Simon Dalton presents his prediction bet on match of Rugby Superliga.
St. Helens will clash with Warrington Wolves on Friday evening. Despite the recent Saints’ winless run of three games they are considered to be the favourites while Wolves are underdogs. After being defeated by Wigan, Saints are just four points above Leeds Rhinos. They still lack a couple of their front-line players. But the crucial point is that they are on their home soil.
The biggest loss is vice-captain Morgan Knowles, known for his versatility. He can play as a loose forward or a hooker, as well as in the back row. And there is still no adequate substitute for him. Another blow is the absence of young forward Jake Wingfield with his huge 131 tackles and just 2 errors. Those players can make a difference when the game is even. And having them on the field the team would not make an odd error that allowed the game to slip away after leading twice.
The good news is that the debutant Harry Robertson is quickly progressing. He brought a generally safe performance under a series of testing Harry Smith kicks. Coach Paul Wellens is satisfied with a rookie making just one mistake, which is a good result even for a more experienced fullback.
Regarding injuries Wellens said: «So I’m very realistic in terms of where we’re at this moment in time but the team don’t look for excuses in the situation that we’re in».
Indeed, even facing tough conditions, Saints do not surrender. The last three defeats have been by margins of four points or fewer. So highly likely we will see a close score again.
On the other hand, Warrington Wolves seem to be back in the groove. After a period of struggling, the victory over Leeds was their third on the spin. George Williams was showing a great kicking game. And Matt Dufty had one of his best performances of the season in attack.
Brilliant news for all the Wolves’ fans is that their captain Stefan Ratchford has signed a new contract until the end of next season. One of The League top 10 scorers with 24 goals is definitely a player to look for. And Ratchford who can play fullback, centre or in the halves is a big problem for Saints’ both front and back lines.
Another massive strengthening for Wolves ahead of the match against Saints is the former Huddersfield Giants’ captain Luke Yates. With enormous 593 tackles he is among the scariest persons for Saints’ front runners.
Yates will probably replace Jordy Crowther who recently suffered an ankle injury. Despite his number of tackles is twice lower than Yates’ and coach Sam Burgess says there will be no «serious changes to the game plan», this last minute substitution may cause some mess in the midfield.
Not to forget about injured pair Lachlan Fitzgibbon and Josh Thewlis – one of The League top scorers with 29 goals so far, who are currently in the treatment room with shoulder problems.
With such a bad impact on both teams' attacking lines we are not supposed to see too many goals. St Helens are the favourites with a slight advantage in the final score.
