St Helens

St Helens boss confirms triple injury blow after ‘stepping stone’ win

by
Sam Cook
June 15, 2025

St Helens head coach Paul Wellens has confirmed a triple injury blow following his side’s 46-4 win over Salford Red Devils.

Returning NRL recruit Kyle Feldt scored four tries and kicked three conversions as well, having to take over kicking duties after George Whitby failed a HIA in one of the three injuries sustained by Saints.

The other two came to two of the club’s returning players as Curtis Sironen and Joe Batchelor both left the field with the latter described by Wellens as having felt a ‘pop in his calf’, prompting fears of another lengthy lay-off.

Speaking post-match to Sky Sports, the St Helens boss described the performance as a ‘stepping stone’ win with Friday’s clash against Leeds Rhinos clearly already on his mind.

Wellens said: “We came off the back end of a defeat a couple of weeks ago. It’s been a long two weeks, so it’s good to get back out there and perform again.

“Obviously, we know we’re not going to be judged on today. This is a stepping stone for the next to come.”

St Helens look ahead to Leeds as Wellens calls for consistency

Asked about the injuries, Wellens explained: “We’re doing tough at the moment in terms of personnel out on the field. The game tests you times, that’s what the game’s about. It’s how you can handle these tough periods.

“We’re going to have to rely on our squad. We’re really fortunate that we’ve got players like Whitby, Robertson, Stephans and Dagnall today. These young kids that come in and step up to the plate.”

Of course, Whitby will miss out next week due to his failed HIA and he could be joined on the sidelines by Sironen and Batchelor, with Wellens explaining the early diagnosis for each man.

He said: “Curtis had a bit of a back spasm thing going on, so we’ll get that assessed. Joe felt he had a pop in his calf. That’s never usually a good sign.”

Looking ahead to that tough test against Leeds, he said: “Leeds are a team in form at the moment. We’re under no illusions of the challenge that awaits us next week.”

As for his own team, he spoke on their inconsistent nature of his side and the improvements necessary to compete with the likes of Leeds and those above.

“We’ve been inconsistent. There’s no getting away from that,” Wellens admitted.

“We feel that if we start to string some performances together, then we can slowly climb the table, but it’s easy standing here talking about taking on the challenges for us.

“It’s to day in, day out, really apply ourselves, so we can start to make those improvements that we need.

“It’s a really tough challenge for us next week. It’s a short turnaround. We’re going to have to recover well and put ourselves in the best position physically to deliver another performance.”