Lessons learned from St Helens v Catalans Dragons as Saints hammering adds pressure for Steve McNamara

St Helens hosted Catalans Dragons tonight in Round Eleven of Super League and we’ve looked at the lessons learned from the match.

The Red Vee responded to three successive defeats with a resounding 40-0 win that saw teenager George Whitby play a starring role as the playmaker scored a hat-trick.

Whilst Saints were great to watch, Catalans were woeful with Steve McNamara’s side looking so far off the pace in a very worrying performance.

The major call before the match was the one made by Paul Wellens with the St Helens boss shifting Tristan Sailor to the wing and recalling Jonny Lomax to the halves, something we saw at Magic Weekend and that Wellens had confirmed as being “an option” when he spoke to the press mid-week.

NRL recruit Sailor has struggled to nail down his best position, flipping from six to one and now to the wing as Saints look to get their attack firing. As for Catalans, Steve McNamara was without a host of experienced stars but managed to name the same spine as last time out with these sides facing off for the second time this season.

Saints won the first one in Perpignan via two Jonny Lomax drop goals and the tale was the same this time with his experience pivotal in the win. Here’s our match report as well as three key things we learned.

St Helens smash sorry Catalans Dragons

In a game where the pre-match talk focused on the pressure on each coach, it was St Helens who shot out in defence of their man with the Red Vee taking a 12-0 lead inside 10 minutes.

Tristan Sailor broke free on the wing and raced away with George Whitby in support to open the scoring, shortly before Alex Walmsley crashed over despite the desperate defence of Catalans.

That fast start couldn’t be sustained but Catalans couldn’t take advantage with Steve McNamara’s side looking tired as they made countless sloppy errors. More errors led to Saints’ third try as they took advantage of a six again to set Deon Cross up for a try on his home debut as Lomax sent the ball wide to the left.

Saints weren’t done yet though as they added a fourth before half-time with George Whitby scoring on the hooter but it was Jack Welsby who made it. With the play edging to the right the full-back dropped a smart pass back inside to Mark Percival who cut through and was spoilt for choice, eventually passing to Whitby who then converted to make it 24-0 at halftime.

They didn’t start the second half as fast but they controlled the opening exchanges and the pressure finally paid dividends thanks in large to a brilliant Mark Percival pass which teed up Tristan Sailor to score in the corner to make it 30-0.

A flying Lewis Murphy finish added to Catalans’ woes and whilst Whitby couldn’t convert that one, he scored his third try of the night minutes later to make it 40-0, marking the first time that Les Dracs had conceded 40 or more since the final round of 2022.

Star man

George Whitby is certainly the future for St Helens but he might also be the present as well with the teenager looking among the most assured players on the park whenever he plays. He opened the scoring after just two minutes on his way to a hat-trick with the 18-year-old adding a further 12 points with the boot in a Man of the Match performance.

Lesson One – Welsby must play full-back

Jack Welsby is the clear number one full-back in Super League and games like this go to show that. Jai Field has had an electric 2025 and it’s incredibly hard to push the Australian into second place but Jack Welsby does that. Whatever Saints do with Tristan Sailor, who didn’t look out of place on the wing, they cannot play him full-back because Welsby is the standout in that position.

Lesson Two – Catalans on edge of crisis

They were sitting seventh in the table before tonight but they now boast more losses than wins and with a fixture run of Wigan Warriors, Hull FC, Hull KR and Leigh Leopards lined up, you do wonder where the next two points come from. Steve McNamara’s side looked tired throughout as they made sloppy errors, something that you don’t typically associate with a Steve Mac-coached side.

Lesson Three – Saints stars step up for Wellens

In a game where the pressure was on both coaches, one team stepped up in support of their boss more than the other. That’s not to say that Catalans didn’t step up to the plate in terms of effort, but St Helens went above and beyond and they executed well. They shot out of the gates and despite a 20-minute quiet period in that first half, they put the foot down again to earn a pressure-relieving win built on the back of their leaders such as Walmsley, Lomax and Welbsy.

Teams

St Helens XIII: Jack Welsby; Tristan Sailor, Deon Cross, Mark Percival, Lewis Murphy; Jonny Lomax, George Whitby; Alex Walmsley, Daryl Clark, Matty Lees; Curtis Sironen, Matt Whitley, Morgan Knowles

Interchanges:  Agnatius Paasi, Moses Mbye, George Delaney, Jake Wingfield

Catalans Dragons XIII: Guillermo Aispuro-Bichet; Fouad Yaha, Matthieu Laguerre, Reimis Smith, Nick Cotric; Luke Keary, Theo Fages; Chris Satae, Alrix Da Costa, Romain Navarrete; Bayley Sironen, Paul Seguier, Oliver Partington

Interchanges: Arthur Romano, Tevita Pangai Jr, Jordan Dezaria, Tariq Sims

Round 11 incoming 💪@Saints1890 & @DragonsOfficiel get the action underway tonight live on @SkySportsRL+ 😍#SuperLeague pic.twitter.com/Y9gukP6pTY

— Betfred Super League (@SuperLeague) May 15, 2025