Leigh Leopards absolutely demolished St Helens with a 48-10 victory last night, securing their spot in the Betfred Super League’s top six. But the real shocker? This ignominious defeat means St Helens won’t appear in the play-offs for the first time in the Super League era. Their unblemished record is GONE.
Leigh’s Eight-Try Onslaught Left Saints Reeling
From the jump, Leigh was on fire, running in eight tries that left St Helens scrambling. It only took ten minutes for Josh Charnley to walk in on the right wing after a Cook kick caused chaos. What a celebration! He signed a mock contract, and moments later, the public address confirmed his new deal for 2027. Four minutes after that, David Armstrong sprinted in from halfway after combining with Cook and Lachlan Lam deep in their own half. St Helens tried to respond, with Jacob Douglas going over and Tristan Sailor scoring under the posts thanks to phenomenal feet from Harry Robertson. But even Robertson couldn’t hold it together, missing a tackle that allowed Innes Senior to break for Leigh and set up Umyla Hanley’s first try. Then Adam Cook grubbered in-goal to touch down after Edwin Ipape’s offload went to ground. Leigh led 24-10 at half-time, and it already felt over.
The Sin-Bin That Sealed St Helens’ Fate
Any hope St Helens had in the second half evaporated quickly. After blowing a two-on-one chance, they lost Mark Percival to the sin bin for a high tackle. Percival, retiring at season’s end, watched as Leigh capitalized hard. A quick play-the-ball led to Ipape barging over, extending Leigh’s lead. Then Shane Wright gave away a penalty for obstruction, and Leigh worked the ball to Hanley on the right, who busted through three tackles for his second try. It just kept coming! Jacob Alick-Wiencke slid in, and Robbie Mulhern charged over with the final play of the game in the rain. Leigh put up a massive 48 points, completely shutting down any chance of a St Helens comeback.
This victory locks Leigh into the play-offs for the fourth consecutive season, currently sitting in fifth place. They even have a shot at moving up to fourth, above Wakefield, after next week’s final round of fixtures. What a statement win to clinch their spot! For St Helens, this is a bitter pill to swallow. Missing the playoffs for the first time ever? That’s a record nobody wanted to break.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
Leave a Reply