St Helens miss Super League playoffs for first time since 1962
A heavy defeat by Leigh confirmed St Helens' season is over, ending their record run of playoff appearances as Kevin Walters prepares a rebuild.
St Helens will miss the Super League playoffs for the first time since 1962 after a heavy defeat by Leigh on the final weekend confirmed their season was over.
Saints needed a win at a Leigh side already assured of a playoff place to stay alive. Missing more than a dozen first-team players, they showed brief spells of resistance before the gap in class told again, as it has done all season.
Leigh set the tone from the start. Josh Charnley, Super League's all-time leading try-scorer, finished a well-worked move for his 281st career try, then marked it by signing a fake contract extension announced in the stadium moments later. Leigh doubled the lead soon after through a length-of-the-field finish from full-back David Armstrong, and Saints never recovered.
St Helens have reached every playoff series in Super League history and hold a record 10 titles in the summer era. That run now ends, with Kevin Walters set to take over as head coach next season and a major rebuild waiting for him at Saints.
Leigh, by contrast, head into the playoffs with their form and confidence high after a night in which nothing went wrong for them.
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