St Helens went top of Super League with an 18-16 victory over Huddersfield Giants on Thursday.
Paul Rowley’s side have bounced back with five successive wins in the league following a 32-0 thrashing by rivals Wigan Warriors in the Challenge Cup semi-final and will be keeping an eye on second-placed Leeds Rhinos, who could move back to top spot if they beat Wigan Warriors on Friday. sky sports.
Four first-half tries from Harry Robertson, Lewis Murphy, Owen Dagnall and George Delaney gave St Helens a 24-0 lead at half-time at Huddersfield, but the home side came back in the second half.
Tries from Asher O’Donnell, Adam Swift and Niall Evalds gave St Helens a bit of a scare, but Huddersfield had too much to do and lost their ninth game of the Super League season to remain bottom of the table.
“We allowed for chaos as part of our preparation, but the stop-start nature (of the game) made it difficult to focus and unappealing to watch and play,” Rowley said. sky sports.
“So it was an ugly second half but credit to Huddersfield for fighting back and showing the will to get back into the game and keep us on our toes at the end.”
Huddersfield Giants attempted to come back from a 24-0 deficit at half-time, but were unable to actually get back into the game. (SW Pix)
It was Huddersfield interim manager Liam Finn’s last game in charge before Australian Jim Lenihan arrives in England next week.
The Finn won his first two games as interim coach, succeeding Luke Robinson in March after Huddersfield lost their opening five league games. However, Huddersfield has suffered four consecutive league losses this season and is facing a relegation battle.
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Huddersfield Giants interim manager Liam Finn says he will be involved in a future coaching set-up under Jim Lenihan.
How did St Helens stop Huddersfield?
Jack Welsby’s early break helped Harry Robertson touch down for the Saints and Lewis Murphy punished Huddersfield’s poor handling to tip over for a corner.
Winger Dagnall added a third try for Saints in the 18th minute before George Delaney took advantage of another Huddersfield mistake just before half-time.
Huddersfield hit back after the restart and O’Donnell collected the loose ball from Tui Lolohea’s kick. Against his former club, Swift added a try before Giants full-back Evalds attempted a tense finish with six minutes left.
But Jackson Hastings converted the decisive penalty in the 65th minute, which proved enough to send the Saints home.
Jackson Hastings’ second-half penalty against St Helens eased some of the pressure on Huddersfield (SW Pix).
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