Betfred Super League Team of the Week (Round) 10

The perfect ten?! Almost for some but far from it for others. However, this week did not disappoint as there were plenty more shocking twists.

Some becoming specialists at the infamous golden point whereas others were simply sending a simple message as the competition really is heating up.

Find out who made the final selection of Team of the Week, heading into Easter!

Coach – Justin Holbrook

More difficult than some will perceive as Justin Holbrook regains the spot as Coach.

Holbrook’s St Helens were the club who sent out such messages to the rest of the league that they are the team to beat as his side took apart Warrington on Friday.

Pundits tipped Warrington to down the Saints, but never write them off as they put the disappointment of France behind them and bounced back to top form to record a 38-12 win.

Surprisingly comfortable by all accounts, with Warrington recently scoring over 60 points away from home, but here, Holbrook’s side humbled the Cheshire club and set them up for an exciting Easter Period, starting off with a trip to Wigan.

 

Full-back – Jack Walker

But wait, Leeds were in the Coral Challenge Cup?! Back in time as Leeds previously swept aside Salford at the AJ Bell back in February in round ten.

Walker starred in the match, scoring a hat-trick of tries as well as managing nine tackle busts and 216 metres from 14 carries.

A sensational effort from the prospect and should Leeds hope to survive, they need to retain his services as much as possible heading forward.

Wingers – Tom Makinson & Joe Burgess

Setting up a tasty Good Friday clash already are wingers Tom Makinson and Joe Burgess, both selected from St Helens and Wigan respectively.

Makinson was a work horse once again in Saints thumping over Warrington; 178 metres from 20 carries, two busts and a try for good measure.

Though on the losing side, Burgess bagged a hat-trick and kept Wakefield’s defence busy with 160 metres from 13 carries and ten busts.

Both will line-up opposite one or another in four days’ time and could very well be the difference between victory and defeat in Super League’s ‘biggest derby’.

 

Centres – Konrad Hurrell & Josh Griffin

Retaining the centre positions from last week are Konrad Hurrell and Josh Griffin.

Many think Hurrell is ‘carrying the Rhinos outfit but they might be closer to the truth than they realise.

Hurrell stood out again, scoring two tries at Salford, managed three tackle busts and 123 metres from 15 carries.

As for Griffin, he scored another two tries in Hull FC’s unbelievable win in Catalans, one away from club history.

He also tallied 140 metres from 22 carries, and made six busts, all while rotating between centre and second-row for the injury hit side as they remained in Play-off contention.

Stand-off – Jonny Lomax

St Helens welcomed back Jonny Lomax back into the side from France, and his impact was enough to see him regain his spot at stand-off.

Lomax helped guide the Saints to such a superb win, notching a try and providing an assist being his key highlights.

Others though saw him tally four busts and 93 metres from 16 carries, even completing 20 tackles to help keep Warrington restricted to just 12 points.

A contender for Man of Steel and with good reason as he could join the list that contains countless Saints players in what is looking like their greatest ever season so far.

 

Scrum-half – Marc Sneyd

Rounding things off is ‘master of the boot’ Marc Sneyd. Down and out after going so agonizingly close again? Well Hull really had the ‘need’ for Sneyd as he single-handedly turned things around for FC late on.

His two kick-offs, penalty shot and drop-goal secured FC a vital two points but that was not his only contribution.

His kick for Griffin’s try, one of five attacking kicks and 11 tackles assisted in matters as FC enter the derby as favourites in the hopes of remaining in the top five.

 

Props – David Fifita & Mitch Garbutt

Two props who really are thriving this season are Wakefield’s David Fifita and Hull KR’s Mitch Garbutt.

Fifita was a machine in Trinity’s hard fought win over ‘dirty’ Wigan, something the prop alluded to in his comments on social media and he had a case as Wakefield lost multiple players to long-term injury.

Regardless, he led by example, assisting a try, completing 29 tackles, seven busts and 168 metres from 23 carries, even forced to remain on throughout the whole game.

Joining him is Garbutt, who helped the Robins battle past London Broncos two months ago in what looked like a relegation four pointer.

The Australian scored two tries, completed 30 tackles and tallied 139 metres from 19 carries in a highly crucial win for the red and whites.

 

Hooker – George Lawler

Joining Garbutt is team mate George Lawler, who trades in loose-forward for hooker this round.

Lawler completed a staggering 37 tackles as well as amassing 160 metres from 21 carries in the win over the plucky London outfit.

Arguably becoming their most important pivot, Lawler is just what the Robins need heading into the hectic Easter Period, especially facing tough tests in the derby clash with Hull and a tricky home game with Warrington.

 Second-row – Pauli Pauli & Alex Mellor

Another two work horses, this time an all West Yorkshire combination, as Wakefield’s Pauli Pauli and Huddersfield’s Alex Mellor are chosen.

Pauli was another who was forced into a big shift due to the mounting injuries for Wakefield in their win over Wigan.

During that time, he did tally 127 metres from 12 carries and up to four tackle busts.

As for Mellor, he was the stand out in Huddersfield’s narrow win over Castleford.

The 24-year-old scored a hat-trick in the win, made 34 tackles, four busts and 87 metres from 11 carries in a superb individual performance.

 

Loose-forward – Trent Merrin

Speculation that this ‘flop’ is on his way back down under but in Leeds’ win over Salford, Trent Merrin enjoyed a superb afternoon.

The 29-year-old provided a try assist, completed 20 tackles and made 153 metres from 19 carries that helped Leeds pull away and claim a convincing win at the AJ Bell stadium.

Though they have failed to follow that up, it could come better sooner or later as Leeds need all the help they can get and retaining Merrin’s services is crucial to that.