The new Super League season begins this weekend and both St Helens and Warrington Wolves are eyeing up a title charge in 2025.
Paul Wellens and Sam Burgess played alongside each other for England during their rugby league careers but enjoyed contrasting fortunes in Super League last season.
Burgess excelled in his first season as a head coach, transforming Warrington Wolves from mid-table strugglers in 2023 to Challenge Cup finalists and playoff semi-finalists.
Wellens’ St Helens side had a tumultuous year, as injuries and suspensions ravaged his starting side.
However, a late season rally, as key players such as Jack Welsby returned, saw them secure a place in the top six.
Both sides have strengthened their squad in the close season, adding new signings from the NRL and domestic talent as they look to compete at the top of Super League in the new season.
With both teams playing the first of 27 regular season games on Saturday, Mersey Sport Live spoke to Adam Wild, Senior Sports Journalist at the BBC, to discuss the players to watch, the two team’s ambitions for the season, and what will be different in 2025.
St Helens have brought in three signings from the NRL for 2025, signing North Queensland Cowboys winger Kyle Feldt, talented former Brisbane Broncos prospect Tristan Sailor and English winger Lewis Murphy from the Sydney Roosters.
However, Wild believes that Jack Welsby, one of St Helens’ established first-team players, will play a crucial role as he makes the transition from talented young player to leader in the Saints squad.
Wild added: “Welsby’s in that slightly awkward situation where he’s been the rising star and he’s been the one everyone’s saying he’s going to lead the team for years to come.
“But actually now he’s one of the senior players and he needs to step up and he needs to start being one of the senior season players.”
What will be different to last season
Developments off the field could prove as influential as the Saints have brought in two highly-respected assistant coaches to support Wellens.
St Helens’ attack failed to fire in 2025 and they have brought in the highly-respected Lee Briers to get the best out of their creative talent. Former Bradford Bulls head coach, Eamon O’Carroll is tasked with drilling their defence.
Wild believes this may be as important to their prospects as their on-field recruitment.
“Paul Wellens is under quite a lot of pressure,” he said.
“The jury really is still out on him as a coach. They’ve brought in two assistants for him, both very, very competent, which clearly is a nod to the fact that they probably think he needs a bit more experience in his backroom staff.
“They’ve brought in Eamon O’Carroll, who was the head coach of Bradford Bulls until recently. He’s a very competent, no-nonsense kind of guy. And they’ve also brought in Lee Briers, who is considered one of the best up-and-coming coaches in world rugby league.”
Saints’ past success is both a blessing and a curse, as there is an expectation that they will compete at the top end of Super League every year, particularly with arch-rivals Wigan Warriors dominating the sport.
Whilst Wild believes St Helens will be more competitive in 2025, it is imperative that they get off to a fast start. Having nearly missed out on the playoffs last season, Wellens could quickly come under scrutiny from disgruntled fans.
Wild said: “I think they’ll be a lot better this season, but I think Wellens is under pressure and if they start badly, I think there could be quite a lot of pressure on him from the fans.
“Having spoken to a few fans, I think the jury is serving out on him as a coach as much as they have that respect and that they’d obviously love him.
“He was a great, great player, one of the all-time great Saints players, but whether he stepped up a bit too quickly into the head coach role, I think he knows he’s got a lot to do this season.”
Warrington Wolves – 2025 Super League Season Preview
Players to Watch
Warrington have brought in just one overseas recruit, with towering second row forward replacing Canberra Raiders-bound Matty Nicholson.
They have also signed two talented English prospects in Oli Leyland from the London Broncos and former rugby sevens player, Alfie Johnson.
According to Wild, one of their existing players could make the difference in 2025.
Scrum-half, Leon Hayes impressed at the start of last season, but had his season cut short in April by a serious ankle injury.
Wild believes that he could be like a new player for the Wolves when he returns to full fitness.
“He got a horrible injury last season, missed the second half of the season. He’s obviously been very highly rated or else he wouldn’t be going into Super League season as their number one scrum-half playing alongside Williams.
“They think very highly of him. So if they can get him fit and get him playing then he’ll be like a new player for them.”
Why things will be different
Warrington were genuine contenders for silverware last season, before producing a sub-par performance in the Challenge Cup final and suffering a narrow defeat in the playoff semi-final against Hull Kingston Rovers.
Wild believes that the experience of having suffered this double heartbreak in 2025 will stand the Wolves in good stead, along with another year under the influence of their inspirational head coach, Sam Burgess.
Wild explained: “They’ve got a good experience squad, they’ve got a brilliant leader in George Williams who’s taken over as captain this season, they’ve got a great coach, an inspirational coach.
“And I think those two key moments, that defeat to Rovers and the Challenge Cup final, because they didn’t quite turn up there. And I think those things sort of fire your ambition don’t they?
Ambitions for 2025 Super League season
Like St Helens, there is an expectation that Warrington will compete at the top end of Super League each season. Although their expectation comes from years of near misses, as opposed to consistent success.
2025 will be no different, as Warrington look to close the gap on Wigan and Hull KR having finished third last year and lost the two biggest games of the season against these two sides.
With an early season fixture against Wigan in Las Vegas on the first of March, Burgess will have an early chance to judge where his side stand against the best side in the competition. But Wild remains unconvinced that they will be able to close the gap.
“I mean this is Warrington isn’t it. Their reputation is being known as the nearly men – having a lot of expectation around them and a lot of optimism around them and not quite performing,” Wild said.
“That Vegas game will be very interesting, as a spectacle, as an event. But also as a game itself, they will be very keen to measure themselves against Wigan this year.”
To paraphrase an old saying about football, rugby league was a simple game in 2024. 26 men chase a ball around for 80 minutes and, in the end, Wigan always win.
Unfortunately for Warrington and St Helens, that appears to be the likely conclusion in 2025. But there is always hope before a ball is kicked and, both clubs have strengthened in the off-season and should be in the running for honours at the end of the season.
