| St Helens (16) 48 |
| Tries: Hurrell 2, Percival, Makinson 4, McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Lussick Goals: Makinson 6 |
| Huddersfield (6) 6 |
| Try: Naiqama Goal: Connor |
St Helens demolished Huddersfield to make it four wins in a row in all competitions, as Ian Watson’s Giants continued their struggle for form.
Saints conceded first to Kevin Naiqama’s try but replied through scores from Konrad Hurrell, Mark Percival and Tommy Makinson.
Giants folded after the break, as Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook and Hurrell crossed and Makinson added another three.
Joey Lussick finished off a sparkling break to add gloss to a dominant win.
Paul Wellens’ Saints have now won their last four games after a mixed start, and showed glimpses of their best form at St James’ Park.
Jack Welsby was at his peerless best, providing the switch for Hurrell, a wonderful pop-pass for Percival and a fizzing cut-out ball for Makinson.
Makinson continued to profit as Saints targeted the Giants left-edge, as did Hurrell with power.
McCarthy-Scarsbrook hit a perfect line to meet Lewis Dodd’s short-ball, while Lussick finished off a move which saw Welsby scoop up a loose kick in his own 10 and streak forward, feeding Makinson who then slipped a pass out the back for a killer pass.
Giants, who had Luke Yates sin-binned for a high shot, were defensively aggressive but struggled to contain Saints when they moved the ball sharply through the middle.
Their try, a smart kick over the top for Naiqama to touch down, suggested a bright start but it unravelled quickly for Watson’s side.
They have now lost eight of their 13 games so far and are in ninth place, having finished third last season.
St Helens boss Paul Wellens:
“What this team wants to do is continue to be successful, because which other team will be in a position to win five in a row again?
“The team know that what they’ve achieved already is special, but why can’t it be even more special?
“We won’t get carried away and talk about titles but if we continue to do everything you saw today, we’ll have every chance of putting ourselves in those big games again.”
Huddersfield boss Ian Watson:
“I thought the first half scoreline flattered them [Saints] a bit, I still felt we were in the game at half-time but the momentum just went completely.
“They played on the front foot and picked us off too easily on our left edge. The most disappointing thing today was how poor our left edge was defensively.
“It was nowhere near the level of performance we need to be. Some individuals are way of the mark at the moment and it’s up to them to get better or for us to make a choice on whether to replace them going forward.”
St Helens: Welsby; Makinson, Hurrell, Percival, Ritson; Lomax, Dodd; Walmsley, Roby, Lees, Sironen, Batchelor, Bell
Interchanges: Mata’utia, Lussick, McCarthy-Scarsbrook
Huddersfield: Lolohea; Bibby, Naiqama, Marsters, Senior; Connor, Fages; English, Peats, Hill
Interchanges: Milner, Greenwood, Rushton, Ikahihifo
Referee: Marcus Griffiths.
