Super League: St Helens keep slim play-off hopes alive after stirring second half earns 46-16 win over Wakefield Trinity | Rugby League News

St Helens produced a blistering second-half performance to stun Wakefield Trinity with a 46-16 victory and keep their slim Super League play-off hopes alive.

Saints, who have never failed to make the post-season, came into the match on a run of three defeats in a row and five losses in six, leaving them six points off the top six.

The visitors slipped 10-0 down to fourth-placed Wakefield and trailed 16-12 at half-time but then ran in six unanswered tries in the second period.

Tristan Sailor’s brace completed his hat-trick while Lewis Murphy added to his first-half score and Jake Davies touched down twice in the closing stages to move St Helens to within four points of sixth-placed Leigh Leopards with four games remaining.

Wakefield falter after bright start

Wakefield, who lost Josh Rourke and try-scorer Isaiah Vagana to injuries inside the first quarter of an hour, missed the chance to move two points behind table toppers Leeds as they suffered a sixth successive defeat to Saints and slipped to back-to-back home losses after last week’s narrow reverse against the Rhinos.

Tyson Smoothy’s eighth-minute effort, which was converted by Jack Sinfield, and Vagana’s Sinfield-aided score in the 12th put Wakefield on top.

However, Vagana was barged into as he went down and went off with a physio holding his left arm, after Rourke departed following a collision with Murphy.

Sailor and Murphy dragged Saints back into the contest with tries that Jackson Hastings converted, only for Sinfield to exploit a huge gap before kicking his second conversion to leave Wakefield four points to the good at the break.

Lachlan Walmsley had two tries chalked off for Trinity after the resumption, either side of which Murphy put Saints back in front with another fine finish, diving one-handed in the corner before hobbling off with an injury to his left leg.

Once Billy Keeley latched on to a loose ball and went over after 64 minutes, Saints dominated, with Sailor’s hat-trick, sealed after a lung-busting run, prompting Wakefield’s fans to stream for the exits.

Powell rues Wakefield’s lack of ‘fight’

Trinity coach Daryl Powell called his side’s capitulation “unforgivable”, saying: “There was a lack of effort, almost, at the end.

“It’s really disappointing. The second half last week and the whole game today, I don’t think we’re in a great place.

“We didn’t perform well. We took a smack on the nose last week and we haven’t recovered from that this week. They were desperate and they outplayed us. I don’t think our fight was good enough.

“It’s hugely disappointing and I’ve said to the players ‘we’ve got to flip this pretty quick’. We play Wigan next week and it doesn’t get any harder than that.”

Wigan level on points with Leeds as Bradford slip to bottom spot

Wigan moved level on points with leader Leeds as they scored six tries in a 34-6 victory at lowly Bradford, who now prop up the table following resurgent Huddersfield’s victory at Toulouse on Saturday evening.

The visitors crossed three times in each half with Jake Wardle, Adam Keighran and Bevan French touching down before the break.

Wardle went over again in the second period while Kian McDermott and Jake Kerr also registered tries, with the Bulls’ sole effort coming from Andy Ackers.

Wigan’s 18th win of the season leaves them four points clear of Warrington and Wakefield in third and fourth respectively, while Bradford have been usurped by Huddersfield on points difference after their fellow Yokshiremen’s 26-10 win in France.

The Giants have won four games in a row after just two victories across their first 19 matches, with this latest success thanks to two tries from Sam Halsall and one apiece for Joe Greenwood and Conor Wrench.

Huddersfield’s revival, which has also included beating York, Hull FC and Catalans, has come at the same time Toulouse have faded, with Sylvain Houles’ men on a four-match losing streak following previous disappointing results against Catalans, Leeds and Wigan.

Sky Sports will show every game of the Super League live this season, including two matches each round exclusively live. The remaining five matches will be broadcast on Sky Sports+.