St Helens boss Paul Wellens admitted that his side’s outside back injury crisis is a concern as two more injuries have him worried for their Good Friday fixture against Wigan Warriors in a week’s time.
Saints were in a 26-0 lead after an hour before Wakefield grabbed three tries in the final quarter but it wasn’t enough for victory.
The 26-14 win for St Helens moved them up to third in the Super League table but the win might have come at a cost to the squad.
Centre Harry Robertson didn’t return for the second half following a quad injury and Lewis Murphy was also subbed off towards the latter stages of the game.
Speaking to Sky Sports following the win, coach Wellens said: “I’m a little bit frustrated towards the end of the game, I think we applied pressure to ourselves in the back end and leaked some tries that we’re not comfortable with.
“On the flip side, a short turnaround from last week, we’ve dealt with a hell of a lot of adversity out there again today with losing Harry Robertson and Lewis Murphy having to leave the field, so there’s a number of things that we dealt with that you don’t normally deal with so I’m really proud in that respect.”
Wellens was unsure of the extent of both injuries but has been pleased with whoever’s come into the side to fill the gap.
He added: “Obviously we’re struggling, we’re down on numbers in the outside backs at the moment, that’s the area that we’re having to plug holes so to speak.
“I feel like young players like Dayon Sambou came in and committed himself really well. Obviously, Harry (Robertson) when he’s played too.
“What I like about some of the members of our team who have had to jump into different positions is they’ve done it without any qualms. We needed that tonight and we’re going to need it again down the track.”
Another youngster who stepped up was George Whitby. He paired with Jack Welsby in the halves and gave a player-of-the-match performance in only his second Super League game.
The St Helens boss said: “I’m very impressed with him but not surprised. He plays the way he trains, he’s very calm, very self-assured, and obviously a really effective kicker of the ball.
“He plays to his strengths, he’s mature for his years, and we’re all extremely delighted for him. He’s been patient for an opportunity and we felt it was the right time for him.”
Wellens stated that one area he does have options in for the Good Friday derby is the halves but he hasn’t made a decision yet as to who will play.
He said he would be managing veteran Jonny Lomax’s game time in 2025 but praised Whitby for stepping into his shoes pretty last minute.
He finished: “Over the course of the year, we were always going to give the squad playing opportunities, I think that’s really important.
“Jonny’s a 34-year-old senior pro now, he’s been around a long time, and he picked up a bit of an ankle injury in the game at the weekend. However, he could’ve played.
“We felt the time was right to give George an opportunity so that’s exactly what we did.”
🙌 Saints claim the two points over Wakefield Trinity at the @twstadium!#COYS | @LPL_Airport pic.twitter.com/UOQgWM8TK4
— St.Helens R.F.C. (@Saints1890) April 11, 2025
