When it went wrong at St Helens amid pundit claim that Paul Rowley should have been axed earlier

Paul Rowley should have been sacked by St Helens earlier in the eyes of Sam Tomkins with the former Man of Steel offering his verdict on when and where it went wrong at Saints for the former Salford boss.

Tomkins was speaking on Sky Sports ahead of the derby clash between Wigan Warriors and St Helens, a game played less than 36 hours after the departure of Paul Rowley from Saints.

Saints’ 11:00 am announcement on Thursday surprised many but both Jon Wilkin and Sam Tomkins explained that it had been coming, even if the timing was surprising.

“I’m not surprised. I thought the writing’s been on the wall for some time,” Wilkin, the former St Helens player, said.

Pointing to when he felt it went wrong, Wilkin highlighted the Good Friday derby win which came in large parts thanks to the club loaning in Bill Leyland, leading to plenty of debate around identity.

“I’d go to April 3rd, the Good Friday win, that was the start of the end for Paul Rowley,” Wilkin claimed.

“He brought Bill Leyland in, Matt Peet’s identity comments… he got hired because of how well he the roster and cobbled together teams at Salford, that almost got him the job.

“I’ll tell you what, that’s got him fired, because the fans are looking at him bringing people in like Jed Cartwright and bringing people in, players who they think are substandard into the Saints outfit, and the fans just simply won’t accept it.”

Timing of Rowley’s St Helens’ exit ‘horrendous’

For Tomkins, the downfall started later and after the second game against rivals Wigan Warriors, the 32-0 Challenge Cup semi-final loss.

He said: “In terms of performance, the 32-0 in the Challenge Cup semi-final would not be acceptable for the Saints.

“He’s limped his way through a little bit. That day against Toulouse, that was the day he should have lost his job.”

On the timing, Tomkins admitted:  “The timing is horrendous… it’s a shocking timing and I think it should have been done a lot earlier.”

Tomkins also highlighted the stark difference in standards between Salford and Saints, stating: “When he was in charge at Salford, Paul Rowley got nothing but pats on the back. If you pull a win out of the bag, it’s, ‘Paul Rowley’s a genius’.

“Coaching St Helens is a completely different animal and we’ve seen that, and the way he’s tried to bring a bit of Salford mentality in. The fans don’t want a Salford mentality, they want to build on what St Helens have done.”