St Helens 30, Bradford Bulls 18

It is far too early to say the Bulls’ play-off hopes are over but, after this latest reverse, their chances must be slipping.

Francis Cummins’ men, minus Elliott Whitehead after he handed in a transfer request and was placed on indefinite leave, were condemned to a sixth defeat in seven Super League outings.

That is not play-off form, and the significance of falling out of the top eight for the first time this season cannot be overlooked either.

You could not fault the character of Cummins’ players as they recovered from a sluggish first-half display to fashion a highly impressive second-half response.

Tries from Matty Blythe and Elliot Kear brought the injury-hit Bulls to within six points of St Helens before Jon Wilkin’s late score finally killed off their challenge.

But amid the spirit on display were also handling errors, missed tackles and a costly error in judgement which led to a goal-line drop-out being conceded, culminating in Wilkin’s late clincher.

Cummins admitted afterwards the two-week break from Super League action will give his battle-weary squad a much-needed opportunity to recharge their batteries.

Oliver Roberts came off the bench in the second half and did not look out of place; far from it, in fact.

He replaced the stricken Keith Lulia in the 55th minute and played his part in the Bulls’ second-half revival.

As for St Helens, there is no denying Nathan Brown’s debut campaign at Langtree Park has been truly miserable at times.

But Saints showed some signs of their old selves yesterday, especially in the first half.

With Jonny Lomax back in their side after a three-month injury absence, James Roby pulling the strings at hooker and Wilkin a major influence in the back row along with Willie Manu and Sia Soliola, the hosts began with aggression and purpose.

It was the Bulls, though, who produced the first attacking move of note in the opening exchanges.

Heath L’Estrange, Luke Gale, Brett Kearney, Danny Addy and Lulia were all involved in a promising handling sequence which saw the latter find Michael Platt lurking on the left flank.

The winger knocked on, however, and the opportunity was spurned.

A Bradford try at that point might have seen the game pan out differently; as it was, St Helens gradually assumed control with two tries of their own.

It was like the Saints of old at times as their willingness to throw the ball about at every opportunity gave the Bulls plenty to think about.

On-loan Warrington scrum half Gareth O’Brien dabbed a teasing grubber kick behind the visiting defence but Kearney was on hand to field the danger.

James Donaldson made a couple of strong carries, brushing Soliola aside with one, but the hosts always looked capable of moving through the gears.

Sure enough, Wilkin, Paul Wellens, Lomax and Josh Jones all combined inside the left channel which saw the ball played back to Lomax.

His progress was halted but the move merely underlined Saints’ invention in attack.

A fine tackle from Addy then denied Jordan Turner on the opposite flank before Platt made an even better challenge to send Tommy Makinson into touch as he looked destined to plunge over in the right corner.

Saints opened the scoring in the tenth minute when Manu barrelled over the line from close range and O’Brien added the extras.

Despite the adventure which Saints showed, the Bulls had a key attacking weapon in the right boot of Gale.

He tested the St Helens defence with a number of probing kicks, one of which was just overcooked as he attempted to find Platt in the left corner.

The Bulls then fell further behind in the 18th minute when Makinson crossed the line.

The try stemmed from some devastating attacking play which saw the ball go through Lomax and Turner before Makinson plunged over in the right corner for a smart finish.

Despite the desperate lunge of Tom Olbison and Kearney, Makinson did just about enough to ground the ball before he was hauled into touch.

Cummins soon replaced L’Estrange and Nick Scruton with Matt Diskin and Ben Evans.

Diskin quickly began to make his presence felt around the ruck and helped the Bulls to enjoy a period of pressure which saw them hit back through Kearney in the 31st minute.

Kearney was pivotal in the build-up to the try, finding replacement prop Adam Sidlow with a short pass.

Sidlow then showed outstanding awareness and no little skill to hold off the challenge of several Saints players and send the ball back to the supporting Kearney to cross from close range.

Gale’s conversion cut the gap to six points but the momentum remained largely in the home team’s favour and Jones almost capped another brilliant handling sequence in the left corner, only for his foot to stray into touch.

St Helens grabbed a third try three minutes before the break, however, when Wilkin’s pass found Soliola and he burst past Addy’s challenge to score from close range.

O’Brien’s third conversion from as many attempts left the Bulls 18-6 down at the break and facing a mountainous task.

Their challenge grew even steeper six minutes after the break when an over-ambitious pass from Sidlow failed to find a team-mate and was seized upon by Jones.

The expression on Gale’s face suggested he knew it could prove costly – and so it proved.

The highly-rated young centre showed impressive pace to race from deep inside his own half, past the despairing dive of Addy and Kear to gallop under the posts.

O’Brien’s conversion left the scores at 24-6 and John Bateman soon returned to the action in place of Jamie Langley.

In the 52nd minute, a brilliant piece of footwork from Gale saw him drive at the heart of the St Helens defence and go agonisingly close to the line.

He threw a pass to his left intended for Sidlow but the prop was obstructed, giving the Bulls a penalty they could not capitalise on.

Roberts then came off the bench for the injured Lulia with 25 minutes remaining and was instrumental in a move which saw Gale and Kearney combine to send Blythe over the line shortly before the hour mark.

Gale converted to cut Saints’ lead to 12 points and encourage hopes of a famous comeback.

Gale then flighted a superb kick to the right corner with 12 minutes remaining and Kear caught and grounded the ball for a try which Gale converted.

But Kear conceded a goal-line drop-out from the restart and Roby’s rapier-like pass sent Wilkin over for a fifth home try.

Attendance: 11,385