Paul Rowley has given his verdict on how he felt his first game in charge of St Helens went, after his side defeated Castleford Tigers yesterday.
Forming part of skipper Matty Lees’ testimonial, the Red Vee dismantled the Tigers 40-10, in a convincing first showing under Rowley.
The new boss joined from Salford Red Devils in the off-season, and signed a three-year deal to replace Paul Wellens.
Whilst the competitive action doesn’t start for another fortnight, Rowley got his first taste of life as St Helens boss, and his squad’s showing is a positive sign of things to come.
New recruit Nene MacDonald opened the scoring, before 2025 Young Player of the Year Harry Robertson crossed shortly after. Deon Cross rounded out Saints’ first half-scoring, as they went into the break with a 16-6 lead.
The second half was much more dominant, and four further tries helped them to the hefty victory.
Whilst they were by no means perfect, Rowley was happy with his side’s efforts, and highlighted the attacking style of rugby that worked for them throughout the game.
Speaking post-match, he said: “I’m pretty chilled about [the performance], really.
“There’s some good signs. I don’t think we should ever misinterpret the want to play and express yourselves with being reckless.
“There’ll be some things we can tidy up. If we’d have had a little bit more discipline with what we are doing, we could have put the foot on the throat a little bit more.”
As mentioned, the celebrations pre and post-match surrounded testimonial man Lees, who is celebrating a decade of service to the club and the sport.
The boss had nothing but praise to say about his star forward, and praised how much of a role model he is to everyone around him.
“The fans probably emulate what the people internally think about him as well, and how can you not,” he revealed.
“…People like Matty Lees are what the game is about. He’s a true warrior, he’s born and bred in the northern towns and represents them brilliantly.
“He’s tough. He’s a warrior. He’s selfless as a captain and I think it’s really pleasing he got a good turn out today in the start of what will hopefully be a really successful year for him.”
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Paul Rowley gives new signings verdict after strong St Helens win
In the game, four new signings featured, and Rowley had nothing but positives to say about their efforts.
Try scorer Macdonald, Joe Shorrocks, Jackson Hastings and David Klemmer all had their first taste of playing in a St Helens jersey, and each individual all played their part in the victory.
Giving a round-up, Rowley explained: “I thought [they] all made a positive impact.
“Joe went about his business in the way that I knew he would. He’s that conduit between middles and edges He’s industrious in the middle. His workload is good…
“I thought Jacko did what it says on the tin. He’s a world class player and he dominates and controls games and he did exactly that.
“Klem was what we expected, a really solid figure in the middle… and then Nene does what Nene does – entertains.”
The Saints now don’t have a fixture until they enter the Challenge Cup Third Round at the beginning of February. They will travel to the winners of the tie between Blackbrook and Workington Town, and that tie will be played today (January 25).
Paul Rowley gives his thoughts on our performance, Matty Lees, and our new signings following our win over @ctrlfc in @mattylees_ Testimonial 🙌
Subscribers can watch the full video now on Saints TV 👇
📺 https://t.co/FpxoAm2KjE#COYS
— St.Helens R.F.C. (@Saints1890) January 25, 2026
