NATHAN Brown says Saints need to put a block of consistency together if they are to be considered genuine title contenders.
Speaking after the disappointing loss at Hull KR he is expecting his charges to bounceback again – but wants much more.
“The mood is one of disappointment really but we know we have to bounceback,” he said. “You can have off days but to get beat by that score on the back of what happened a few weeks ago is disappointing.
“Hull KR has never been a good place for St Helens but we have been there with far less talented sides and with 12 men and played better.
“Our ball control was shocking at times but at the back end of the game it is how you fight and hang on in there. We didn’t fight hard enough.
“It is tight in the competition and close from first to sixth. We could be a loss and a bit from sixth and those teams below us a couple of wins from top.
“We need a good five, six weeks of footy to convince me we are a genuine title chance.
“There are no disillusions with where we are at and we know we have to be more consistent. We’ve had good wins and now we need to get ourselves going again.
“If you play well you will win your fair share of games. You can’t go into finals footy without a good run of form and the confidence that comes from that and that is what we need to do. We have to make a run.”
Scrum Half Luke Walsh could return next week whilst Brown says Shannon McDonnell is likely to play at one of Saints partner clubs this weekend.
“Shannon trained well last week,” Brown said. “He has kept up a good level of fitness training on his own and is in decent shape.
“Kyle Amor should return this week and Anthony Laffranchi may be available as well.
Saints face a Bradford team on Friday that are fighting for their Super League lives under new coach James Lowes.
Brown added: “James was a good player and has experience with Tony Smith, Brian McDermott and coaching Rugby Union too. He will bring a lot to the table.
“And you can see Bradford have benefitted as they are playing a fair bit of footy at the moment and were unlucky against Catalan at the weekend. You can tell they have had a change of coach as that brings differences.”
Tickets for Friday’s match at Langtree Park are now on sale from the Ticket Office at Langtree Park, by calling 01744 455 052 or by logging on here.
