Match Report – Leeds 24 – 16 St Helens

Maika Sivo, Harry Newman, Chris Hankinson score tries, Jake Connor adds three penalties in Leeds Rhinos’ comeback Super League win over St Helens; watch Catalans Dragons take on Wigan Warriors live from Paris from 5.30pm on Saturday, live on Sky Sports+ (kick-off 6.30pm)

Leeds Rhinos fought from eight points behind to edge St Helens 24-16 on Thursday and move top of the Super League table. 

A first half in which Leeds had by far the clearer chances but failed to take them saw St Helens outscore them by three tries to one, Alex Walmsley, Kyle Feldt and Tristan Sailor all crossing for a clinical eight-point advantage.

Harry Newman added Leeds’ second try early into the second half – following Chris Hankinson’s first-half effort – with a pair of Jake Connor penalties in either half meaning the contest was level at 16-16 heading into the final quarter.

That’s how things remained until seven minutes to play, when Connor struck his third penalty of the contest for the lead with Saints’ David Klemmer sin-binned for a needless late shot on Hankinson.

Maika Sivo then kept up his superb form for Leeds this season with a late try to ensure victory – his 20th score of the season, six more than anybody else in the league.

The victory also sees Leeds end a 10-year hoodoo of St Helens victories at Headingley, with the win just Leeds’ third in 24 meetings against one of their biggest rivals.

Despite Connor’s early penalty following a cynical foul on Hankinson, Saints hit back thanks to Walmsley, who dashed over from the fleet-footed Daryl Clark’s offload.

Saints, though, were on the back foot for a long spell thereafter, making repeated handling errors in their own half, but some stout defending repelled their opponents, with potential tries from Ryan Hall and Sivo chalked off for infractions in the build-up.

Leeds’ persistence paid off as Saints switched off in the 27th minute, allowing Hankinson to score on his 100th Super League appearance, but having fought tooth-and-nail to establish an 8-6 lead, the hosts fell behind again after half an hour.

Arthur: We had to fight really hard – ‘we’ve shown growth’

Leeds Rhinos head coach Brad Arthur speaking to Sky Sports:

“We were good, but we weren’t great.

“It’s nice to win a game like that, where we had to fight really hard.

“We were a bit frustrated at half-time. We didn’t nail some big moments, and again in the second half.

“They made the most of their opportunities. But that’s the growth in our team that we didn’t let our frustration boil over.

“We stuck to it, kept trying to dominate field position and knew if we did that we’d come out with the win.”

Oledzki hails ‘gritty performance’

Player of the match Mikolaj Oledzki speaking to Sky Sports:

“I hope that game delivered.

“We expected a tough game. We tried not to mention the game last year, which did leave a bit of a bitter taste.

“It’s a great two points for us. They’re a great side St Helens, they always turn up.

“We were disappointed with the Wigan game, which was a good test to see where we are, but after a week off we’ve shown a real gritty performance today.”

‘Leeds stayed patient and ground game out’

Sky Sports’ Jon Wilkin:

“Leeds had a bit of a disrupted first half; they lacked a bit of concentration defensively.

“A few lapses cost them in that first half, but what we saw in the second half was Leeds were patient and ground this game out.

“They defended their way to victory.”

2026 Super League – key dates and what to look out for

• Super League in Paris: Sat June 6: Catalans Dragons vs Wigan Warriors (Paris), 6.30pm UK (Sky Sports)
• Magic Weekend: July 4-July 5
• Rivals Round reversed: July 23-July 26
• Elimination Play-offs: September 19-September 20
• Play-off semi-finals: September 26-September 27
• Grand Final: October 3, Old Trafford

Sky Sports will again show every game of the Super League live this season – including two matches in each round exclusively live, with the remaining five matches each week shown on Sky Sports+