Super League: Huddersfield run in seven tries to thrash St Helens
Huddersfield ruined ex-coach Nathan Brown's first game in charge of St Helens with a 40-4 triumph at Langtree Park.
Last Updated: 02/02/13 8:14pm
The master was toppled by the apprentice as Paul Anderson - the man recommended by his old boss, Brown, to replace him at the Huddersfield helm - engineered the Giants' first win away at Saints since November 1978.
Tries from Jermaine McGillvary, Brett Ferres and Leroy Cudjoe, plus five goals from the ever-reliable boot of Danny Brough, put the visitors into an astonishing 22-0 lead by the break.
They added further scores in the second half from Luke George, Larne Patrick, Shaun Lunt and a second for Cudjoe, making it a miserable opening night for Brown, who had steered the Giants to the 2009 Challenge Cup final before a rather acrimonious departure during last season.
Willie Manu, one of Brown's new recruits, made a rather inauspicious start with his new club, a risky offload coughing up possession and leading to Huddersfield breaking the deadlock after just three minutes through winger McGilvary.
A penalty given away by Jordan Turner, another Saints debutant, set up Ferres to burst through full-back Paul Wellens to score on the left, leaving the hosts looking shell-shocked.
Things got even worse for Brown's boys when Cudjoe became the latest visitor to touch down, the centre finishing off a flowing team move on the right by cutting in on the angle.
Brough was successful with all three of his conversion attempts as well as adding a pair of penalties, and if Saints thought half-time would offer some respite they were sadly mistaken.
Inside six minutes of play re-starting Huddersfield were in again, the outstanding Brough putting George in at the left corner with a long, cut-out pass. The only disappointment for the Giants was that their stand-off was forced from the field soon after with a thigh injury.
Yet even without their talismanic half-back Huddersfield continued to score points; they were given a huge hand by Lance Hohaia for their next try, the Saints sub only punching Jason Chan's high kick straight into the welcoming hands of Patrick as he tried to knock it over the dead-ball line.
Hooker Lunt - a Grand Final winner with Leeds last year - rubbed salt into Saints' wounds by scoring straight from the base of a scrum, before Cudjoe benefited from a Francis Meli error to cruise over the line for his second.
Mark Flanagan at least made sure Saints weren't shut-out at home for the first time since 1982, his try bringing ironic cheers from a home crowd that had seen their side soundly beaten on opening weekend.