Lee Briers on what ‘excites’ him about St Helens role and when he’ll start

Newly-appointed St Helens assistant coach Lee Briers has revealed when he will begin in the role as well as what ‘excites’ him about the job.

Briers was a man in high demand given how he transformed Brisbane’s attack in 2023 but the former Wigan Warriors assistant and Warrington Wolves star opted to join Paul Wellens at his boyhood club.

He confirmed that he turned down rival Super League head coaching offers in order to return to St Helens and he’s now explained exactly what he is so ‘excited’ about when it comes to taking on the role in pre-season.

“Well, one thing that really excites me about this job is that St Helens’ defence is unbelievable,” Briers explained on Sky Sports’ The Bench Podcast with Jenna and Jon.

Despite finishing sixth in Super League, St Helens actually boasted the fourth-best defence, only behind the top three teams who all finished clear of the chasing pack.

On that defence, Briers explained: “So with an unbelievable defence, you can be more adventurous with your attack because you’re not too fussed about making errors because you can defend them.

“That’s the mentality that I’m really looking forward to getting stuck into is the way that they just defend like their lives depend on it. So that makes my job a lot easier.”

Lee Briers explains St Helens’ struggles and confirms when he’ll join the club

Briers’ appointment as the assistant coach at St Helens was confirmed early in September after having been rumoured throughout the middle of the year/

He’s signed a two-year deal with the club and is widely expected to improve the club’s attack which has been disjointed at times, however, Briers has explained why that’s been the case.

He told Brooks and Wilkin: “I think it’s been a difficult season because of injuries. Every team has injuries but when I look down the list, it’s been to the best players as well.

“At one point I counted probably nine internationals out and they were still doing well. So it does play a part, you lose confidence in that.

“I’m only looking from the outside in but I’d say injuries to key men like Alex Walmsley and Agnatius Paasi who are the main go-forward. Without them, you can’t go forward.”

He also noted one of the club’s outgoing stars and their transfer saga as something that could have caused an issue, before claiming that the Red Vee are a team to look out for in the play-offs.

“You had the whole situation with Lewis Dodd, is he signing for South Sydney or is he not?

“But now that he’s got all the players back, you can see a bit more fluidity. I thought, when they played against Castleford, that looked like the old Saints.”

St Helens will take on Briers’ former club Warrington Wolves on Saturday and despite being back in England, Briers will have no part as he explained when he will link up and begin in his new role.

“It will be in the pre-season, mid-November. It’s only fair that I stay out because there are coaches doing their job at the moment. I’ll probably catch up with Paul sometime in the near future.”