Higham's double caps Saints mastery

Leeds Rhinos 14 St Helens 41

Masters of all else they say Leeds might be, but there is still one side with the knack of embarrassing them.

Leeds have beaten everyone who matters over the past month, but Saints always ask some different questions.

That started when Tommy Martyn's 40/20 kick gave them the possession from which Paul Wellens sent Peter Shiels over. There seemed a suspicion of a forward pass, but like the other key decisions of the first half, it went Saints' way.

Leeds were denied a brilliant try in response when Francis Cummins went over from Willie Poching's sortie, only to be pulled back for a forward pass earlier in the move.

Saints showed how to take chances when Paul Sculthorpe sent Chris Joynt striding through and Sculthorpe's second goal made it a handsome 12-point lead.

Anthony Stewart's knock-on put Saints under pressure and then Ben Walker's superb pass let Cummins in for one that did count, but Saints soon hit back, typically quick hands along the line ending with a Stewart touchdown in the corner.

Leeds were desperately close again when Darren Albert somehow managed to catch Cummins and then, with the ball switched to the other side of the field, Keith Senior lost it in the act of touching down. Again, Saints cashed in almost immediately, Sculthorpe taking advantage of some slow defence to go over and Martyn adding a drop goal before half time to make Leeds' task look truly formidable.

The home side had their chances to hit back after the break, but Senior lost his footing just short of the line and Cummings could not take Sinfield's kick.

Saints edged further in front with Sculthorpe's penalty and when Mark Calderwood scored from Sinfield's kick-through it was already too late for a meaningful fightback, if not for a late flurry of points.

Mick Higham grabbed two tries for Saints to cap his excellent display, Stewart claimed his second and Calderwood also made it two for Leeds, but there was only one dominant side at the end of a sobering evening for the Headingley faithful.

Leeds Rhinos: Walker; Calderwood, Carroll, Senior, Cummins; Sinfield, Sheridan; D Ward, Diskin, McDermott, Hay, Adamson, Poching. Substitutes used: Burrow, Pratt, Vowles, McDonald.

St Helens: Wellens; Albert, Gleeson, Hoppe, Stewart; Sculthorpe, Martyn; Britt, Jonkers, Nickle, Joynt, Stankevitch, Shiels. Substitutes used: Higham, B Ward, Bennett, Kirkpatrick.

Referee: R Smith (Castleford).

* The Super League leaders, Bradford Bulls, were made to struggle for their 22-12 victory against the London Broncos, who were a man short for 20 minutes in the second half after losing two players to the sin bin. Centre Tony Martin and second-rower Steele Retchless were dismissed for holding down at the play-the-ball. London were aiming for a double after their shock 15-14 win at Brentford in April.