IT’S part three of our ‘on the field’ review today – with July, August and September all featured.
Please note that some of the Youtube links below may contain advertising that is no longer relevant.
July
A trip to Wakefield Wildcats was next with Greg Richards scoring his first ever try for the club in a breathtaking 44-32 win.
Mark Percival’s penalty goal handed Saints a 12-10 win over Widnes Vikings before they won their fourth game on the bounce over at Huddersfield Giants 34-18.
Jordan Turner announced he was joining Canberra Raiders at the end of the season and it was his partnership with Luke Walsh that was pivotal in the run.
Andre Savelio moved on loan to Castleford Tigers – joining Travis Burns (Leigh) and Lewis Charnock (Bradford) with those seeking game time elsewhere. Later in the month Matty Dawson would make a permanent move to Leigh.
Saints saved their best performance of the season in probably their most crucial match – away at Wigan Warriors. They dominated their nearest rivals in a stunning 23-4 victory that was built on solid defence.
The 19s, coached by Derek Traynor, secured top spot with a 29-16 win over Warrington Wolves and would eventually finish the regular season unbeaten with 20 wins from 20.
August
Saints won their first game of the Super 8s phase with a 20-18 victory over Warrington Wolves at the Halliwell Jones Stadium. Jonny Lomax’ score the highlight of a dramatic win. It was their second win on the road in ‘Cheshire’ and their sixth on the run that would secure them a top four spot.
Catalans Dragons were dispatched next, 39-16, Swift scoring another four tries. But they lost Luke Walsh and Luke Thompson to controversial bans after the match.
Saints announced new deals for Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Calvin Wellington, Regan Grace, Ricky Bailey, Jake Spedding, Matty Fleming and Morgan Knowles but celebrations were tempered somewhat by a 25-0 loss at Wigan Warriors.
NRL Centre Ryan Morgan put pen to paper on a three-year contract whilst Travis Burns announced he would join Wynnum Manly Seagulls next season.
September
Saints comfortably beat the newly crowned cup holders, Hull FC, 31-10 – a result that was “crucial to where we are heading” according to Cunningham – and they backed that up with a 40-16 thumping of Castleford Tigers just six days later.
The Reserves completed their season with a 42-10 victory over Halifax – a result that left them top of the unofficial standings with 10 wins from 11 games for Ian Talbot’s side.
Back to first team matters another trip to Widnes Vikings brought a 21-8 win, whilst the 19s reached their Grand Final with a stunning 46-6 win over the same team at Langtree Park. Very much deserved too!
Saints concluded their 2016 Super 8s campaign with a 32-12 win over Wakefield – Shannon McDonnell grabbing a hat-trick to set up a semi final date with Warrington Wolves.
And the 19s capped off a remarkable season in the most dramatic of fashions. Unbeaten throughout the year it took a Danny Richardson penalty in sudden death overtime to hand the side a 22-20 win over Wigan. Watch and enjoy
Luke Douglas joined Saints from the Gold Coast on a three-year deal.
Sadly, the first team couldn’t emulate the 19s efforts and were beaten 18-10 at the Wolves in the semi final. It was controversial as not only did Warrington have two tries awarded that looked less than clear cut on the video, but Dom Peyroux had one chalked off in the final stages that looked all the world a try…
Our review concludes tomorrow with October through to December.
