PAUL ROWLEY praised the defensive effort which got St Helens over the line against Wakefield Trinity.
After building an early 16-0 lead, Saints were left hanging on for an important 18-12 victory.
“I didn’t enjoy that one,” admitted Rowley.
“I thought we were really good in the first half, but could have been better. We knew Wakefield wouldn’t go away because they are a very good team.
“Defending a team like Wakefield is difficult because they throw a lot at you and they did that in particular in the second half. We had to hold on, if I’m being honest, but we got the result.
“We conceded only twelve points which is a good result in itself. That’s why we won that game.
“Whilst it wasn’t always as connected and fluent as we would have liked, the effort was there and if you’ve got effort you’ve got a good chance.
“We’re unbeaten at home so we can’t grumble too much.”
It might have been more comfortable if George Delaney hadn’t had his try ruled out for double movement.
Rowley said: “I thought we were unlucky with the disallowed try. You can look at that a few times in slow motion but they never looked at it in full speed.
“My opinion is it was a try, and that would have been pretty big for us because it swung round and they (Wakefield) scored just after it. That was a shame for George.”
Saints brought back many of the heroes of their double-winning 1996 team to the game and Rowley said their presence was inspiring.
“They all still look fit and quite scary – some of them look like they could have played today,” said the coach.
“It was fantastic to have them all here. Everybody from our team was delighted to see them here, it really means a lot to us.
“We respect everybody who has gone before us. To have them show that passion and respect for our boys on the guard of honour was really humbling.”