St Helens achieved a narrow 20-18 victory over Leigh Leopards in the Betfred Super League second round at the Brewdog Stadium.
This was Saints’ first home game under new head coach Paul Rowley and ensured a winning start to the season on home soil, making up for their opening loss to Warrington Wolves in the first round.
The visiting Leopards narrowly led 16-12 at half-time with Josh Charnley, Innes Senior and Bailey Hodgson scoring two tries from Adam Cooke.
St Helens, on the other hand, got their names on the scoreboard with Darryl Clarke and Kyle Feldt, while Jaxon Hastings scored a point off the tee and added a penalty.
A Cook penalty put Leigh ahead in the second half, but then Joe Shorrocks’ converted try and Hastings’ penalty put St Helens ahead 20-18.
They then maintained that lead for over 20 minutes to earn the point.
With Johnny Lomax off the field with a wrist injury, St Helens had to struggle with early substitutions, with Tristan Sailor returning to half-back and Harry Robertson coming off the bench to full-back.
Lee admitted his mistake and the Saints won.
It didn’t take long for the away Leopards to get past St Helens and Charnley converted a corner kick in the fourth minute to take a 4-0 lead.
However, St Helens quickly hit back after being put under pressure as Clarke scooted out from dummy half and Hastings converted to take a 6-4 lead within 10 minutes.
Leigh Leopards did well on the left wing against St Helens.
In the process, the Saints suffered some injuries, with Lomax leaving the field and Nene McDonald limping off after 20 minutes, moving Robertson to full-back and Matt Whitley to center.
In the 22nd minute, the captain’s challenge was successful and Hastings converted a penalty to give the home side an 8-4 lead.
The Leopards had goals from the same edge within nine minutes of Senior and Hodgson, with Cook scoring both to give his team a 16-8 lead.
Just before half-time, St Helens attacked again as Lee made a mistake by bouncing a restart onto the home team’s ball. The Saints took their time behind the scenes, sending the ball wide and Feldt acrobaticly converted the corner to make the score 16-12.
Innes Sr. takes a flying shot in the corner.
Both teams struggled defensively for the first 40 minutes, and that continued into the second half.
Saints were offside at a scrum and Cook converted a penalty, giving Lee the first goal.
But just two minutes later, Shorrocks powered over after a good set started by Robertson, and Hastings converted to level the score at 18-18.
Joe Shorrocks’ converted try helped Saints regain parity.
Lee then had time with individual mistakes leading to huge pressure, with Liam Horne and Cook causing problems and giving Saints enough chances that they were able to take a penalty with just over 20 minutes left to take a narrow 20-18 advantage.
Both teams had chances after that, but it was St Helens who had more territory and chances, and despite not getting more points on the board, they put Lee where they wanted them.
Leeds cause riot at York game before Las Vegas
York’s Paul Vaughan was sent off early in the game against Leeds.
Leeds defeated Super League newcomers York Knights 46-14 at Headingley.
Brad Arthur’s side scored eight tries to record their first win of the season.
The Rhinos took the lead in the 12th minute when Jake Connor’s kick was collected by James McDonnell and crossed the line.
Paul Vaughan hit back with a clever spin off a tackle and Liam Harris converted to make it 6-6.
Ryan Hall rewinds the year to score in the 50 meter race
However, Leeds took the lead in the 30th minute with a close-range goal from Micah Thibo, and two minutes later Lachlan Miller fired home for his team.
Chris Hankinson then scored before half-time and the Rhinos scored their fourth try in a strong first half, with Connor scoring three goals.
Brodie Croft also got in on the action as Leeds’ rhinos rioted
Ryan Hall sprinted after the restart to extend the lead and Brodie Croft also crossed the line minutes after Jordan Thompson scored York’s second try of the night.
Leeds opened the scoring with second goals from Harry Newman and Sibo, but York did little to change the scoreline with Scott Galeano’s final try.
2026 Super League – Important dates and highlights
Rugby League in Las Vegas: Saturday 28 February: Hull KR v Leeds Rhinos, 11.30pm (Sky Sports) Super League 30th Birthday: Thursday 26 March: Castleford Tigers v Bradford Bulls, 8pm (Sky Sports) Rivals Round: 3 April to 5 April Super League in Paris: Saturday 6 June: Catalans Dragons v Wigan Warriors (Paris), 6:30 UK (Sky Sports) Magic Weekend: July 4-July 5 Rivals Round Reversal: July 23-July 26 Elimination Play-Offs: September 19-September 20 Play-off Semi-Finals: September 26-September 27 Grand Final: October 3, Old Trafford.
Sky Sports will continue to broadcast every Super League match live this season. Exclusively live, including two matches from each round, the remaining five matches will be shown weekly on Sky Sports+.
