St Helens coach issues update on pre-season and explains key decision

St Helens head coach Paul Wellens has issued an update on the team’s pre-season efforts whilst revealing the motives for one key decision.

Coming off a season that they will want to forget, there have been plenty of changes at St Helens – albeit not necessarily just to their squad.

The Red Vee have signed three players in the shape of playmaker Tristan Sailor as well as wingers Kyle Feldt and Lewis Murphy as they bid to replace the likes of Lewis Dodd and Tommy Makinson.

However, it’s the changes to the coaching staff that are more notable with both Lee Briers and Eamon McManus arriving at the Totally Wicked Stadium for the 2025 season.

There has been talk of positive energy at St Helens from the players and now, their head coach Paul Wellens has attested to that when reflecting on the pre-season so far.

“It’s been going really well and it’s been really enjoyable,” Wellens, who is going into this third year in charge, told SaintsTV.

“There has been a great energy about the place, there’s some new faces which always freshens things up but I’m very happy with where we’re at at the moment.”

St Helens boss explains decision not to take pre-season abroad

Following the creation of Super League and the conversion of the sport to a summer one, it has meant that the off-season and pre-season periods come during the long winter months.

As such, it means that the pre-season work is done in what are often adverse conditions and this pre-season has been no different with frequent storms in the northwest but Paul Wellens has embraced them.

The St Helens coach explained: “It’s something that we’re very used to at this time of year with the adverse weather conditions. I think sometimes it is what makes pre-season what it is.

“It adds that element of toughness to it, which is already there with what we’re doing on the field so I really like the challenging aspect of that and to the lads’ credit, they’ve really adapted to it.”

Teams will sometimes take their camps on the road and head for some warm-weather training, something that Hull KR did ahead of the 2024 campaign and that Castleford Tigers will do in January.

However, Wellens confirmed that St Helens had no intention of doing as he outlined what the core focus of their 2024/25 off-season has been.

“It was a purposeful decision,” he said in regard to not taking camp on the road.

“What we’re very conscious of is just getting back to the core basics or working hard and kind of reconnecting with the town a little bit.

“What makes the town strong is its work ethic so getting used to working hard, being uncomfortable in different environments but we’re enjoying doing it – which is great to see.”

Recent examples of the hard work that the team have been putting in has seen them running the sand dunes at Formby beach – something that will be massively different for the likes of signings Sailor and Feldt who would be more adept to dunes on far sunnier beaches.

🥵 It was a brutal morning on the sand dunes of Formby Beach for the Saints today.

Saints TV will bring you more from behind the scenes from this session shortly! 📺 😊 #COYS pic.twitter.com/9zwjJwfVKs

— St.Helens R.F.C. (@Saints1890) December 20, 2024