Saints v Hull FC - Preview

Two straight defeats - and the manner in which they happened - make victory all the more vital for Saints when Hull FC come to town on Friday night (April 19, kick-off 8.00pm).

Challenge Cup hopes were ended in chastening fashion when Paul Wellens’ side slumped to a 31-8 defeat at home to Warrington in last weekend’s quarter-final. That followed on from an insipid attacking display which saw the red vee go down 14-8 to Catalans Dragons in Perpignan in their last Super League outing. A third consecutive defeat in all competitions is unthinkable for Saints who currently sit fifth in the table. However it’s tight at the top with the four teams immediately behind the table-topping Dragons separated only by points difference. 

If you’re in a spot of bother form wise then you couldn’t really ask for a more favourable assignment than Hull FC at home. The black and whites’ 2024 campaign has been beyond shambolic through the first seven rounds. Their only win came against out of their depth London Broncos, and even then they were a minute from defeat before Morgan Smith’s try spared their blushes. 

Hull have shipped over 50 points in each of their last two home games and are one of only three clubs to have scored less than 100 points and conceded more than 200 across the Super League season so far along with the Broncos and Castleford Tigers. FC average only a tick over 12 points per game in attack while opponents can expect to rack up an average of 36 over an 80-minute period.

The response from owner Adam Pearson has been to mutually consent Head Coach Tony Smith out of the door. Smith is a Grand Final and Challenge Cup winner over his many years in England and was even the catalyst for Hull KR’s recent rise to prominence before making the switch across the city. Yet things have arguably got worse rather than better under the former Leeds, Warrington and England boss. Recruitment has continued to be poor while Smith has seemingly had little impact on improving discipline and resilience. Based on his performance since joining the club in 2022 and not factoring in his past record as a winner his removal does not look like a harsh decision. 

Smith’s exit is not the only major development at Hull over the last couple of weeks. Pearson has used the week off given to the club by an early Challenge Cup exit to make the left field appointment of Richie Myler as Director Of Rugby. Myler was busy winding down his playing career at York Knights in the Championship when the call came to take up a more powerful position within the game. Presumably it will be his responsibility to find and appoint a replacement for Smith. 

Quite what qualifies him to hold that kind of power at one of the league’s few A licensed clubs is leaving many scratching their heads but wishing him luck. The club had already started to make moves to try and whip the squad back into shape. Nu Brown and Tex Hoy were both released in the days leading up to Myler’s arrival. Both were only on contract with the club until the end of the season. Brown’s most memorable contribution in a Hull shirt will be the red card he received for accidentally clashing heads with Ben Currie in defeat at Warrington in only his second game for the club. Aside from that the hooker has spent much of his time playing out of position at halfback.

Meanwhile Hoy was hardly utilised by Smith, leading to the player criticising his coach on social media and all but making his position untenable. Once a worthy NRL fullback or stand-off with Newcastle Knights his departure should at least free up some cap space to allow Pearson, Myler and co another opportunity to get their squad building right. It probably won’t be a quick fix but nobody can accuse Pearson of not being open to trying out new ideas.

Wellens also talked of new ideas in a downbeat post match presser following the Warrington defeat. Having hinted at changes he quickly qualified that, saying that it did not necessarily mean that there would be mass alterations to his lineup this week. He would not be making decisions based on emotion he assured us. 

Some fans must have missed that bit because there was a good deal of online outrage when he announced only three changes to his 21-man squad. Two of those see returns for established first team regulars as Matty Lees and Mark Percival come back in. Lees is now free after a two-game suspension while Percival was in need of extra checks according to concussion protocols after suffering a head knock in the incident which saw Wigan grub Liam Byrne red carded in Saints’ last win on Good Friday. Sam Royle is also drafted in because…well…you can never have too many back rowers, can you?

Lees’ return is timely given that Alex Walmsley will be out for a few weeks with a hamstring issue. Noah Stephens’ chances of a debut might be slightly enhanced by Walmsley’s absence but Saints still have George Delaney, Sione Mata’utia and Morgan Knowles to call on with front row experience at this level. Stephens does at least retain his place in the 21 while Jake Burns and Tee Ritson miss out along with Walmsley.

As the debate rages about the ineptitude of the Saints back line there had been calls from many for Ritson to get a run. Yet that clamour feels like confirmation that you are never a better player than when you are out of the side. For some reason some players’ previously underwhelming endeavours are forgotten when they are inactive and expectations around them rise dramatically. Wasn’t it Jack Wilshere who once said that during one of his many long spells out of the Arsenal team with various injuries the national press had turned him into Lionel Messi? 

Have Saints watchers turned Ritson into Martin Offiah just because it’s been a while since he showed us that he isn’t in that stratosphere? After all Ritson has not appeared in a first team game since August. I can’t argue against Wellens’ decision not to select Ritson for the match day squad. Yet given the state that the back division is in dropping him from the 21 if he is not injured might be interpreted as a statement from the coach about Ritson’s likely involvement going forward. Irrespective of how bad the attack gets. 

Since it’s not going to be Ritson’s day the only predictable change to the back line will see Percival come back in at centre. That will leave Wellens with a choice between Konrad Hurrell or Waqa Blake for the other centre berth. He could squeeze both into his starting lineup by shunting Blake on to the wing and jettisoning Jon Bennison. 

That would be a curious decision given how much faith Wellens has shown in Bennison and the fact that the makeshift winger has just been given the goal-kicking duties. Among all of his other problems, Wellens has gone through no fewer than five goal-kickers in nine league and cup games so far in 2024. Bennison has looked among the most likely to be consistently successful in the role. 

Fullback Jack Welsby and right winger Tommy Makinson seem nailed on to start barring any injury mishaps between now and kick-off time. There seems little indication of change in the halves either with skipper Jonny Lomax continuing to partner Lewis Dodd. Yet the former is creaking while the latter’s kicking game is stultifyingly predictable. Some have called for Moses Mbye to get another opportunity at halfback where it was generally perceived that he added more variety with the boot when he fulfilled the role at Leeds in the cup in Dodd’s absence. 

If he’s not doing that then expect Mbye to again be the alternative to Daryl Clark at nine. Lees and Delaney are the likely starters at prop with Knowles and Mata’utia also set for stints there. The back row remains an embarrassment of riches with Mata’utia, Knowles, Joe Batchelor, Curtis Sironen, Matt Whitley and James Bell all making it very unlikely we’ll see Royle. 

FC’s interim boss Simon Grix has made four changes to the 21 who were on duty for the 56-22 shellacking by Huddersfield Giants a fortnight ago. Hoy and Brown are two of those while Ligi Sao and Jack Brown are both suspended. Teenage halfback Macca Harman is included along with hooker Jaylen Hodgson, nephew of ex-Canberra Raiders and England nine Josh Hodgson. Veteran dummy half Danny Houghton returns from a rib injury while the inclusion of Denive Balmforth starts to make it feel like Grix’s plan for beating Saints is to play an entire team of pivots. If they’re really fast it might just work.

In fairness to Grix he is still without a plethora of experience with men like Carlos Tuimavave, Jake Trueman, Brad Fash, Jack Ashworth and Jack Walker all still out injured. The onus now is on the likes of Houghton, Darnell McIntosh, Liam Sutcliffe and overseas recruits Franklin Pele, Jaydn Okunbor and Herman Ese’ese to perform and inspire the youth to do likewise. 

These two sides met four times over the course of 2023 in league and cup. Saints won three of those including a 32-18 Challenge Cup quarter-final success aided and abetted by Josh Griffin’s red card for memorably chirping at referee Chris Kendall on his way off the field at halftime. These are the kinds of things that happen at Hull in recent years and that Myler will want to stamp out through the next coaching appointment. 

A week after that cup win Saints lost 34-6 at Hull in a game which saw the now retired Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook make one of only five starts in his final year and Knowles operating at hooker. In the two home meetings with the black and whites Saints won 20-12 in March and 30-12 in the final regular season game of 2023. 

Those results actually allowed Hull to win the Steve Prescott Cup, played for annually between the clubs in memory of the Super League and Challenge Cup winner who became a prolific fund raiser after being diagnosed with cancer. The trophy is presented to the team with the highest aggregate score over the course of the league meetings between the two so that 34-6 win was enough to keep FC in front on aggregate despite Saints’ two victories at home. This weekend’s game will be the first leg of the 2024 version with the return scheduled for August 3 at the MKM Stadium.

Despite the noise around Saints at the moment - much of it coming from their own fans with those of the various opposition largely of the belief that Wellens’ side will eventually come good - it is still hard to imagine a loss in this one. FC don’t possess the kind of pace boasted by Warrington or the Salford side who took advantage of a Percival red card to win at Saints in March. That being the case - and if Grix’s side try to get into a dull grind for field position - a game of fewest errors wins - they are likely to be handled with something to spare by a Saints pack which has not stopped being among the league’s best because of one poor result or even the loss of Walmsley. 

We can expect a win, but probably not by the 50+ scores that the Giants and Leigh Leopards racked up against Hull recently. Nor should we hold our breath until Saints match the 28 points that Hull KR put up in the first half against their neighbours on Good Friday. It should be comfortable enough for Saints but it’s unlikely to be pretty. Saints by 20, at which point the debates will no doubt rage anew.

Squads;

Saints;

1. Jack Welsby, 2. Tommy Makinson, 3. Waqa Blake, 4. Mark Percival, 5. Jon Bennison, 6. Jonny Lomax, 7. Lewis Dodd, 9. Daryl Clark, 10. Matty Lees, 11. Sione Mata’utia, 12. Joe Batchelor, 13. Morgan Knowles, 14. Moses Mbye, 15. James Bell, 16. Curtis Sironen, 19. Matt Whitley, 20. George Delaney, 21. Ben Davies, 22. Sam Royle, 23. Konrad Hurrell, 31. Noah Stephens.

Hull FC;

2. Liam Tindall 4. Liam Sutcliffe 5.  Darnell McIntosh 8. Herman Ese’ese 9. Danny Houghton 10. Franklin Pele 11. Jayden Okunbor 14. Joe Cator 15. Jordan Lane 17.  Cam Scott 19. Morgan Smith 21. Will Gardiner 23. Davy Litten 26. Lewis Martin 27. Zach Jebson 28. Denive Balmforth 30. Matty Laidlaw 33. Macca Harman 35. Jeylan Hodgson. 37. Logan Moy 40. Jack Charles

Referee: Tom Grant

Video Referee: Liam Moore

Saints 8 Warrington Wolves 31 - Challenge Cup Quarter Final Review

No need to worry about hotel prices in London in early June as Saints were bounced out of the Challenge Cup by Warrington on Sunday afternoon (April 14).

It was a pretty punishing experience for Paul Wellens’ men who slipped to a second consecutive defeat in all competitions after last week’s reverse at Catalans Dragons. But if the Saints Head Coach thought his side had underperformed in Perpignan he was shown just how much poorer his side can be in what became a bit of a one-sided rout. It also marked the first time that Saints have failed to get past the last eight of the Challenge Cup since 2020 when they were beaten by…Warrington. 

Wellens made two changes to his starting 13. Waqa Blake was reintroduced at centre after disciplinary issues saw him turning out for the reserves a week ago. That meant that his makeshift replacement Sione Mata’utia returned to a bench spot. The same fate befell Matt Whitley who - after starting the opening eight games of his debut season at Saints in league and cup - was replaced in the starting lineup by Joe Batchelor. Jake Wingfield missed out with a shoulder injury so alongside Whitley and Mata’utia on the bench were regulars James Bell and Moses Mbye. 

Wolves boss Sam Burgess also made a couple of alterations to the line-up which had comprehensively beaten Leeds Rhinos last time out. Toby King came into the centres to replace Stefan Ratchford who was named as 18th man. Jordy Crowther switched from prop to loose forward to cover the absence of Ben Currie with Joe Philbin coming back into the front row.

Saints were first to create the faint whiff of a chance but having freed his arms for an offload Curtis Sironen sent it forward towards Blake. The Fijian was then involved at the other end when he was beaten by Connor Wrench from Matt Duffy’s pass but hustled back to prevent the Wire centre from finding Josh Thewlis with a scoring pass. 

That spell of Warrington pressure did result in a try, however. George Williams forced Tommy Makinson to concede a goal-line dropout with a well placed kick before Saints gave up back to back restarts in the ensuing raid on their line. That pressure told when James Harrison charged to within five metres of the Saints line to set up the position for the game’s first score. 

Danny Walker shifted it right to Williams then Leon Hayes and Dufty before the Wolves’ fullback found Thewlis for a walk-in. Dufty held on to it just long enough to put doubt into the mind of Saints winger Jon Bennison and give Thewlis an easy task. It was an early portent of how Burgess’ side would frequently break down Saints’ previously impregnable defence. Thewlis himself had the goal-kicking responsibility but couldn’t land his first attempt as the lead remained 4-0.

Jack Welsby’s restart went out on the full, offering a glimpse of what was to come at kick-offs as Saints minds became scrambled and the situation on the scoreboard worsened. 

Before then the home side found a route back into the contest. Jonny Lomax kicked into space deep in Warrington territory and - whether due to his skilful mastery or a fortuitous bounce - the ball jagged away from Matty Ashton and towards Batchelor. The Saints back rower deftly batted it into the waiting arms of an unmarked Konrad Hurrell for an easy score. Bennison became Saints’ fifth goal-kicker of a season that is only eight games old. The result made you wonder why as he nailed the conversion from the south touchline to put Saints ahead 6-4.

Five minutes later Hurrell was involved in another try-scoring opportunity. This time the Tongan was the would-be creator, finding a flicked pass to Makinson which was ruled forward even as the Saints winger was diving in optimistically in the right hand corner. 

This period when Saints were at least creating opportunities to score feels somewhat like a golden age in retrospect. Another chance was spurned when Bennison was released down the left edge by a combination of Welsby and Blake. The latter continued to support the break and was no doubt as surprised as I was when Bennison chose to kick ahead rather than pass. The nearest Saints player to it was suddenly Lewis Dodd but he was met with a textbook shot from Williams as the ball came free. 

It was Williams’ turn to be on the end of some physicality soon after as he felt the full force of a Sironen challenge. Unfortunately the ball had long since departed from the ex-Wigan Warrior’s possession. It was 35 metres out but from bang in front Thewlis made no mistake with the penalty attempt to square things at 6-6.

Just when it looked like that would be the state of things at the break Burgess’ side took the lead. Again it was Wrench causing problems in the Saints defence. He busted through Blake and halfway through Dodd before his pass intended for Williams dropped too low and was hacked on by the stand-off. Welsby got in the way sufficiently to prevent a try but from the resulting dropout the visitors carted it towards the Saints line to set up Williams for the drop-goal which gave his side a 7-6 lead at halftime.

The semi-final draw was made at halftime, revealing that the prize for winning this one would be a last four meeting with Huddersfield Giants, with Wigan paired with Hull KR. Given the way Ian Watson’s side have gone about their business so far in 2024 that prospect should have enthused and inspired Saints. It did anything but. 

The first sign of things going awry was perhaps the loss of Sironen early in the second half. The former Manly Sea Eagle picked up an arm injury which he never returned from and which threatens his participation beyond this game. 

Still the game remained close for the meantime. There was another lead change when Daryl Clark forced some lazily retreating defenders to make tackles from offside positions. That allowed Bennison to step up to land his second goal of the day and give Saints a slender if decidedly shaky looking lead at 8-7. 

This is where things started to really get away from our boys. Lomax attempted to make the ensuing restart dead in-goal by placing a foot behind the dead ball line as he caught the kick-off. Unfortunately the Saints skipper proved himself to be someone you wouldn’t want measuring your carpet, misjudging where his feet were placed and so only succeeding in taking it out for a goal-line dropout. 

Ashton scored a try of ridiculous quality in the next possession. Fed by a combination of Sam Powell, Hayes, Williams and King the speedy wingman executed a stunning flying finish despite the attentions of Welsby attempting some desperate cover defence. Referee Jack Smith asked for confirmation from video referee Chris Kendall (note to Jonathan Davies - not the TMO) and the try was eventually, rightfully awarded. Thewlis made the blow worse by landing the extra two from the north sideline to open up a five-point lead for the Wolves at 13-8.

Lomax has taken a fair bit of criticism for the restart error which set up the position for Ashton’s effort. Fans have pointed to his vast experience - he debuted for Saints in 2009 and has since turned out 335 times in the red vee - as evidence that this sort of mistake should be beyond him. What is more, many have taken exception with the captain’s perceived reluctance to take responsibility for it. Lomax could be seen asking his teammates somewhat forcefully to communicate better with him to help prevent such basic gaffes. 

It may have been a bit rich of the Saints stand-off to start berating others for his error, but might it not have simply been a misguided attempt to provide some leadership? There was something missing all afternoon from this Saints performance emotionally so maybe he thought a stern word about avoidable foul-ups - even those he was personally responsible for - might inject a bit of va va voom into his tepid troops. 

The alternative would probably have been to raise a hand in apology and get on with it. That is probably the moral response. It’s probably what James Roby would have done but not Bobbie Goulding. So what type of leader do you want? 

The quiet approach arguably wouldn’t have stirred an emotional response and there’s also an argument to say that it might have made others think that things were really going south if the captain is putting his hands up to acknowledge basic ineptitude. The rugby league equivalent of the captain accepting that we’re all going down with the stricken ship. But then there’s also an argument to say that a bit of self reflection and analysis from Lomax might have earned him more empathy from his colleagues and inspired them in a more subtle way. As it was the ship sank spectacularly.

The next indication of the way things were headed wasn’t far away. Bennison charged onto a Dodd pass deep inside his own territory but neglected to secure possession of the ball as he did so. Another set restart later and Wire were claiming what at that point would have been the game breaking try. Lachlan Fitzgibbon crashed over in the tackle of Morgan Knowles, Batchelor and Lomax. 

Smith’s view was obscured enough for him to again call on the services of Kendall. Mercifully, it turned out that the big back rower had lost possession in the act of grounding the ball. Batchelor certainly had a hand - both literal and metaphorical - in dislodging it from Fitzgibbon’s grasp but Kendall explained that the Saints man was entitled to touch the ball in his attempt to prevent the try. 

It was a short reprieve. Just as news was being delivered that Sironen would not be back Alex Walmsley was dropping a simple pass from Knowles to gift Wire more possession. Ashton was initially held up short but on the next play Williams sent a pinpoint kick across the field where Wrench gratefully grabbed it and touched down almost where he stood. Yet more video scrutiny was called for to determine whether anyone was in front of Williams at the kick or if Dufty had got a fingertip to it on its way to Wrench. The answer was in the negative on both counts. The extras were a formality for Thewlis to put his side 19-8 up.

And so back to short restarts and scrambled brains. Wellens looked a crestfallen figure in his post match press conference in which he referenced many things he did not like about his team’s performance. He made a particular point of questioning the decision to revert to short restarts relatively early in the second half and with the game still well within reach on the scoreboard. The players took it upon themselves to take this particular short cut, he revealed. 

He thought it lazy, a sign of a team wanting a quick solution rather than rely on the hard work of kicking it deep, defending well and turning field position back in their favour. It may also have been a sign of a team terminally lacking the confidence and the belief that they could get back into it that way.

Ashton was denied a second try just after the hour mark. Fed by the ubiquitous, dominant Williams as well as King the Warrington winger dribbled ahead twice before winning the race to slam the ball down as it bobbled along the ground in the in-goal area. Over to Kendall again, who this time ruled that Ashton had brushed the ball forward with a hand just before getting his boot to it a second time. Smith’s initial hunch was no try and although the evidence didn’t seem compelling there was certainly enough of a suggestion that Ashton had touched it to persuade Kendall that he should not go against the on-field call. 

Despite the fact that he was far less of a factor than you would normally expect an injury to Walmsley was another blow to Saints’ hopes. And perhaps not just in this one. Wellens revealed later that it’s a hamstring problem which is unlikely to have sorted itself out within the five days between this clash and the visit of Hull FC on Friday night (April 19).

Fourteen minutes remained when Williams came up with more bootcraft which by now was making Dodd’s bombs look positively pallid. The ex-Canberra Raider sent another crossfield arrow into dangerous territory where it clanged off the post and was cleaned up by Welsby at the expense of another goal-line dropout. 

The fullback seemed to be on the end of a bit of a face rub while on the ground from Fitzgibbon which was the spark for players on both sides to run in for a bit of push and shove. Smith did nothing but give both captains a bit of a talking to which is curious in this era of harsher punishments as deterrents.

At which point Saints suffered a different sort of punishment. The short restart bug passed to the recently introduced Mbye as his dropout fell kindly into the arms of King to give Wire yet another short field. 

A set restart gave them more opportunity to exploit it which they duly did when Powell hit Harrison close to the line and the prop crashed over for his side’s fourth try of the day. 

It was somewhat needlessly checked with Kendall again, both because it looked a straightforward grounding and because at this point the result wasn’t especially in doubt. We will come on to my bug bear of style of play in good time but even the staunch advocates of the type of Woolfball that Wellens is currently perpetuating won’t have fancied this Saints side to come back from two scores down. It was now three as Harrison got the nod and Thewlis added two more points to make it 25-8.

And still Saints didn’t quit with the short restarts. The next one found King again, setting up the field position for his side’s final try. It was arguably the pick of the five as the ball was shifted right through Harrison and Williams to Dufty who got rid of Dodd with embarrassing ease. 

Once the butt of our jokes on this ground as he was humiliated by Bennison’s infamous dummy, Dufty got a bit of his own back with the fend on Dodd and an effortless rounding of Welsby. The Wolves fullback began to lose his balance which prevented him scoring the try himself but he was able to stay upright long enough to hand it on to Williams who fell over the line to cap an outstanding performance. Thewlis’ last conversion ended the scoring at an eye-popping if slightly sobering 31-8. Wembley has rarely felt further away. 

In many ways the gulf on the scoreboard is representative of the gulf in pace and guile between the two sides on the day. Bringing Blake back into the fold did little to improve Saints in these areas where they had struggled badly in the defeat in France. Contrast that with the quicksilver scheming of Williams allied to the speed of Wrench, Thewlis and Ashton. Warrington were far keener to shift the ball to an edge quickly to take advantage of their speed. Even when they dominate you rarely see Saints do this anywhere but in the opposition’s 20. 

What is potentially more worrying about how Warrington achieved this result is that it may serve as a blueprint for others to follow. Saints’ normally miserly defence sprung leaks left, right and centre once the edge defenders were the ones being challenged. Wellens’ side can defend all day against sides who try to play field position with them with one out drudgery in the middle stripe of the field, but who else will be able to expose them if the mindset of opponents changes? 

We’ve already seen a couple of harrowing examples of what can happen against Salford in recent years. Perhaps that has been put down to the Red Devils’ unusually expansive approach which nobody else dared try. But now? Others may follow suit. And there are others in Super League with more speed on the edges than Saints. Do not be mistaken about that. Worrying times.

If we acknowledge these shortcomings how much of them can we attribute to Wellens and his coaching ability? To my mind the calls for him to go coming from the more eccentric corners of social media are still premature. He is only a quarter of the way through his second season in charge. Is our sense of entitlement so great now that a coach has to make a final within that time frame to be tolerated? Even a club legend? 

It feels like we’ve been here before on this question. Perhaps the real problem is that we now have a generation of fans who have only ever known success. For those of us of a different vintage it has not all been Super League Grand Finals, Wembley wins and World Club Challenges. Perhaps - as the song goes - if the younger generation hadn’t seen such riches they could live with being poor.

Wellens’ other big problem is his ageing squad. There is no getting away from that. If you take out Welsby, Dodd, Bennison and George Delaney the age profile of the rest of the 17 on duty for this one is unreasonably high. 

Was Wellens ok with that when he took over or has he been told that - due to the contractual situations of the players already at the club - those are the cards he must play with? Was Blake - who looks nothing like a solution so far - his idea or was it a panic move by the hierarchy? Whose idea was it to sign Tee Ritson permanently? Surely not Wellens’ as he appears more likely to call me up to the 17 than opt for the Thai-born winger.

Hull FC at home might seem like the sort of fixture that you’ve always hated. An almost guaranteed win against a team in woeful form who’ll no doubt turn up in some infuriating shade of green. Do teams do that so that they can look back on the beating they took in years to come and pretend it isn’t them? Regardless, Saints’ form of the last two weeks has raised a lot of questions and when you couple that with the goings on at Hull during that period there is still some intrigue in the meeting.

Tony Smith - who for my money could still lead a side to silverware and do it in an entertaining fashion if given the right tools to work with - has been jettisoned after an appalling start to 2024 which has seen the black and whites regularly ship 50 points and win only once in seven league outings. Even more interesting is the appointment of Richie Myler as Director Of Rugby. What moves will he make to get FC out of the doldrums? What clout does he have? Will he make them wear a sensible away strip?

Yet because others have ran roughshod through FC this year the same will be expected of Saints. That despite the evidence of our eyes not only in the last two defeats but also in some of the underwhelming wins. At home to London. At home to Leigh. The away double header at Leeds. There’s a case that the 28-0 at Huddersfield and the derby day triumph over Wigan are the only days so far in 2024 when the criticism has quietened.

Which is fine as far as it goes. Not everyone has to be a happy clapper convinced that everything their club does is marvellous. I’ve been openly critical of the style of play since Woolf did away with entertainment in his relentless but admittedly impressive pursuit of Grand Final rings. Yet it is eye-opening how defeats like this one embolden some to share their previously unsaid and probably unconsidered hot takes. It’s at those times that noise around the coaching situation intensifies. 

A win this week will be welcome but it’s unlikely to stop the soul searching.

Saints: Welsby, Makinson, Hurrell, Blake, Bennison, Lomax, Dodd, Walmsley, Clark, Delaney, Sironen, Batchelor, Knowles. Interchanges: Bell, Mbye, Mata’utia, Whitley 

Warrington: Dufty, Thewlis, Wrench, King, Ashton, Williams, Hayes, Harrison, Walker, Philbin, Fitzgibbon, Nicholson, Crowther. Interchanges: Bullock, Powell, Holroyd, Wood

Referee: Jack Smith 

Video Referee: Chris Kendall