Preview: St Helens vs Warrington Wolves - Prediction, team news and lineups

Warrington Wolves have an opportunity to go top of the Super League table when they kick off the latest round of fixtures with a huge Thursday night clash against St Helens.

The Wire extended their winning run to five straight league games last Friday, while St Helens endured a painful defeat at the hands of Leeds Rhinos.

Match preview

It has been a tough month for St Helens who followed up their semi-final Challenge Cup loss to Wigan Warriors with two more Super League defeats.

The 30-10 loss away at Castleford Tigers was particularly shocking, with Paul Rowley’s men delivering arguably their worst performance in a very long time.

Saints delivered an improved showing last week against Leeds, but that did not stop them from enduring their first defeat at Headingley Stadium since 2017.

The attention now turns to Warrington as Rowley’s side looks to end an agonising run of eight straight head-to-head defeats - a run which includes a 24-14 loss last February.

St Helens will also have one eye on the table after falling two points adrift of leaders Leeds - a gap which could grow if the Red Vee fail to turn their fortunes around. 

© Imago / News Images

Warrington, on the other hand, extended their Super League winning run to five straight games, courtesy of their 12-4 victory over Hull FC last weekend. 

Despite their strong run of form, Wire’s performance against the Black and Whites fell short of their high standards, with Josh Smith essentially bailing the team out with his second-half brace.

Currently level on points with table-toppers Leeds, Warrington have the chance to leapfrog their rivals - at least until Friday when the Rhinos take on Toulouse Olympique.

Sam Burgess and his men will be keen on continuing their solid defensive record, which has seen them concede six of fewer points in three of their last five matches.

On top of that, Wire will be hoping to bag their third straight Super League victory away from home, having already claimed wins at Huddersfield Giants and Toulouse. 

St Helens Super League form:

W W W W L L 

St Helens form (all competitions):

W W L W L L 

Warrington Wolves Super League form:

L W W W W W 

Warrington Wolves form (all competitions):

W W L W W W 

Team News

© Imago / News Images

St Helens desperately need a positive result, and Rowley could shake things up by starting new signing Daniel Suluka-Fitita.

Having arrived in England a couple of weeks ago, the Leeds Rhinos game came a little too soon for the 26-year-old.

Nevertheless, he has now replaced Harry Robertson in the 21-man squad and could get some minutes against Warrington.

Jackson Hastings remains suspended while Lewis Murphy misses out through injury. 

Deacon Swarbrick has been included and could make his debut, while George Whitby is expected to feature again.

When it comes to Warrington, Burgess has named Cai Taylor-Wray in the squad, with the player recovering from an ankle injury. 

Josh Thewlis has also been included, despite missing last week’s victory against Hull FC.

Toby King, Joe Philbin, Max Wood and Marc Sneyd are all out of action, with Wire naming James Bentley, James Harrison Adam Holroyd and Tommy Rhodes as replacements. 

St Helens 21-man squad:

Welsby, Feldt, Percival, Cross, Sailor, Lomax, Walmsley, Clark, Sironen, Wright, Klemmer, Delaney, Whitley, Whitby, Shorrocks, Dagnall, Davies, Sinclair, Humphreys, Suluka-Fifita, Swarbrick

Warrington Wolves 21-man squad:

Taylor-Wray, Thewlis, Hopoate, Ashton, Harrison, Walker, Holroyd, Currie, Powell, Sipley, Bryne, Crowther, Irwin, Hayes, Thomas, Bentley, Smith, Gardner, Rhodes, Tanginoa, Webster

We say: St Helens 20-16 Warrington Wolves

St Helens delivered an improved performance against Leeds Rhinos, and they will be determined to avoid a third straight Super League defeat.

Warrington, meanwhile, were successful against Hull FC, but the overall performance left a lot to be desired. With that in mind, we are backing the hosts to win.