“Fine margins” – St Helens boss reflects on dramatic win but calls for improvements

St Helens head coach Paul Wellens has reflected on his side’s 14-13 win over Catalans Dragons in the South of France.

It was Saints’ first win in Super League in Perpignan since 2018 and the victory was a hard-fought one with three late drop goals creating a dramatic end for the near 10,000 in attendance at the Stade Gilbert Brutus.

Ultimately, it was two one-pointers from Jonny Lomax that ensured the win for St Helens and the captain was praised for his calmness and leadership when others were playing erratically.

Speaking to SaintsTV post-match, Paul Wellens said: “I thought there were times at the back of the game when we forced offloads which led to errors but when we stuck to what we practiced and Jonny Lomax led the team well in those circumstances, that was really pleasing to see.”

“We’ve won a tight game against strong opposition and we’re going to need to do that a lot more moving forward,” Wellens added but noted the need for improvements moving forward.

“There’s a lot we can take from the game in terms of improvement. I thought our defence got a bit loose at times so we’ll look to find those improvements again for next week.”

“Fine margins” – St Helens boss reflects on dramatic win

😤 The Saints beat the Dragons in Perpignan!

It was far from pretty, but a win is a win! #COYS | @LPL_Airport pic.twitter.com/TGIlIV9fAA

— St.Helens R.F.C. (@Saints1890) March 29, 2025

Next week will see them face Warrington Wolves in the Challenge Cup, just a fortnight after losing to them in the league, and Saints will be without young star Harry Robertson who failed a HIA.

“It’s unfortunate,” Wellens confirmed, before praising his side’s reaction to losing the centre after just five minutes.

“Harry has had a great start to the year and to lose an outside back so early in the game does disrupt your interchanges but Matt Whitley handled it really well out there.

“Jake Wingfield played some minutes in the back row, Moses Mbye played a couple of different positions so it’s great that we have some players who have that flexibility to offset those losses when they do come.”

Giving his general thoughts on the game, he said:”I thought the start of the game was excellent and then we got a bit loose in a few areas but all in all, given the conditions, it was a committed performance from both teams and one of those that was settled by fine margins.”

He was also keen to offer huge praise to the 700 St Helens fans who travelled to Perpignan, stating: “It’s not an easy time to come, families have got kids in school but we’re really grateful as a team that we have so many supporters prepared to make the effort and financial commitment to come out and support us.”