Paul Wellens hailed an “iconic” display from England prop Matty Lees as champions St Helens dug deep to beat Huddersfield.
The big front-row, 25, played the entire 80 minutes and made an astonishing 68 tackles in the 14-12 success at John Smith's Stadium. Saints needed to call on his huge stint after losing second-row Sione Mata’tutia to a head knock after just 27 seconds. Boss Wellens said: “I never thought anyone would have to play that long in the middle for us.
“But we needed to switch things after losing Sione so early - and I just never saw signs of Matty slowing down! I thought I might as well leave him out there. They've got a few days off now and they all need it but especially Matty. It’s not just racking up that number of tackles but kick-chasing their half-backs in the 78th minute the same as the first tells you everything about Matty.
