Regan Grace: St Helens winger brought off as a precaution

St Helens winger Regan Grace left the field on his return to action but it was only as a precaution, coach Kristian Woolf confirmed.

The Wales international made his first appearance of the season in their 46-4 win over Whitehaven in the sixth round of the Challenge Cup.

Grace was withdrawn 10 minutes from the end as a precaution. He has recently recovered from a bicep injury which saw him miss the start of the season.

Woolf said: “He tightened up a little bit. He hadn’t played so far this year and missed a fair chunk of pre-season as well.

“Obviously we were in a good position at that stage and we wanted to make sure he was right for Leeds next week.”

Woolf also confirmed that forward Morgan Knowles should be fit for next Friday’s trip to Leeds. The England international missed the Whitehaven clash with a shoulder problem, whilst Matty Lees could also return.

Kristian Woolf praises part-time Whitehaven

St Helens coach Kristian Woolf praised part-time Championship club Whitehaven for putting on a good cup tie. A crowd of 4,869 made a brilliant atmosphere at the Recreation Ground.

Woolf said: “There was a really good feel about it. We had a really good welcome from the fans and the club.

“I said before the game it reminds me of the country round in the NRL. There was a different feel about it, a different sort of excitement and real welcoming feeling. It was great to be part of it.

“We knew they were going to come out to play. It’s a big day for Whitehaven and they showed a lot of physicality and a lot of desire at the start of the game.

“We knew that we would have to weather a storm but that class was going to shine through and that’s exactly what happened. I thought we looked comfortable.”

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