Leeds Rhinos and St Helens are used to meeting in Super League Grand Finals colliding in the decider in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2022 but the last time they met in a Challenge Cup Final was back in 1978.
That being said, the fixture still has a terrific modern Challenge Cup heritage. They have met in the semi-finals in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2008, 2010 and 2015 with three wins a piece. They also met in 2021, 2014, 2009 and 1999 .
A week removed from a pulsating game between the two in Super League, this fixture was set to be a classic and there was a lot of added spice to the narrative before kick-off with Lewis Dodd out for St Helens and Leeds surprisingly naming a returning Paul Momirovski on the wing.
But the question remained, which side would move one step closer to Wembley in 2024?
It was Saints who looked like a side headed to Wembley as they dominated the first 10 considerably and were irrepressible a bit like the rain that suddenly started. The Saints eventually took the lead thanks toa Jonny Lomax penalty. He would double his money with another penalty to make it 4-0.
They looked set to add to their lead as the game edged towards the half hour mark but a St Helens attack would lead to points for Leeds as Harry Newman intercepted and went the length. Leeds fans were jubilant but just before the break Saints took the lead yet again thanks to a lovely try from Daryl Clark.
After taking nearly 40 minutes in the first half to score once, Saints would continue their habit of back to back tries in the second half. After Jon Bennison scored in the corner, Alex Walmsley stormed over as he continued his trend of being outstanding against the Rhinos. That made it 20-6 and that was the final score. Leeds’ wait for a Challenge Cup win at any stage goes on.
Kevin Brown has his say on incident ahead of Super League disciplinary
Credit Imago Images
The big fixtures keep coming for both sides. This week, Leeds Rhinos take on Castleford Tigers and for Saints it is the huge derby against Wigan Warriors.
But could they both be facing bans after an incident involving Tom Holroyd and Daryl Clark? Based off the comments from Kevin Brown, that is a possibility.
He said on BBC: “Well Welsby evened up he scores but I don’t think there was anything wrong with it. Tom Holroyd clearly did and then Daryl Clark comes and throws Holroyd straight into the advertising boards.
“The referee’s got to digest this and see what he’s going to do, I think it will be ‘calm down and carry on’.
“I think Welsby’s committed, I think he was timing it and I think Holroyd has misread that but Daryl Clark can’t do that either. If Daryl Clark doesn’t go, I think he’s been very lucky.
“Yeah, it would have hurt Bentley but Holroyd can’t come in and do that, and then Daryl Clark obviously can’t come in and do the same.”
