St Helens began their quest for a third successive Super League title with a straightforward victory against Salford Red Devils. The reigning champions were comfortable winners on the opening night of the new season, delivering a performance with all the hallmarks we have come to expect from Kristian Woolf’s side in recent years.
They scored five tries to Salford’s one in a dominant display, as Richard Marshall’s first game in charge of the Red Devils ended with a comprehensive defeat. However, with almost a dozen new players arriving at the club in the off-season, coupled with Marshall’s appointment as head coach, it will be a while until Salford are able to fully click.
Trailing 13-0 at half-time following tries for Tommy Makinson and Regan Grace, coupled with a drop goal from full-back Jack Welsby, the Saints were in complete control of the contest as early as the interval.
Salford did briefly threaten a comeback when Ken Sio finished a well-worked Salford move to make it 13-6, but that merely stirred St Helens back into life. Within minutes they had restored their 13-point lead when Mark Percival scored his first try since the 2019 Grand Final victory over the Red Devils, following an injury-hit 2020 season.
That try was one of several created by the outstanding Jonny Lomax over the course of the evening, and the Saints finished the stronger of the two sides in the final quarter too. They extended their lead further when Kevin Naiqama pounced on an error from Krisnan Inu, before Alex Walmsley completed the scoring in the final minutes to ensure the champions kicked off the defence of their title in impressive fashion.
St Helens: Welsby; Makinson, Naiqama, Percival, Grace; Lomax, Fages; Walmsley, Roby, Lees, Thompson, Bentley, Mata’utia. Interchange McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Amor, Paasi, Smith. Tries Makinson, Grace, Percival, Naiqama, Walmsley. Goals Makinson 4. Drop goal Welsby (40).
Salford: Sarginson; Sio, Watkins, Kear, Inu; Lolohea, Brown; Mossop, Addy, Ikahihifo, Livett, Lannon, Taylor. Interchange Pauli, Ormondroyd, Wells, Patton. Try Sio. Goal Inu.