Paul Wellens believes the presence of experienced forwards Morgan Knowles and Joe Batchelor made all the difference as St Helens bucked their losing streak at Hull FC. The Saints had lost five games in a row prior to facing the Black and Whites, but with pressure starting to build they cut loose in East Yorkshire.
The Merseyside outfit scored eight tries at the MKM Stadium as they blew Hull away to record a 46-6 win. With a tricky run of fixtures coming up, it was a win the club needed to pick up and with experienced figures returning to the pack, they made no mistake.
“I’m happy,” Wellens said when asked if he was relieved after the game. “We came here and obviously Hull, like ourselves, are missing a large number of players. You go out there and perform and perform in difficult circumstances as a club with the amount of games that we’ve lost recently but I thought the way the lads handled today was really good.
“I usually try not to focus too much on completion percentages, but we’re over 90% with the ball. It’s a simple game, and if you don’t make too many mistakes, you give yourself a chance. Morgan Knowles, in my opinion, would improve any team in the world if you put him in it. You have that, plus Joe Batchelor’s experience and influence, both on and off the field, is enormous. Bringing those seasoned players back was always going to be beneficial, and today’s results clearly showed that.
Another man returning to the St Helens line-up was Lewis Dodd, who wasn’t injured but had been dropped by Wellens in recent weeks. The half-back marked his return with two tries as he caught the eye and sent the head coach a firm reminder of his abilities.
“I wasn’t forced into playing him,” he said. “He’s been training brilliantly and I’ve not lost any faith in him.
“I thought both he and Moses today along with James Bell and Morgan Knowles, along with Daryl Clark and Jake Burns, the spine players, handled the game plan and executed it for the majority of the game. When you’re missing players like Jonny Lomax and Jack Welsby, you perhaps have to rethink things.”
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