St Helens preview

Last season

The term "perennial bridesmaid" doesn't even come close to justifying the Grand Final heartache St Helens have suffered in the last five years.

Yet another defeat at Old Trafford to Leeds Rhinos will be a bitter pill to swallow, particularly after coach Royce Simmons had done a fantastic job to get the club there in his first season in charge.

Things were not made easy by the fact his first-choice half-back partnership barely played together. Kyle Eastmond became a peripheral figure after he announced he would be switching codes and moving to Bath, while Leon Pryce was once again hit by injuries.

However, Saints have never struggled to unearth talent from within. Lee Gaskell and Jonny Lomax emerged to become a potent pairing at six and seven. The pair were influential in back-to-back victories over Wigan in the play-offs, helping to somewhat make amends for their Challenge Cup semi-final loss to their arch rivals earlier in the campaign.

Indeed, the team caught fire at just the right time in the season, winning nine of their 10 fixtures prior to going down to Leeds for the fourth time since 2007.

All this came in a campaign that saw St Helens play on the road every week, the Stobart Stadium in Widnes becoming their temporary home while they waited for work to be completed at Langtree Park.

Ins and outs

Having seen Kieron Cunningham hang up his boots at the end of 2010 to join the coaching staff, Saints have once again had to deal with the departure of a talisman in the winter. James Graham is a massive loss, not just for his non-stop running with the ball but also for his ability to lead from the front.

The England international has, perhaps understandably, decided to try his luck in the NRL with the Canterbury Bulldogs, while both Eastmond and Pryce, who has become the first Englishman to sign for Catalans Dragons, have also moved on to pastures new. On form they would be missed, but neither got anywhere close to the top of their game in 2011.

Of the other departures, Scott Moore will be hoping he can finally play in his favoured position of hooker with Widnes, having been used in a multitude of positions last season.

Perhaps sensing the need for a big name to try and counter the loss of Graham, Saints snapped up ex-Australia international Anthony Laffranchi from the Gold Coast Titans. They might also feel that Josh Perry will feel like a fresh face after his first summer in England was blighted by injury issues.

New Zealand international Lance Hohaia is another recruit from Down Under who will add a wealth of experience, though it will be interesting to see just where Simmons fits him into the team.

The third new face is Mark Flanagan, the son of former Great Britain international Terry Flanagan. He is a 24-year-old who showed promise in his limited appearances for Wigan before moving to Wests Tigers.

Outlook

By David Lyon - St Helens supporter and Redvee.Net member

After gaining the unwanted tag of 'bridesmaids' over the last five years, it's time for Saints to get over the final hurdle and regain champion status.

If we had managed to win the title last season, it would have been one of Rugby League's greatest ever achievements without having a place to call home.

This season, however, there won't be that barrier to overcome, as we'll be playing in front of a vociferous home crowd in our new state-of-the-art Langtree Park stadium.

One of our biggest aims this season has to be to make the place a fortress, and try to remain unbeaten at home - we want the opposition to dread coming here, rather than be looking forward to playing in the surroundings.

We've recruited well this off season with the signings of Lance Hohaia, Anthony Laffranchi and Mark Flanagan from the NRL, and although James Graham will be a huge miss, there are hopes Josh Perry will fill the void after getting over the injury problems that blighted his first season here.

Injuries were a massive problem for us last year, but the positives to come out of this was the chances it gave to players like Jonny Lomax, Lee Gaskell and Tommy Makinson, who will all have benefited tremendously and will be better this season for it.

If Saints can stay clear of any major injuries, then I fully expect us to be once again gracing Old Trafford come October, and fingers crossed we can break our hoodoo at last!