Leigh rout St Helens 48-10 to secure Super League play-off place

Leigh Leopards secured a place in the Super League play-offs with a 48-10 home victory over St Helens, whose defeat ended their hopes of reaching the postseason. BBC Sport reported that the result guarantees Leigh a top-six finish for the fourth consecutive season and leaves Saints outside the play-offs for the first time in the Super League era.

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Leigh built a 24-10 lead by half-time after scoring four tries. Josh Charnley opened the scoring in the 10th minute when St Helens failed to deal with an Adam Cook kick, allowing Leigh to move the ball wide. David Armstrong added the second after combining with Cook and Lachlan Lam in a move that began deep inside Leigh territory.

St Helens responded through Jacob Douglas, who crossed in the right corner, before Harry Robertson created a try for Tristan Sailor with a break through the defence. Leigh regained control before the interval, however. Innes Senior’s break set up Umyla Hanley, while Edwin Ipape’s offload and Cook’s kick ended with Cook touching down for the fourth try.

The match moved further away from Saints after half-time when Mark Percival was sent to the sin bin for a high tackle. Leigh capitalized through Ipape, who forced his way over after a quick play near the posts. Hanley then scored his second try after breaking through three tackles as the home side turned its advantage into a decisive lead.

Jacob Alick-Wiencke and Robbie Mulhern completed Leigh’s eight-try performance in the rain, with Mulhern crossing on the final play. Cook converted all eight Leigh tries and finished with 20 points. Charnley’s opening score also came with a contract announcement: after his celebration involving a mock contract, the stadium announcer confirmed that he had signed a deal for the 2027 season.

The victory keeps Leigh fifth in the table heading into the final round of fixtures. They can still rise to fourth above Wakefield. For St Helens, the heavy loss confirmed the end of a record that had seen the club appear in every Super League play-off series, making the result significant beyond the immediate margin of defeat.