| St Helens (16) 28 |
| Tries: Makinson 2, Roby, Dodd, Lussick, Hurrell Goals: Dodd 2 |
| Catalans (8) 8 |
| Try: Yaha Goals: Tomkins 2 |
Defending champions St Helens fought again to overpower 12-man Catalans Dragons in a bruising opening sport of the 2022 Super League season.
Fouad Yaha put Catalans forward in a repeat of the 2021 Grand Final however two tries from Tommy Makinson, plus James Roby and Lewis Dodd scores adopted.
The second half was an actual slugfest, as the sport threatened to boil, notably when Catalans’ Dylan Napa was despatched-off.
Joey Lussick and Konrad Hurrell tries added additional gloss to the Saints win.
Just two factors separated the 2 groups at Old Trafford when Saints had been triumphant 12-10 in October, and likewise only a level on the Magic Weekend when Catalans received to grab the League Leaders’ Shield.
However, there was to be no shut-fought drama on this coming collectively of final season’s heavyweights, as Kristian Woolf’s facet confirmed craft and graft to outwit the Dragons.
Much of the pre-season discuss has rested on whether or not Jack Welsby and Lewis Dodd had been able to carrying the burden of a fourth-straight Super League title for Saints, however they did simply that in a formidable opening night time show.
They managed the Saints assault with slick palms and incisive kicking together with Jonny Lomax, on the again of the rolling ahead work from packmen reminiscent of Alex Walmsley, Agnatius Paasi and man of the match again-rower Joe Batchelor.
While the hosts didn’t at all times retain their cool, with Morgan Knowles sin-binned as Napa was dismissed for a shoulder cost on Mark Percival after 72 minutes, they stood as much as the ferocity of the Dragons forwards and dominated the ruck.
Catalans did not make the perfect of their early promise, after Josh Drinkwater created a strive for Yaha with a exact kick.
Yet their very own vaunted backbone of Sam Tomkins, Mitchell Pearce and Drinkwater struggled to ignite, whereas their forwards sought to intimidate and misplaced management at occasions, notably when Gil Dudson was sin-binned within the first minute of the sport regardless of successful a penalty.
Even harder for coach McNamara is the potential loss to damage of prop Julian Bousquet with an arm damage and Tyrone May with an eye fixed downside.
St Helens: Welsby; Hopoate, Hurrell, Percival, Makinson; Lomax, Dodd; Walmsley, Roby, Lees, Mata’utia, Batchelor, Knowles
Interchanges: Lussick, McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Paasi, Sironen
Catalans: Tomkins; Davies, Whare, Langi, Yaha; Pearce, Drinkwater; Dudson, McIlorum, Napa, McMeeken, Whitley, Garcia
Interchanges: Bousquet, May, Dezaria, Kasiano
Referee: L. Moore.
