Cunningham injury casts cloud over Saints win

Hull 30 St Helens 3

Saints hung on for a victory that keeps them stride for stride with Bradford at the top of Super League, but an eye injury to Keiron Cunningham was a concern for Great Britain with their Test in Sydney a week away. Cunningham lasted just 12 minutes at the Boulevard and was a spectator as Saints, reduced to 12 men, clung on to the spoils in the final minutes.

Saints, with five players due to fly out to Australia this morning, made the better start, with two of them combining for the game's first try after only three minutes.

Hull were under pressure from the moment Paul Sculthorpe put in a clever kick that forced a drop-out and it was his long pass that allowed Martin Gleeson to go through some threadbare defence.

Hull have just one player in the Great Britain squad and Paul King showed his credentials by scoring the equalising try, shrugging off a couple of tackles on his way to the line. Excellent footwork from John Stankevitch put Saints back in front, but there was an anxious moment for them and for Great Britain when Cunningham was left clutching his eye after an tackle from Jason Smith.

Cunningham went off immediately, but returned to the bench after treatment, leaving the British coach, David Waite, to hope that he would not be deprived of one of his few truly world class players.

Sculthorpe's penalty put Saints further ahead and he was in typically commanding form when he sold a dummy to cruise through for Saints' third try. But just as they seemed to be taking complete control, however, Hull struck back with the best try of the game. It was made by Richard Horne, exploiting the space down the blindside and finished by Gareth Raynor in support on the inside, to leave the game still wide open at the break.

Saints threatened from the start of the second half when Darren Albert fielded Smith's kick and was only denied by Steve Prescott's tackle. Saints moved the ball left for Paul Newlove to score at his leisure.

Hull plugged away through Graham McKay, but Tommy Martyn's delayed pass to Christ Joynt seemed to have given the visitors enough of a cushion. Garreth Carvell then powered over for Hull and when Peter Shiels was sent to the sin-bin Saints were hanging on desperately. Smith got over for Hull to cut the margin to two points, but Saints regrouped.

Hull: Prescott; Raynor, Mackay, Yeaman, Crowther; Horne, J Smith; Greenhill, Jackson, King, Maher, Ryan, Chester. Substitutes: Carvell, Parker, Logan, Cooke.

St Helens: Wellens; Albert, Gleeson, Newlove, Stewart; Sculthorpe, Martyn, Britt, Cunningham, Nickle, Stankevitch, Shiels. Substitutes: Ward, Bennett, Hoppe, Higham.

Referee: R Smith (Castleford).