St Helens out of top six after Toulouse hammering

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Betfred Super League

St Helens (0) 0

Toulouse (20) 46

Tries: Jussaume 3, O’Kane, Chan, Ulberg, Tropis, Laguerre Goals: Shorrocks 7

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St Helens slipped out of the Super League top six with a stunning home defeat by buoyant Toulouse.

Paul Rowley’s side paid a heavy price for last week’s bruising defeat by rivals Wigan Warriors, with five of their six starting forwards in that game missing because of injury. Academy products Matty Evans and Chris Matagi were handed senior debuts.

Toulouse went into the game after putting 60 points past Catalans Dragons in the French derby. They showed that was no one-off display, producing a scintillating eight-try performance that led to boos from the fans at the BrewDog Stadium at the final hooter.

Mathieu Jussaume led the way with a hat-trick, but it was full-back Olly Ashall-Bott who really caught the eye with a masterclass, creating five tries.

Last week’s win over Catalans ended a run of three straight defeats, but two consecutive wins have lifted Toulouse up four places to ninth, and they now look like a formidable outfit, becoming the first team to nil Saints on their home turf in the Super League era.

Saints were in disarray from the start, their weakened pack struggling to contain the rampant French outfit and the dancing feet and sharp hands of Ashall-Bott, while they added to their troubles with a series of unforced errors.

The first came when they dropped the ball inside their own 20 and Jussaume took advantage to open the scoring, and he then added his second after Ashall-Bott had made a telling break.

Jake Shorrocks converted both and added a penalty, and Saints looked up against it, their frustration showing as Daniel Suluka-Fifita was placed on report for an off-the-ball shoulder barge on Brendan Hands.

Shorrocks took advantage of more indiscipline by kicking another penalty, and when Ashall-Bott’s tricky kick took a nasty bounce past Owen Dagnall, Henry O’Kane made it a 20-point gap at half-time.

Saints tried to respond in the fierce heat, but Toulouse defended superbly and then struck again, Ashall-Bott wriggling through a gap and then sending over Wigan loanee Tiaki Chan for a try that really rubbed salt into Saints’ wounds.

A knee injury to Owen Dagnall piled on the misery for Rowley’s team, and when three Saints defenders watched a Shorrocks high kick bounce, Toulouse pounced again, with Ashall-Bott’s slick pass over the top giving winger Paul Ulberg an easy finish.

The visitors were hungry for more as Saints seemed to give up, with Chan dashing down the blindside to send Romeo Tropis over for another, before more Ashall-Bott magic freed Jussaume for his third and Benjamin Laguerre added a late eighth try.

The margin of the defeat meant Saints dropped below Leigh Leopards into seventh place.

St Helens: Welsby; Dagnall, Robertson, McDonald, Douglas; Sailor, Hastings;Host, Burns, Suluka-Fifita, Cartwright, Davies, Shorrocks

Interchanges: Sironen, Humphreys, Evans, Matagi

Toulouse: Ashall-Bott; Laguerre, Polselli, Tropis, Ulberg; Lacans, Shorrocks; Roumanos, Hands, Butler, O’Kane, Jussaume, Cator.

Interchanges: Marion, Chan, Toleafoa, Grossemy.

Referee: Aaron Moore.