at 12-2. 

Powell spurned the Warriors next chance as he came up with an error inside the Saints 10 metre line. That proved costly as the previously dormant Saints attack sprung into action. If the skill on show by French for Bateman’s try was impressive it was matched and even bettered by that of Batchelor as he went over to get Saints back into the contest. Hopoate had released Bennison down Saints’ right only for the youngster to be hauled down just outside the Wigan 20. Perhaps expecting Saints to spread the play from right to left, Wigan were caught out when Jack Welsby darted back towards the short side and found Batchelor. 

The ex-York man still had it all do, but did it in sublime fashion as he dabbed the ball past the advancing Field and regathered to touch down in the right hand corner. Not known for his kicking game, Batchelor looked like Mikey Lewis in the Hull derby on this play. It was spectacular, and a measure of how much more there is to Batchelor’s game than seemed apparent when he arrived from the Championship club at the start of 2019. Unfortunately Bennison still couldn’t find the radar with the goal-kicking but Saints were back in touch at 12-6.

Yet they were still not impressing on last tackle plays. Mata’utia was the latest to be caught in possession on the last just a few metres from the Wigan line. It was beginning to look like a deliberate tactic in the style of Huddersfield Giants when they faced Matty Peet’s side in the Challenge Cup final. That didn’t end well and I’m not sure why we’d want to copy it. Fortunately we only had to wait a few more minutes for another opportunity.

It was Bateman who gifted Saints the chance, losing possession near his own 40 metre line as he hit the defensive line. The ball was scooped up by the ever alert Welsby, who set off down Saints’ left edge towards the try line. Chased by French, he bumped the Wigan man off just enough to give himself the space to surge over before French could recover. Referee Moore wasn’t totally convinced, sending it up as a try but asking video referee Chris Kendall to check for a double movement. It was clear from the replays that Welsby never stopped moving and grounded the ball cleanly. Bennison was still having no luck with the boot so Saints were still behind at 12-10 with just over a quarter of the game to play.

The try was another inspirational play by Welsby who has blossomed yet further since he was forced to take on extra responsibility with the move from fullback into the halves following Dodd’s injury. There is an argument - especially given Hopoate’s outstanding performance at 1 - for never moving Welsby back to the last line of defence. But then who do you drop? Dodd? Lomax? It’s a nice problem for Woolf to have but I’m glad it’s not my job to try and work out the best combination from that embarrassment of riches. 

Welsby almost created more havoc a short time later when his chip and chase was gathered by Sironen only for the former Manly man’s pass to be snaffled by French. It was on Saints’ next foray deep into Wigan territory that the game took a possibly decisive twist.  Sironen was brought down by Field 10 metres out. On his way to the ground he was met with a crunching hit by Singleton. On further inspection by the officials including Kendall in the video booth it turned out that Singleton had steamed in, turned his body and crashed his shoulder directly into the head of the Saints man. 

Direct contact with the head - particularly with the shoulder - is always going to get you in trouble and so it proved as Singleton was shown a straight red card. He has subsequently been handed a three-game ban by the Match Review Panel which would seem to support the decision of the match day officials. That despite the endless bleating of Wigan fans mourning the fact that smashing somebody in the head is no longer just banter. Sironen left the field for an HIA but was able to return, but that doesn’t make hits to the head any less dangerous. It scarcely needs saying but in a climate where ex-players are suffering life changing brain injuries and taking legal action against the sport there has to be an attempt to eradicate this sort of contact from the game. You’ll probably never manage it completely but you can significantly reduce the risk with an effective deterrent.  

As a result of Singleton’s actions not only would his side play the final quarter of an hour with 12 men, but in the immediate term they presented Bennison with one of his easier attempts at goal on the day. He landed just his second goal - both penalties - to bring Saints level at 12-12. Goal-kicking is becoming an issue for the champions. Makinson and Davies made just one of four between them last week in Perpignan as Saints lost out by just two points. History was threatening to repeat itself here with Bennison having already missed three attempts. He would miss another before the end, but that one would not be such a cause for consternation. Yet the contrast with Smith’s perfect three from three for Wigan is stark.

First though the contest swung wildly back in the direction of Wigan. Field took advantage of some tired defence to break from half way before sending a well weighted kick out towards French. The winger gathered it and skipped over to restore Wigan’s lead. Moore again elected to have it checked to see if French had strayed on to the sideline but it was never in doubt. Clearly believing this to be a decisive contribution French was moved to channel his inner Jose Mourinho, shushing the massed ranks of Saints supporters with what turned out to be the most ill advised gesture since Andrea Jenkyns flipped the bird to the crowd outside Downing Street. For now though Wigan were back in control as Smith found a superb conversion for an 18-12 lead with less than 10 minutes remaining.

Nobody told Isa not to panic. His error inside his own half as he tried to play the ball quickly gave Saints a route back in once more. After Lussick had been held up short the ball was moved left to Hopoate by Lomax and the Tongan executed a perfect catch and pass straight into the path of Grace who walked in for his third try in only six appearances in 2022. With a deal to move to French rugby union in his pocket it is unclear how many more he will add to his Saints career tally of 87 tries and 139 appearances but this four-pointer turned out to be crucial. Bennison again missed with the conversion though so Saints still needed to find something in the final five minutes as they trailed 18-16.

They did of course. And how. A Mata’utia error at the Wigan 10 looked like being the champions’ last chance. Yet with some solid defence they fashioned one more. Just two minutes were left on the clock when Welsby shifted the ball right to Hopoate. With Bibby haring towards him from the defensive line Hopoate conjured an exquisite catch and pass to put Batchelor into the space vacated by the Wigan man. Batchelor surged 40 metres downfield with the aid of a masterful dummy to take Liam Marshall out of the game and virtually out of the stadium. 

While virtually every Saints fan in Newcastle and at home screamed at him to use the overlap to his right Batchelor kept his composure to find Lomax on his inside. Lomax showed his big game mentality by being in the right place at the right time and being good enough to finish it off. It was a score that put Saints back in front for the first time since French’s first try some 50 minutes of game time earlier. Bennison’s latest conversion attempt hit the post but at this point, who cared?

There were seconds remaining. Just enough time for Wigan to try a short restart which they managed to bungle spectacularly. The kick failed to travel the requisite 10 metres giving Saints the opportunity to tap the penalty and take one tackle as time expired. As glorious wins go it was right up there. One for the ages. Kristian ‘it was a good game of footy’ Woolf has not been known for producing last gasp miracles in the way that an Ian Millward could. To be fair to Woolf be has been good enough to not have to produce them very often. But here his side showed that they can open up, they can thrill when the situation demands. 

Looking at the stats and the top performers it is time to doff one’s cap to Hopoate. The ex-Canterbury man has been a frustrating no show more often than not in his first season with Saints but showed his worth here. Along with that assist for the Grace try and that delicious pass to Batchelor in the build up to the winner Hopoate reeled off a ridiculous 243 metres with ball in hand. As you might expect this dwarfed any other contribution on either side with Saints’ next best effort coming from Welsby with 142. Hurrell quietly accumulated 137 while the 131 made by Batchelor capped a phenomenal performance. His dribble around Field and his bamboozling of Marshall will live long in the memory. He has been establishing himself as someone who will do the tough stuff for some time now. Perhaps this was his breakout game as a genuinely classy, offensive back rower. Four other Saints passed the 100 metre mark. Lomax had 126, Paasi 113, Bennison 109 and Sironen 102. 

Wigan’s top ground gainer was French with 160 metres closely followed by Bateman on 154 and Farrell on 145. Prop Ethan Havard showed he is a cut above his front row colleagues with 131, Marshall managed 117 and Field 104.

Defensively Havard was prominent too, sharing the game high tackle count with James Roby with 42. Batchelor didn’t neglect his defensive duties just because he was busy turning on the style in attack and was Saints’ next busiest defender with 35. Morgan Knowles and Lees also topped 30 with 35 and 31 respectively. For the Warriors Bateman came up with 39 tackles, Powell 36, Farrell 34 and Morgan Smithies 31. 

Saints made one more clean break than their opponents with five to Wigan’s four, while Peet’s side had one extra error with 10 to Saints’ 9. Ten offloads is a measure of how much more expansive Saints were than is normally the case, a fact probably due to being behind for large parts of the game. Wigan’s tally of eight shows they weren’t afraid to open up either. I sneer at Peet’s inflated popularity and laugh at him when he complains about his players moving to Warrington, but the way his team is set up offensively is a far cry from the drudgery of the Adrian Lam regime. Of course it helps to have French and Field fit and available.

Topping the league has never been and probably never will be among Woolf’s priorities but his team are now in prime position to do it while still finding time to get players who need it a rest before the playoffs. Victory over Huddersfield at home on Friday (July 15) will leave the Giants seven points behind Saints with eight games to play, all but vanishing their hopes. It would also give Saints two wins out of three in this run of games against the other top four sides. Woolf is someone who would tell you he goes out to win every game but privately I have a feeling he’d have settled for that. 

Two of those three will probably provide our post season opponents should we make it to the Grand Final. Beating them at that time of year is what will ultimately hold the key to winning four in a row. 

Saints: Hopoate, Bennison, Hurrell, Mata’utia, Grace, Welsby, Lomax, Paasi, Roby, Lees, Sironen, Batchelor, Knowles. Interchanges: Lussick, McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Wingfield, Norman

Wigan: Field, French, Isa, Bibby, Marshall, Cust, Smith, Singleton, Powell, Byrne, Farrell, Bateman, Shorrocks. Interchanges: Smithies, Havard, Mago, Partington

Referee: Liam Moore

Video Referee: Chris Kendall

 

Wigan Warriors v Saints - Magic Weekend Preview

Having been narrowly thwarted by the Catalans Dragons in Perpignan last week Saints face another of Super League’s most onerous tasks when they meet Wigan Warriors in the less sunny climes of Newcastle on Saturday (July 9, kick-off 4.45pm).

If it doesn’t seem like a year since Super League last flogged the tiring concept of the Magic Weekend that’s because it isn’t. In another ingenious bout of deckchair shifting on the Titanic the event has been moved from last year’s early September date to this midsummer slot. No doubt the hope is to raise attendance and TV viewing figures. Yet in all likelihood wherever it is held it has at best peaked and at worst had its day. Its distortion of the fixture list is less of an issue in this age of loop fixtures but its place on the calendar surely impacts on the Challenge Cup final and Super League Grand Final attendances. Especially in the midst of one of the worst cost of living crises in living memory. Not everything has to be an event anyway. This isn’t darts. Something has to go. And it’s probably this.

For now though we are stuck with it and in a show of consistent lack of imagination derbies are back on the agenda. As luck would have it though this derby arrives at a time when its two protagonists are occupying the top two spots in the Super League table. Saints’ loss to the Dragons last week was only their third in 17 Super League outings and their first in the last seven, while Wigan have been beaten only four times in the league this term. Saints lost away at both French sides Catalans and Toulouse and also at Castleford with an under-strength team. Wigan lost at Saints on Good Friday, have gone down to both of the other two sides currently in the top four in Catalans and Huddersfield Giants and also managed to lose to Hull FC in May before the black and whites’ annual implosion. Win this one though, and Matty Peet’s side will again be level on points with the champions at the top of the table, trailing only on points difference.

There are problems within the Saints ranks which make that eventuality more likely than perhaps it might have been earlier in the season. Already without Lewis Dodd and Mark Percival, the latest blow to Kristian Woolf’s side is the loss of Tommy Makinson to a hamstring injury. Makinson has been in great form this year, topping the Super League try-scoring charts while still finding time to do a lot of the heavy lifting when Saints need to bring the ball out from their own end of the field. Makinson is Saints’ top metre maker in Super League in 2022 with 2242. Only Catalans’ Tom Davies and Leeds Rhinos’ Ash Handley sit above him on that list. If you were to choose a player to miss out on a game of this magnitude you would get through a lot of names before you’d even consider Makinson. This one is likely to hurt.

So how do you replace him? Well, sending Josh Simm on loan to Hull FC feels like a statement move from Woolf. The statement being that whatever crisis befalls our back line Simm is not going to play for the first team again. Simm would have been a candidate to fill in for Makinson having made six appearances on the wing already this term. Yet he appears not to have been forgiven for a rather fraught display against Wigan in the Challenge Cup semi final in early May. Will Hopoate is back - for this week at least after which I’m sure there are no promises - and so either he or Jon Bennison will probably take Makinson’s regular right wing slot. The other should slot in at fullback to allow Jack Welsby to continue to dictate play from the halves alongside Jonny Lomax.

Percival’s left centre berth has been filled by Sione Mata’utia when the former Kangaroo has been fit and available. He might be required there again but Konrad Hurrell makes a welcome return after illness so there is the opportunity to use the more natural centre pairing of the Tongan ex-Leeds Rhino and Ben Davies. The final three-quarter slot on the left wing still belongs to Regan Grace though not for much longer. It was announced this week that he will switch codes at the end of the season to join French rugby union outfit Racing 92. That’s a can of problems we can kick down the road for now so long as Grace’s focus remains on rugby league and his current employers for the rest of the year. If he slips into injury avoidance mode we might find ourselves in a bit of a spot.

One area where Saints are indisputably stronger than the increasingly noisy neighbours is in the pack. Matty Lees had a one match ban overturned on appeal this week and is free to play. Presumably the appeals panel had no more luck trying to decipher what Lees had allegedly done wrong than I did as I trawled through the footage for clues. And in case you’re new to it this column is not averse to hammering Saints players for poor discipline. I genuinely found nothing. I did see Alex Walmsley throw an arm over the shoulder and end up around the neck of a Wigan player but that was not deemed ban-worthy so he and Lees should be the starting props with hooker James Roby set for game number 512 in Saints colours. 

If Mata’utia is needed in the backs then Curtis Sironen and Joe Batchelor should get the starting second row berths with Morgan Knowles at 13. Should Mata’utia move back into the pack then Sironen looks the more likely to drop to the bench. Batchelor will hope to stay in the pack for the full 80 this week having been pressed into action at right centre after Makinson’s exit in France forced Woolf into a reshuffle. James Bell will hope to stake a claim also. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook returns from a facial injury and looks a cert to hold down a bench spot along with prop Agnatius Paasi and back up hooker Joey Lussick. One of Bell or Sironen may well occupy the fourth and final place on the interchange bench but both Jake Wingfield and Dan Norman have realistic claims too. Dan Hill makes up the initial 21-man selection.

Wigan coach Matty Peet has been receiving lavish praise in his first year at the Warriors helm and not just for putting on an impressive spread at the buffet. Even his tearful rant about Academy star Matty Nicholson’s move to Warrington garnered sympathy from his champions in the press. He arrives here with an almost fully fit squad to choose from. Iain Thorniley’s absence is hardly a seismic blow to Peet’s plans so perhaps the most significant no show will be 127 year-old veteran halfback Tommy Leuluai who has a calf problem. That loss is helped slightly by the return of former Manly man Cade Cust. 

Abbas Miski has scored six tries in his last two games and will look to continue that good run with the equally in form Liam Marshall on the opposite wing. However, Bevan French - out of contract just when Saints are looking for a winger for next year 👀 - and who has been causing opposition defences all kinds of damage at fullback may revert to the wing if Cust returns. That will allow Jai Field to revert to fullback and likely cost Miski his place. Wherever the duo of French and Field slot in to the back five their searing pace makes them a real danger especially with Saints missing a couple of key backs. 

Kai Pearce-Paul got the nod at centre over Jake Bibby during last week’s 46-22 drubbing of Wakefield Trinity but that may just have been to hold the former Salford man back for this one. If you’re looking for consolation about Saints’ problems in the back line then consider that Peet may still have to run with head-hunting’s Willie Isa at centre too. If Cust slots back into the halves he is likely to be partnered by the ever improving Harry Smith. 

There’s really not that much to fear in the front row of Wigan’s pack. It is still made up of the same old reprobates who have been disgracing their shirts for some time now. Alongside the returning psychotic attack dog Morgan Smithies there’s chief crusher Sam Powell at hooker, reckless Ollie Partington and ex-Leeds plodder Brad Singleton at prop with perhaps stints also for Patrick Mago, Ethan Harvard and Liam Byrne. The real quality is in the second row where John Bateman and Liam Farrell remain international class. Their problems will start if one of those two goes down and they have to go nuclear and deploy Isa.

This is the third meeting between these two in 2022. The possibility of another meeting in the playoffs or at Old Trafford hammers home the old adage about familiarity breeding contempt. Back in the glory days of Dodd and a full strength squad Saints breezed past Wigan 22-4 at home on Good Friday. Yet revenge was sweet for the Cannonball Kids in May’s Challenge Cup semi final at Elland Road when Peet’s Cheats raced into a 14-0 lead, got reeled in to trail 18-14 before winning it when Marshall intercepted an errant Lomax pass and took it the full length of the field. That Wigan went on to win the final against Huddersfield turned up the volume of Wigan’s ‘we’re back’ narrative while also adding an extra layer of ouchiness for those among us who wouldn’t want to see Wigan win a free diet coke on a McDonald’s Monopoly promotion.

Going back further the overall record in the Super League era between these two is dead even at 49 wins apiece if you include cup games. There have been four draws. The teams have met five times at Magic Weekend but not since 2012 when a violent, card-filled encounter ended with a thumping 42-16 Wigan win. Overall in those five meetings both sides have won twice with the 2011 clash ending in a 16-16 draw. Sensibly there was no golden point in those days. They were simpler times when a draw was nothing to be ashamed of and a Prime Minister was expected to leave office immediately if he or she resigned. Saints’ best result during those encounters was a 57-16 rout of the Warriors at Cardiff in 2008.

In all Magic Weekend fixtures Saints have seven wins, six losses and that one draw. That record should be slightly better but for a traumatic experience last year when a 30-12 lead over the Dragons after 75 minutes turned into a 31-30 golden point extra time defeat. No wonder I want this nonsense event scrapped. No wonder I like draws. Wigan have fared slightly better, winning in eight of their 14 appearances, losing four times and drawing twice. The second of those draws was a 24-24 affair with Warrington in 2017. Oh what both teams wouldn’t give to be playing Warrington this week. And every week.

Just because it pleases me to mention it and as a portent for what might happen later in the year the teams have also met in four Super League Grand Finals with Saints winning three to Wigan’s one. Which if nothing else is a stat which will have BBC researchers reaching for the smelling salts. 

As to what will happen this time there is uncertainty among many fans, including this one. That cup semi final defeat had a profound effect on the belief of Peet’s side and in turn on the confidence levels of their Norweb-clad Tina Turner devotee fan base. Since that painful defeat Saints backs have been falling away like Tory ministers while Wigan’s form has continued to improve. Peet can be mocked for his journo-schmoozing and his over emotional outburst over the sum total of bugger all, but not for the way he has transformed his team. Particularly in attack since the nadir of the Adrian Lam days. Proof indeed that you can make a silk purse from a sow’s ear. Just add pace.

Worryingly, Wigan might just do it this time. But I’m not tipping them to do so. You can’t, can you? Besides, having lost last week Saints should have all the motivation they need to wrest back control of the race for top spot. There is still enough quality in the Saints line-up if they are anywhere near their best so I’m sticking with Woolf’s men to win by four. 

Squads;

Wigan Warriors;

1. Bevan French 2. Jake Bibby 5. Liam Marshall 6. Cade Cust 8. Brad Singleton 9. Sam Powell 10. Patrick Mago 11. Willie Isa 12. Liam Farrell 13. John Bateman 14. Morgan Smithies 15. Kaide Ellis 16. Harry Smith 17. Oliver Partington 19. Ethan Havard 20. Liam Byrne 21. Kai Pearce-Paul 22. Joe Shorrocks 23. Jai Field 24. Abbas Miski 28. Brad O’Neill

Saints:

1. Jack Welsby, 3. Will Hopoate, 5. Regan Grace, 6. Jonny Lomax, 8. Alex Walmsley, 9. James Roby, 10. Matty Lees, 11. Sione Mata’utia, 12. Joe Batchelor, 13, Morgan Knowles, 14. Joey Lussick, 15. LMS, 16. Curtis Sironen, 17. Agnatius Paasi, 19. Jake Wingfield, 20. James Bell, 22. Ben Davies, 23. Konrad Hurrell, 24. Dan Norman, 27. Jon Bennison, 29. Dan Hill.

Referee:  Liam Moore

Video Referee: Chris Kendall

Saints Get Ready For A Graceless Age

The news we’d all been doing our best not to hear came through on Tuesday (July 5) when it was announced that Regan Grace will leave Saints at the end of the 2022 season. The Welsh winger has accepted an offer to switch codes to rugby union, where he will join French outfit Racing 92. A Saints statement revealed that Grace had turned down an offer to extend his stay at Saints in favour of a new challenge. 

Although Grace is a product of the prolific Saints Academy he is that rare thing among Welsh rugby league internationals - a genuine Welshman. Grace is a Port Talbot boy, where the other code is very much in the blood. He started his rugby league journey at South Wales Scorpions before joining Saints where he has - at the time of writing - scored 86 tries in 138 appearances. He is one of eight players to appear in all three of Saints’ Grand Final successes between 2019-21 and was on the winning side when Saints lifted the Challenge Cup at Wembley last year also. 

Grace made a try scoring Saints debut at Wigan in April 2017, the game immediately following the departure of club legend Keiron Cunningham from the coaching position. He became a regular under Justin Holbrook thereafter, making a further 23 appearances in that season and crossing for another 10 tries. 

Grace possesses out and out pace, a throwback to the days when the very best wingers just needed a yard of space to inflict mayhem on opposition defences. In an era in which wingers are increasingly used as battering rams to make hard metres Grace offered something a little different to what many Super League teams had at their disposal. Whether he has fulfilled his potential is a matter for debate. There are still times when he appears hesitant rather than trusting his speed to get him to where he needs to be.

Still, his medal haul tells a story of success and he leaves us with some outstanding memories. A hat-trick in a 36-10 Good Friday drubbing of Wigan in 2019 stands out as do further trebles in a 48-0 shellacking of Leeds Rhinos in August 2020 and in last year’s 23-18 cup quarter final win over Huddersfield Giants. Grace’s key role in that cup run also included a majestic length of the field interception try to secure a semi final victory over Hull FC at Leigh Sports Village. Injuries have reduced him to only five appearances with just two tries so far in 2022. Yet now that he has regained his fitness he looks set to be a major player in Saints’ bid to win that much sought after fourth consecutive Super League Grand Final come September. It would be some way to bow out.

Grace’s decision to leave - although disappointing - is not particularly surprising. The move to union has always been whispered about in the background due to his nationality and the obsession with the 15-man game in that part of the world. When Grace signed only a one-year deal with Saints in May 2021 the signs were ominous. Clearly at that point he wanted to keep his options open should the opportunity to switch codes arise. No doubt the fact that there is a Rugby Union World Cup in France on the horizon in 2023 was a consideration even then. By moving across now he has given himself time to prove his worth to Wales coach Wayne Pivac. Sadly this - and the Covid-related 12-month delay to the Rugby League World Cup - mean that he will now be very unlikely to feature in what looks set to be the biggest international tournament in rugby league since 2017. 

Grace featured in that tournament five years ago but the lack of a consistent international programme in rugby league means he has only managed six appearances for his country. That has to have been a factor in his decision to join Racing 92, though it also seems fairly likely that he will be the recipient of a hefty pay rise. As long as league lags behind its rival in putting on international events which showcase its stars on the biggest stage it can expect to keep losing players from time to time as they seek that opportunity. In the case of Grace his background probably made a switch to union inevitable at some point in his career. Now 25, Grace is likely to be giving Racing 92 and the Welsh Rugby Union his peak years. 

At club level there was very little left for Grace to achieve in league. The only club competition he has never won is the World Club Challenge. Injury ruled him out of his one opportunity when Saints went down 20-12 to Sydney Roosters in 2020. The Covid pandemic put paid to his and Saints’ chances of competing for it again despite qualifying as Super League champions for both the 2021 and 2022 events. 

Any time a prominent league player switches to the dark side there will be those who castigate him for it. I’m no fan of union myself. Frankly I’d rather watch the whole of the last series of A Question Of Sport on a constant loop than watch five minutes of union. Yet it is difficult to find any rage to aim towards Grace. We’ve always suspected it to be his destiny and league has made little or no progress towards matching the financial rewards and exposure offered by union during his time at Saints. Athletes are potentially only ever one injury away from the end of the road and need to maximise their potential and their opportunities. Even injury free it is a relatively short career. The more rational among the fan base will not blame Grace. They will instead continue to question the structural issues within our game that make the move to union make sense for many.

Whatever your views on the move it has happened, meaning Saints now have some recruiting to do. The recent injuries to our back line have been evidence that we were already threadbare at wing. Now we arguably need to bring in two wide men. Without Grace the back line is in desperate need of a genuine speedster. As good as Tommy Makinson is he no longer express pace if he ever has been. Josh Simm’s loan move to Hull FC suggests Kristian Woolf does not see him as the answer. Shay Martyn and Jumah Sambou have both had a taste of first team rugby recently but neither is making a particularly loud claim for regular game time as yet. 

Looking outside the club the overseas quota is maxed out so any new arrivals would need to be home based unless one of our overseas stars were to leave. The most prominent name on the list of British free agents for 2023 is Greg Eden. He’s a prolific try scorer but has not shown the reliability - particularly defensively - which would interest Woolf. That’s assuming the current head coach will make the decision given that as yet there has been no announcement on whether he will be here for 2023. If money and those pesky things called contracts were no barrier then the best option running around Super League might be Leeds Rhinos’ Ash Handley. Or if we wanted to be really mischievous Bevan French has not yet committed to Wigan beyond this season. Think of the meltdown. It would be great.

Back in the real world we now need to enjoy Grace while we can. At best we will probably see him a dozen or so more times in the red vee before he departs. He will go with the best wishes of most of us, especially if he adds that fourth Super League ring to his impressive collection.

Catalans Dragons 20 Saints 18 - Review

Saints’ winning run in Super League came to an end at six games as they were edged out by Catalans Dragons in Perpignan on Saturday (July 2).

This was always a tough assignment on paper despite the Dragons’ surprise defeat at Castleford in their previous outing. When it was confirmed that Saints had travelled to France on the day of the game alarm bells rang. Memories of that shock defeat at Toulouse in March jumped to the front of my mind. The explanation given for the decision was that the team had encountered difficulties with the journey home when they stayed over on their second visit to Toulouse a month ago which had impacted preparations for the next game. 

The next game in this case is Wigan at Magic Weekend in Newcastle on Saturday. If the question is which game would you rather prepare thoroughly for then the answer is fairly obvious. But do you have to choose? Is it not possible to travel to Perpignan the day before the game and get back without it impacting preparation for a game happening a full week later? In the current climate of travel chaos maybe not. But who among us would be surprised if the problems on the route back from Toulouse last time were the result of a financial decision? Travel arrangements are far from the only reason this one got away. There were lots of reasons as we will see. But travelling on the day was always going to be raised as a factor should the result not go the right way.

Another factor was the problems surrounding our squad at present. On game day it was revealed that Konrad Hurrell had not travelled due to illness. Hurrell has been Saints’ most in-form player of late and was sorely missed. Mark Percival’s continued absence and that of Will Hopoate meant that Saints went in with only two players in their regular positions in what you might call their strongest back five. That figure would be reduced to one when Tommy Makinson was withdrawn with a hamstring problem after just 25 minutes. Excitement at Sione Mata’utia’s return from suspension was justified but he had to fill in at centre once more. By the time of Makinson’s injury we were running with a right edge of Joe Batchelor at centre and Ben Davies on the wing. Jon Bennison again filled in for Hopoate at fullback,

Not ideal then. But before we get too sorry for ourselves consider this list. Arthur Mourgue, Tom Davies, Mike McMeeken, Benjamin Garcia, Tyrone May, Jordan Dezaria, Julian Bousquet and Joe Chan. All of these were missing for Steve McNamara’s side. It was a tight game, almost coin-flip territory. But if you look only at the result you might suggest that the Dragons coped with their absences better in a battle between two banged up teams. Both will have days when they are stronger between now and the run up to the September 24 Grand Final.

The way Saints started the game showed no signs of any concern about who was not present. They were a little indisciplined to begin with - conceding three penalties in the first eight minutes - but by then had already opened the scoring. Just five minutes were on the clock when James Roby, Jonny Lomax and Jack Welsby combined to give Mata’utia a walk in on the left edge. There was a hint of a forward pass from Welsby as he registered his 18th assist of the season but there were no complaints from any Dragons defenders. Welsby’s 19th assist would arrive later. Only Tui Lolohea and Jake Connor have delivered the killer pass more often this term.  It was Mata’utia’s fourth try of a season too frequently interrupted by injury and suspension. Makinson could not add the extras but Saints were off to a positive start leading 4-0.

It got better for Saints eight minutes later. Roby and Lomax caught the Catalans defence out on the short side and when Batchelor expertly found Makinson the Saints winger exchanged passes with Lomax and dived over in the right hand corner for a superb score. It was a slick move which would have unlocked any Super League defence and was Makinson’s 17th try of the Super League season.  Nobody else in the competition can match that tally so far in 2022. Yet unlike the batting of Jonny Bairstow the fours were not turning into sixes as Makinson again failed to land the conversion. Those early misses would prove costly but for now Saints were in charge at 8-0.

And so here comes the controversy. There’s always something, isn’t there? Davies was taking what Terry O’Connor boringly refers to as a ‘tough carry’ away from his own end of the field when he was met with the full force of Dylan Napa’s rule-breakery. Sent off against Saints on his Dragons debut in February the former Sydney Rooster and Canterbury Bulldog attempted to pay tribute to his own act, clubbing Davies in the head with his shoulder. 

That kind of contact - direct to the head and delivered with a large helping of shoulder was a stonewall red card in the clampdown of the early weeks of the season. It still should be. Yet after a lengthy delay during which he was presumably waiting for video referee Tom Grant to review the decision, on-field whistler James Child was seemingly advised that a yellow card would be sufficient. A punishment hasn’t been this lenient since Sam Powell only got six games for trying to paralyse Bennison. Napa has been referred to a tribunal on a Grade D charge and has subsequently been handed a five game ban. Which probably tells you all you need to know.

The officiating was somewhat improved when Saints went close soon after Napa’s departure. Roby put a testing kick into the in-goal from dummy half where Davies and Samisoni Langi both appeared to miss it before it was grounded by Sam Tomkins. It was reviewed to determine whether Davies had managed to ground the ball first but was correctly ruled a goal-line dropout.

When the Dragons did get back into the game it was on the back of a pretty basic mistake by Saints. Lomax uncharacteristically thumped a kick out on the full allowing the French side to take over in good field position. In the ensuing set Tomkins cut through the Saints defence on a 30 metre burst like it was 2012 all over again. That set up the position from where Josh Drinkwater lobbed a perfect right to left kick out to Fouad Yaha. The French international took it cleanly and although he was not able to get to the line himself he popped the ball up for Matthieu Laguerre to squeeze over. It was another decision sent up for review with an initial decision of no try as Lomax got to Laguerre just as he was grounding the ball. Yet replays showed the ball had hit the ground a fraction before the Dragons’ man went touch in-goal. Tomkins missed a tough conversion from out on the left touchline but Catalans were right back in it at 8-4.

All of that unfolded with Napa still in the sin bin. Saints still have the best defence in Super League even after shipping 20 points in this one so it was a surprise to see them allow Catalans to cross with one man fewer on the field. Not the sort of thing you expect from a side which currently allows opponents only 11.17 points per game. They were undone with a pinpoint kick from Drinkwater and there is further mitigation in the destruction of their regular right edge defence due to the absence of Hurrell and Makinson. Not that Saints coach Kristian Woolf will be offering that up as an excuse. He’ll no doubt view it as an area which needs to be tightened up.

Eight minutes later the reigning league leaders (minor premiers in NRL speak) hit the front. Again it was Saints’ right edge which was exposed. Drinkwater started the move in which Matt Whitley and Laguerre combined to send Yaha rampaging down the left touchline. As the cover converged on him he showed great presence of mind and no small amount of skill to send a perfectly weighted kick back towards the Saints posts. At which point it was missed by both Roby and Jake Wingfield allowing Drinkwater a fairly simple grounding. The central position of that grounding made Tomkins’ task with the conversion even more simple and the home side went in 10-8 up at the break.

Now if you think the fact that Catalans scored with 12 men on the field means we should not take for granted that we would have won had be stayed off, how do you think the Dragons would have coped with 11 men? With another referee on another day that is exactly what could have happened. Under a minute had gone by after the interval when Micky McIlorum- England international and former Head Boy at the Shaun Wane School Of Grubbery - should have had his afternoon ended early. Bennison had collected a high ball deep in his own half when Shithousery’s McIlorum tested the youngster’s appetite for punishment with a shoulder direct to the head. More subtle perhaps than Napa’s earlier effort but no less dangerous, it was deemed worthy of only a penalty by Child. The Match Review Panel clearly found that decision unpalatable and have slapped McIlorum with a three-match ban. And people complain that they don’t do anything.

Saints shook off that distraction and were the next to score. Drinkwater - who was otherwise excellent all evening - rather lost the plot when he picked up a ball from an offside position which had ricocheted into his path after Lomax’s attempt to kick through the defensive line had been blocked. A few plays later those old faithfuls Roby and Lomax linked up with Welsby who sent an exquisite looping pass over to Davies to allow the makeshift winger to dart in at the right hand corner. With Makinson off Davies took over the goal-kicking responsibilities himself. Yet he enjoyed no better fortune on this occasion and despite having scored three tries to the Dragons’ two Saints held only a two-point lead at 12-10.

Within seven minutes of scoring his third try of the season Davies was saving one at the other end. Yaha takes some stopping, but after he was put into space by the craft of Mitchell Pearce and Drinkwater Davies was equal to the challenge. Yaha looked almost certain to score before Davies clattered into him, forcing him into touch into the bargain. 

Unfortunately it was a temporary reprieve for Saints as this fluctuating contest moved back in the direction of the hosts. Langi found himself on the end of a sweet move as Drinkwater put Whitley through a gap on the left, received it back from the back rower and found Langi on his left shoulder with an open run to the line. Tomkins landed his second goal to give the hosts a 16-12 lead. 

Saints’ attempts to hit back where scuppered by their own indiscipline. Batchelor had put Saints in prime attacking position with a 30 metre burst down the right flank and after Child hit Catalans with two consecutive ‘6 again’ calls it needed Laguerre’s desperate hand to prevent Lomax from opening the door on the left hand side. Yet from the resultant scrum Child pinged Lomax for running around the back of James Bell after the ex-Leigh man had got his run through the defensive line all wrong. It was the second time in the game that Saints had been penalised while in possession after a first half incident in which Alex Walmsley had found himself in possession having been ahead of the play-the-ball. These are small miscues, but in a game this close they can take on extra significance.

Entering the last quarter the try that ultimately made the mountain too high to climb arrived. Again there was an element of self harm in the Saints defence as they conceded back-to-back repeat sets in quick succession to help the Dragons down the field. Once within range it was Pearce who picked the lock on this occasion, lobbing a sensational ball out to Arthur Romano. He quickly shuffled it back inside to Dean Whare who celebrated his return to the side after a 14-game absence with a simple try. Although Tomkins was again unsuccessful with the conversion McNamara’s side had some breathing space at 20-12.

Yet this is not a Saints team to let things go lightly. To paraphrase CJ From The Fall And Rise Of Reginald Perrin they didn’t get where they are today by giving up when they go two scores behind. And where they are today is threepeating, back-to-back-to-back Super League champions. Within three minutes of Whare’s effort Welsby dragged his side back into the fight. The 2020 Grand Final hero is becoming more dominant as a playmaker with each game and showed on this play that he has game intelligence and no small amount of impudence. 

There seemed little to do but defend and await another chance when Sam Kasiano rumbled forward 35 metres from his own line. Picking out Welsby he careered into the Saints man who looked as though he might need the assistance of Mata’utia to bring down the soon-to-be Warrington Wolf. Except he didn’t. As Mata’utia dropped off contact Welsby timed his act of grand larceny to perfection, ripping possession away from a bewildered Kasiano and sprinting away to dot down untouched. Child’s initial suspicion was that the steal had been fair, a first impression that was confirmed on review to get Saints back in it. With nobody in the vicinity of Welsby when he touched down he was able to do it under the posts to allow Davies to land Saints’ solitary goal of the day and reduce the arrears to 20-18.

Considering he was the only regular three-quarter playing in his natural position we hadn’t seen a huge amount of Regan Grace to this point. We won’t be seeing a whole lot more of him in the long term future either but that’s probably a whole different column. For now let me divert your attention to his sudden re-emergence as an attacking threat during the last 15 minutes of this one. It was a resurgence which ultimately led to him ending the game as Saints’ top metre maker. More on which later.

Firstly he caught a routine grass finder close to his own 20 metre line and somehow found a route through the defensive line before embarking on a 50 metre dash into Dragons territory.  My one complaint about Grace has always been that I’m not sure he backs his ability enough. If he had really pinned back the ears and honed in on the try line he might have dismantled the Catalans defence and put Saints back in front. As it was his almost imperceptible hesitation allowed the not exactly Usain Bolt-like Pearce to drag him down from behind. The disappointment was compounded later in the set when Welsby lost possession under pressure from Pearce and Benjamin Jullien. Welsby’s claims that the ball had been stolen were waved away by Child.

Bennison offered hope with a great half break from deep inside his own half which had to be halted by Kasiano dragging him down by his collar. That sort of thing is frowned upon in the NFL but is apparently fair game in Super League. Saints couldn’t take advantage of the platform created anyway after Walmsley - having his one off day of the year - spilled possession near half way as another chance - like the time remaining - slipped away.

More valuable time was spent having to defend a period of pressure as Drinkwater forced Bennison to concede a dropout and then Welsby hastily played the ball to nobody three metres from his own line - at potentially disastrous cost to Lomax’s fragile head as Alrix Da Costa slid in. It was left to Morgan Knowles to put an end to the raid as he forced Kasiano to part company with the ball - not for the first time during the evening.

Back then to Grace, who scampered for another line-bending 20 metres having been put in space by Welsby. The Welshman handed on to Bennison and within two plays Saints were in field position not to be sniffed at at this stage of proceedings, 40 metres from their own line. Having started the set Grace ended it, if not quite in the way we would all have liked. Saints plotted their way down the field to manufacture a chance as Welsby, Curtis Sironen and Mata’utia were all involved in finding Grace. 

This time there was no room for hesitation whatsoever. Yet rather than put his head down and go low Grace took the aerial route favoured by so many wide men in recent years. Annoyingly, Romano read those intentions and got enough of Grace to force him to ground the ball outside the field of play after first glancing the corner post. Child was unconvinced about the grounding but reviewed it just in case. His initial instincts had been spot on. Yet if Grace could have done better it was nothing compared to the ineptitude of the TV director who ran 5 or 6 replays before finding a useful one which showed the grounding. Little wonder televised matches finish late.

Saints needed that unshakable defence to fashion themselves another opportunity. Instead Tomkins sliced through it, dealing it if not a fatal blow then a very damaging one as he cut through on a 30 metre gallop to within 10 metres of the Saints line. Rather than risk a kick and the concession of a 7-tackle set the Dragons were content to turn it over on the last and leave Saints needing to go 95 metres to score. For all its qualities, and despite the fact that they rolled methodically down the field to create Grace’s chance moments earlier, Woolf’s Saints are not set up to go 95 metres quickly. His strength is in making sure they don’t need to do that very often. Which he has proven very good at. 

A Wide To West moment never seemed likely here. The set ended with a Welsby kick deep into the Dragons half which there was no hope of chasing successfully. They would have to force a mistake. Yet when Knowles brushed the face of Gil Dudson it earned the hosts the penalty they needed to run out the clock and preserve the win. 

It had been a pretty good advert for Super League, despite the result and despite never quite veering into classic territory. Top performers for Saints were Grace - most of whose 145 metres seemed to be earned late, Mata’utia who gained 128 and Welsby with 117. Even the slightly off colour Walmsley got through his customary century with 113. Three other Saints (Sironen 110, Bennison 105 and Lomax 104) passed that mark also. 

Catalans’ best go-forward man was Tomkins with 126, a metre ahead of Yaha on 125 with Langi contributing 109. The fact that there were seven Saints over 100 metres and only three Dragons perhaps says something, though I’m not sure what.

Defensively Roby was again the main man for Saints, this time joined in the 30+Tackle Club by Knowles (39), Lees (36) and Batchelor (31). Roby outworked all of them with 46. Jullien was the only other man over 40 tackles on either side as he put in 42, while Whitley managed 32 and Pearce and Mikael Goudemand 30 apiece.

 

The error count was fairly low in a flowing game by modern Super League standards. Saints only had six misfires with Catalans offering one more at seven. This was despite Saints managing eight offloads and the Dragons five. It wasn’t Harlem Globetrotters stuff but nor was it up the jumper rugby either. Perhaps the most telling and decisive stat was the goal-kicking, where between them Makinson and Davies made only one of four while Tomkins landed two of four for the home side. That ultimately proved decisive but - just like travel arrangements - there are many more variables which win or lose a game.

An opportunity to obliterate Catalans’ chances of retaining the League Leaders Shield has been lost but the battle is still on. Starting with this weekend’s competition distorting Magic Weekend in Newcastle. In the usual show of imagination Saints have been paired with local rivals and currently second placed Wigan while the Dragons get to face off against hapless, couldn’t buy a ‘w’ in an upside-down M&M factory Warrington. What is more we are likely to face Wigan without Makinson who it was revealed by Woolf has a tight hamstring. Hurrell should be back but Hopoate’s involvement is about as reliable as Nadine Dorries at a Rugby League World Cup promotional event. Or Nadine Dorries anywhere, really. 

Wigan can draw level with Saints at the top of Super League if they win the extra derby, but the champions will stay top unless the margin of their defeat is some calculator-busting cricket score. That seems a stretch, but the holes in Saints three-quarter line added to the ongoing issues in the halves and at fullback have perhaps given the match-up a more even feel to it. 

Saints haven’t lost two in a row in the league since October 2020 when a 12-10 defeat at Salford was followed by an 18-6 home loss to Wigan. We all know how that season ended though and it is for that reason that Woolf does not concern himself with the destination of the League Leaders Shield. 

Which is a pity because this time last week it was all but in the bag.

Catalans Dragons: Tomkins, Laguerre, Whare, Langi, Yaha, Pearce, Drinkwater, Dudson, McIlorum, Napa, Whitley, Jullien, Goudemand. Interchanges: Da Costa, Seguier, Romano, Kasiano

Saints: Bennison, Makinson, Davies, Mata’utia, Grace, Welsby, Lomax, Walmsley, Roby, Lees, Sironen, Batchelor, Knowles. Interchanges: Paasi, Lussick, Wingfield, Bell

Referee: James Child

Video Referee: Tom Grant