Wakefield 16-41 St Helens: Saints crush Trinity's top-four hopes
By PA Sport
Last Updated: 23/07/17 7:05pm
Salford were the big winners on the final day of the regular Betfred Super League season after Wakefield went down 41-16 at home to St Helens to drop out of the top four.
Trinity had the chance to enter the Super 8s by securing third place but they were outplayed by an impressive Saints outfit who kept alive their own semi-final bid with a fifth successive win at Beaumont Legal Stadium and only a second away victory in the league in 2017.
The outcome means that Salford end the 23-game season in fourth place despite losing six of their last seven matches and in doing so claim an extra home game in the Super 8s.
Wakefield were boosted by the return of skipper Danny Kirmond and centre Reece Lyne for his 100th Super League appearance, but they looked out of sorts for much of the game.
St Helens, on the other hand, were lively from the start with half-backs Theo Fages and Danny Richardson sparking a series of dangerous attacks.
And it was Richardson, proving such an able deputy for the injured Matty Smith, who opened the scoring on eight minutes, jinking his way over for a try after forcing a drop-out.
Mark Percival kicked the first of his eight goals from as many attempts to make it 6-0 but Wakefield drew level four minutes later when former Saints second-rower Matty Ashurst took Liam Finn's pass to cross for a try after St Helens centre Ryan Morgan had gone for the interception.
Finn's goal made it 6-6 but the rest of the half belonged to the visitors, who regained the lead through impressive hooker James Roby after he touched down a grubber kick from Fages which struck an upright.
Richardson and Morgan then combined to get right winger Tommy Makinson into space and he showed his class with a neat kick ahead before winning the race to the ball.
Another sweet passing move enabled winger Regan Grace to cross for the eighth try in 16 Super League appearances and Percival's fourth goal made it 24-6 at the break to leave Wakefield's top-four hopes hanging by a thread.
The Yorkshire side were rejuvenated following coach Chris Chester's interval pep talk and pulled a try back within three minutes of the restart when second rower Dean Hadley squeezed a pass out of the tackle for full-back Scott Grix to touch down.
Finn's second goal cut the gap to 12 points and Trinity added a third try when Finn delayed his pass superbly to get winger Mason Caton-Brown over at the corner.
However, Saints finished the game strongly, with Percival kicking two penalties and forwards Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook and Zeb Ta'a scoring tries before Richardson wrapped up the scoring with a last-minute drop goal.
