St Helens vs Salford Red Devils player ratings as five score 8/10 in thrilling clash

St Helens needed golden point to see off Salford Red Devils at the Totally Wicked Stadium, winning 17-16. The Saints scored three tries on the night as Tommy Makinson, Waqa Blake and Joe Batchelor got over the line as Saints moved above the the Red Devils and up to fourth in the table.

Buoyed by bucking their five-game losing streak last time out, St Helens got the scoreboard ticking over on home soil as Tommy Makinson finished Moses Mbye’s cut-out pass in the corner.

Joe Shorrocks was sin-binned shortly after but the Saints missed the chance to make the most of their numerical advantage. That allowed Salford to chip away at their 4-0 lead and through the boot of Marc Sneyd, the Red Devils went in at the break level.

Waqa Blake pushed St Helens ahead once more as he took advantage of crooked edge defence to touch down in the corner. Sneyd’s boot proved difficult to nullify, though, for Paul Wellens’ side, as the Salford man saw his delicate grubber kick touched down by Chris Hankinson.

The arrival of Jake Burns gave Saints more impetus and he was the man that set up Joe Batchelor for the Merseyside outfit’s third try of the night.

Tempers spilled over as Morgan Knowles, Batchelor and Oliver Partington were shown yellows and Salford did what Saints couldn’t as they levelled the scores again as Nene Macdonald touched down. That was enough to signal golden point with the scores being 16-16 at the end of regular time.

After exchanging tight and fraught sets with Salford in extra time, Harry Robertson blew the Salford line open to carry Saints up the field and once they got into kicking range, Moses Mbye did the rest with the one-pointer.

Man of the match

Harry Robertson. Salford couldn’t get hold of him. He constantly beat the first man and it was his effort, dodging and weaving through the middle of the pitch that laid the platform for St Helens to go and win the game. James Bell and Marc Sneyd get honourable mentions for their performances on the night, too, while Alex Walmsley, back from injury, looked as though he’d never been away.

Standout moment

Saints needed a moment of magic and they got one through the Moses Mbye who kept his cool when he needed to, slotting the drop goal and winning the game.

St Helens vs Salford Red Devils player ratings

St Helens: Harry Robertson 8; Tommy Makinson 7, Waqa Blake 7, Mark Percival 7, Tee Ritson 6; Moses Mbye 8, Lewis Dodd 6, Matty Lees 7, Daryl Clark 7, Agnatius Paasi 6, Matt Whitley 7, Curtis Sironen 6, Morgan Knowles 7.

Bench: Alex Walmsley 8, Joe Batchelor 7, James Bell 8, Jake Burns 7.

Salford: Ryan Brierley 6, Ethan Ryan 6, Nene Macdonald 7, Chris Hankinson 5, Deon Cross 5, Jayden Nikorima 7, Marc Sneyd 8; Brad Singleton 6, Joe Shorrocks 5, Joe Bullock 6, Sam Stone 7, Kallum Watkins 7, Ollie Partington 6..

Bench: Shane Wright 7, Joe Mellor 6, Gil Dudson 6, Loghan Lewis 7.