Woolf praises Saints professionalism

St Helens Head Coach Kristian Woolf was impressed by his side’s preparation as they managed to grind out a 32-18 win over Hull Kingston Rovers.

Previously, the Saints were hit by a single COVID case, later proving to be a false positive.

However, no risks were taken as the Saints coaching staff, Woolf included, were separated from their players during training leading up to this game.

But the Saints overcame the setback, with Woolf praising the professionalism of his team.

He said, “We have effectively been coached by Zoom for two weeks. Obviously, what proved to be a false positive COVID case last week.

“That meant the majority of the staff were not allowed near the players for the last two weeks.

“The players have done a really good job there, being really professional with their preparation.

“It is a sign of the new times. This will probably happen again at some stage.

“That is the challenge of this year. Most of us will have to cope with it when it comes up. Cope with different disruptions and we have certainly done that over the last couple of weeks.

“We spent a lot of time talking to the players over ‘Zoom’ and we did that in small groups, large groups and the whole team.

“There was a lot of preparation and explanation to the players on how they should run things.

“We did have some staff at training but no coaching staff and that meant from a footy and skilful side of things, the players were in charge and they did a great job.”