Super League: St Helens 38-12 Hull KR – Saints win and maintained a home record
Super League: St Helens 38-12 Hull KR – Saints win and maintained a home record: Tommy Makinson claimed a 22-point haul as Super League leaders St Helens managed to maintain this season’s 100% home record by seeing off Hull KR.
Makinson got the scoreboard ticking with the first two tries ahead of Jack Welsby who crossed to leave KR 20-0 down at the break and all but out of it.
But Danny McGuire’s men rallied well with three second-half tries.
Will Tate, Kane Linnett, and debutant Connor Barley managed to match scores from Jon Bennison, Joey Lussick, and Ben Davies.
Saints did not have Sione Mata’utia who was injured. Morgan Knowles and Curtis Sironen were absent through suspension. But they brought Welsby back as they moved a step closer to lifting another League Leaders’ Shield.
They got off the mark in the second minute when Makinson smashed a routine penalty ahead of diving over for the first try of the night. Jonny Lomax and Welsby had combined, and then he kicked his own conversion from the touchline to make it 8-0 to the home side.
Will Hopoate and Konrad Hurrell went on to combine for Makinson’s unconverted second try on 22 minutes ahead of Welsby who threw a huge pass to the left for winger Bennison. He passed the ball back inside so that Welsby races under the posts.
Makinson converted that one and then added a penalty. Hull KR managed to send a goal-line drop-out over the touchline on the full.
Hooker Lussick received the first converted try of the second half with a close-range dart from the dummy half. Rovers managed to get off the mark on 56 minutes. Lachlan Coote managed to send Vete through a gap and he found Linnett to score.
Saints winger Bennison went in at the corner and Makinson again converted from the touchline. Rovers had a second try from Tate ahead of the teenager Barley who capped a debut to remember with a try 12 minutes from the time right after a crossfield kick by Jez Litten was helped on by Jimmy Keinhorst.
But Coote did not fulfill the three conversion attempts and the Saints wrapped up the night. The Saints had their 13th straight victory over the Rovers. Makinson went on to improve the game’s final try for fellow winger Davies.
St Helens coach Kristian Woolf said:
“We did some really good things. We played with really good intensity for that first 40 minutes and for long periods in the second half. We played some great footy.”
“But there were some miracle plays from Hull KR in the second half and we had to work hard for all our points.”
“We had to play with patience and discipline. That was great. We need to have a mindset where we can attack with the play-offs coming.”
Hull KR interim coach Danny McGuire said:
“We are disappointed to lose. We’re all down in the changing room. We had a real dig in the second half. We went toe-to-toe with the best team in the competition.”
“I have seen some teams roll over and have 50 or 60 points put on them in situations like that. People might say Saints took their foot off the gas, but we started to challenge them a bit.”
“If we had kicked the goals the scoreline looks healthier. Saints are a ruthless team that keeps going. But we threw some shots back. They will know they’ve been in a tussle.”
St Helens: Makinson, Hurrell, Davies, Bennison; Hopoate; Welsby, Lomax; Lees, Bell, Walmsley, Roby, Batchelor, Wingfield.
Interchanges: McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Lussick, Paasi, Royle.
Hull KR: Barley, Keinhorst, Tate, Hall; Coote; Lewis, Milnes; Litten, King, Storton, Halton, Linnett, Minchella.
Interchanges: Maher, Laulu-Togagae, Vete, Fishwick.
Referee: Chris Kendall (RFL)