Super League Team of the Week: St Helens, Castleford Tigers & Hull KR dominate

Super League Round 7 is now over and what a weekend of rugby league it was!

Thursday night saw a sensational clash between Wigan Warriors and Hull FC, with the former just running out 19-18 winners thanks to a late Harry Smith drop-goal.

Four Super League fixtures were scheduled for Friday night with two of them kicking off late due to unforeseen circumstances.

Amongst them, however, were Castleford Tigers who put newly-promoted Toulouse Olympique to the sword, 32-6 whilst Hull KR inflicted further misery on the Warrington Wolves with an emphatic 34-18 win.

St Helens were far too strong for Leeds Rhinos, who went down to a 26-0 loss to the reigning champions as Huddersfield Giants continued their brilliant form with a routine win over Catalans Dragons.

That left Wakefield Trinity to battle off a Salford Red Devils comeback to run out 30-24 winners for their fourth win in succession.

But, who made this round’s Team of the Week?

1. Jai Field – Wigan Warriors

Another week, another Jai Field performance worthy of the Team of the Week. When Wigan were up against it against Hull FC on Thursday night, up stepped the Australian with a superb try.

2. Tommy Makinson – St Helens

Another Super League round gone and another two tries for Tommy Makinson. One of his efforts against Leeds Rhinos on Thursday was a 90-metre scorcher whilst his overall running out of defence proved key.

3. Konrad Hurrell – St Helens

Against his former side, Konrad Hurrell was in good form, beating Jack Broadbent for pace for the first try of the game and then putting in some big hits throughout the 80 minutes.

4. Reece Lyne – Wakefield Trinity

He delivered in tremendous fashion against Salford, registering a superb effort and managing to keep Tim Lafai quiet for most of the game.

5. Bureta Faraimo – Castleford Tigers

With Tommy Makinson taking the number 2 shirt, Bureta Faraimo just had to be included for a special performance against Toulouse on Friday night. An absolute beast in defence, safe under the high ball and with some metre-eating runs out of defence, Faraimo more than justifies his place on here.

6. Joe Lovodua – Hull FC

With no Ben McNamara, Joe Lovodua had extra pressure on his shoulders in an attempt to strike up a partnership with Luke Gale. However, the Fijian was superb and threw out a delightful pass for Hull FC’s second try against Wigan Warriors on Thursday night.

7. Rowan Milnes – Hull KR

Replacing Jordan Abdull is no mean feat, but Rowan Milnes was able to do just that – and to a great effect. The former Bradford halfback linked up with superbly with Mikey Lewis in the halves.

8. Kelepi Tanginoa – Wakefield Trinity

Played in the front-row after David Fifita was absent again, Kelepi Tanginoa registered some great metres and put himself about in defence. He was a major reason as to why Trinity were able to steamroller Salford in their first-half to lead 24-4 at the break.

9. James Roby – St Helens

500th career appearance and what a way to cap it off with a well rounded performance in the middle of the field. The evergreen James Roby really is the archetypal professional sportsman and he was inspirational once more for St Helens against Leeds Rhinos on Friday night.

10. Owen Trout – Huddersfield Giants

The youngster has stepped up in recent weeks to become an integral part of the Huddersfield side and Owen Trout took on a massive Catalans pack – and more than delivered.

11. Kenny Edwards – Castleford Tigers

He is getting with each passing week and Kenny Edwards is firmly becoming one of Castleford’s most potent attacking outlets out wide. Even better, he seems to be enjoying himself as the Tigers spark some good form.

12. Frankie Halton – Hull KR

Has any Championship player taken Super League by storm in such a short space time as Frankie Halton? The second-rower makes over 30 tackles a game and very rarely misses, making him vital for the Hull KR side.

13. Morgan Knowles – St Helens

Just how good is this player? Morgan Knowles is everything that encapsulates St Helens and he destroyed Leeds down the middle on Friday night.

Substitutes

14. Theo Fages – Huddersfield Giants

Having not played for a number of weeks, Theo Fages came off the bench for Huddersfield Giants and helped keep the Catalans Dragons at bay.

15. Liam Watts – Castleford Tigers

What a substitutes’ performance from the big man Liam Watts! He was unstoppable against Toulouse when he came onto the field and scored a try that halfback would have been proud of.

16. Sitaleki Akauola – Salford Red Devils

The powerful Tongan forward came off the bench with vim and vigour and helped mount a comeback for Salford against Wakefield.

17. Suaia Matagi – Castleford Tigers

Had probably his best game for Castleford this year against Toulouse, skittling defenders left, right and centre with some huge runs. Matagi and Liam Watts really helped turn the screw against the French side.