Super League Grand Final: St Helens make history with 24-12 victory over Leeds Rhinos at Old Trafford
Tries from Matty Lees, Jon Bennison, Konrad Hurrell and Mark Percival plus four conversions from Tommy Makinson secured a historic fourth-straight Grand Final triumph for St Helens
By Marc Bazeley at Old Trafford
Last Updated: 25/09/22 6:59am
St Helens gave departing head coach Kristian Woolf the perfect send-off as they claimed a historic fourth-straight Betfred Super League title with a 24-12 victory over Leeds Rhinos in Saturday's Grand Final.
The game was barely three minutes old before Matty Lees powered through to put Saints into the lead at Old Trafford, being followed by Jon Bennison dotting down in the corner for a second converted try.
However, the Rhinos grew into the game as the half went on and they struck back just before the break as Kruise Leeming's try and Rhyse Martin's conversion made the score 12-6 as the half-time hooter sounded.
But tries from Konrad Hurrell and Mark Percival after the break put St Helens on the verge of victory and although Martin gave Leeds hope with a late try, there was no denying Woolf's side from making history and clinching their 10th Super League title overall.
Story of the game
Even before kick-off, the 25th Grand Final was one which was full of intrigue and various sub-plots, although the main talking point was whether St Helens would be able to secure an unprecedented fourth-straight Grand Final success to add to the League Leaders' Shield they had already secured.
The most recent two had been overseen by Woolf, who is returning to Australia to take up a position as assistant to Wayne Bennett at NRL expansion club Dolphins, and this victory means he has now tasted Grand Final glory in each of his three seasons since succeeding compatriot Justin Holbrook ahead of the 2020 season.
The reigning champions could hardly have made a better start to that quest as they attacked from a penalty for a high tackle committed by their former back row James Bentley, with Jonny Lomax breaking the line and sending Lees over for the fastest try in Grand Final history.
Team news
Will Hopoate returned to the St Helens team on the wing, with Sione Mata’utia dropping to the interchange bench after lining up at centre in the semi-final win over Salford Red Devils. Morgan Knowles started at loose forward too after his suspension was overturned on appeal midweek.
Back row Cameron Smith took the injured Aidan Sezer’s role in the halves alongside Blake Austin, with Jarrod O’Connor retaining his spot as starting hooker and skipper Kruise Leeming on the interchange bench.
Saints went further ahead in the 18th minute as Jack Welsby poked a grubber kick in behind the Leeds defence which was chased down by full-back Bennison for him to dive on the ball and finish out wide on the left.
Tommy Makinson converted both tries but was unable to increase the lead nine minutes later from the kicking tee when his side were awarded a penalty after a dangerous tackle by Rhinos second row Rhyse Martin on Lomax sparked a melee between both sets of players.
The closest the Rhinos had come to scoring up to this point was when Martin had knocked on close to the try-line, but the eight-time Grand Final winners grew into the contest as the first 40 minutes reached its conclusion and were rewarded with a try on the stroke of half time.
Zak Hardaker's break took Leeds deep into Saints territory before he was eventually dragged down and then a superb offload close to the touchline from Papua New Guinea international Martin kept play going, followed by stand-in half-back Cameron Smith finding Leeming for the hooker to force his way over.
St Helens 24-12 Leeds Rhinos score summary
St Helens: Tries – Matty Lees, Jon Bennison, Konrad Hurrell, Mark Percival; Goals – Tommy Makinson (4).
Leeds Rhinos: Tries – Kruise Leeming, Rhyse Martin; Goals – Rhyse Martin (2).
That score ensured the Rhinos were still very much in the contest heading into the second half, yet Saints reasserted their authority five minutes after the restart when Hurrell, who has enjoyed a renaissance in the Red Vee in 2022 since joining from Leeds, somehow managed to get the ball down from close range despite being swamped by defenders.
They then moved to within touching distance of retaining the Super League trophy when half-back Welsby put through another perfectly weighted grubber kick which Percival got on the end of for a third converted try in the 58th minute.
Leeds kept plugging away though and the redoubtable Martin gave them a glimmer of hope with nine minutes to go as he exchanged passes with Tom Briscoe and raced away to finish wide on the right before converting his own try.
But the defensive strength St Helens have shown throughout the 2022 campaign, conceding an average of fewer than 14 points a game throughout the Super League regular season, came to the fore again and the task ultimately proved insurmountable for the Rhinos.
It meant no fairy-tale end to the year for Leeds head coach Rohan Smith, having overseen a remarkable turnaround at the club who were battling relegation when he arrived in May and then snatched a play-off place on the last day of the regular season, and also saw their previous record of three straight Grand Final wins from 2007 to 2009 - all of which came against St Helens - surpassed too.
What they said
Harry Sunderland Trophy winner and St Helens half-back Jonny Lomax
"It's unreal. I'm so proud of the boys; it's been a difficult year full of adversity and I can't speak highly enough of them because they just keep finding a way.
"I know I get to have this medal, but at the end of the day it's a reflection of what those boys do. It's a team, it's a collective effort and it's an incredible feeling."
St Helens head coach Kristian Woolf
"Winning the first Grand Final was my greatest achievement so to do three in a row is absolutely outstanding, but it's not about me - it's this group of men.
"They're outstanding, they deserve everything they get and they deserve to be known as the best team in the Super League era - there's no doubt about that."
Leeds Rhinos head coach Rohan Smith
"I'm really proud of the players and the journey we've been on, and we had a good crack and got beaten by a team which know how to do it on this day. They were the better team.
"We can always reflect on the things we didn't do in the game, but I think it's a time to acknowledge the greatness of the St Helens team and also to reflect a bit and enjoy as much as we can the journey we've been on."
