St Helens coach Nathan Brown has insisted that his squad remain confident despite their run of poor form.

The Saints have lost their last two matches in the Super League, while Saturday's defeat to Leeds Rhinos saw them exit the Challenge Cup in the fifth round.

While his side have embarked on a disappointing run in recent weeks, Brown has faith in the players to turn things around.

"Confidence in the camp is still good," the Australian is quoted as saying by Sky Sports News. "We were the best side in the [Super League] for five weeks and then we toughed out some wins without playing as well as we know we can. We haven't regained that momentum yet.

"People can see it as excuses, but it is reality that we've had a number of players returning from lay-offs as well as personnel changes and that has affected the flow of our team. It's unfortunate we are out of the Challenge Cup, but at the same time it's nice to freshen the legs and get some more ball work done.

"It gives us a bit more time working together as a team, time that we need. We still haven't been together as long as we would have liked but the extra ball sessions have been great."

St Helens continue their Super League campaign on Thursday at home to London Broncos.