ST HELENS forward Vicky Whitfield has said that lessons need to be learnt from the recent loss to Leeds Rhinos ahead of Saturday’s Super League semi-final.
Late tries from Zoe Hornby, Tasha Gaines and Izzy Northrop saw Leeds hit back to run out 22-34 winners when the sides met at the Totally Wicked Stadium a fortnight ago, and with it claimed revenge for Saints’ Challenge Cup Final victory at Wembley.
This will be the fourth meeting of the teams this season, and Whitfield expects to see something new from Leeds as a potential Grand Final appearance gets one step closer.
“That defeat to Leeds acted as a bit of a wakeup call for us all,” says Whitfield.
“And I’m actually quite grateful that it happened before the semi-final. We have looked at it as a learning curve.
“We’ve come against Leeds a fair few times now; some have been comfortable wins and some have been in high-pressure situations where we have come out on top, so to have that sort of defeat against them is something we can take a lot from.
“We know how we want to play, and we didn’t do that in that game. But we are going to go into Saturday’s game and play the Saints’ brand and look to kick on from there.
“From history, we all know what each side can bring to the game and we have seen that again this season, so we need to prepare for all eventualities.
“We know we’ll need to stay patient and switched on throughout the game, but we have some level heads and a lot of experience in our side and we will rely on those players to keep us calm in the situations where things might not be going our way, and that will be big help.”
Having won the treble in 2021, Saints ended last season with only the Challenge Cup to their name – a feat they are not looking to repeat this year.
“We would have love to do the treble again, but we’re focused now on getting that Grand Final win and having those two trophies in our cabinet at the end of this year.”
ST HELENS v LEEDS RHINOS, Saturday, September 23, 18:00, Sky.
