St Helens coach lifts lid on Jacob Douglas loan return as admission made on youngster’s future

St Helens boss Paul Rowley admits they did not want Jacob Douglas to line up against them this weekend, with no decision made yet on whether the off-season recruit will head back out on loan.

Douglas – who only turned 22 in March – joined Saints from arch rivals Wigan Warriors ahead of the 2026 campaign.

Putting pen to paper on a three-year deal as he made the move over Billinge Hill, the outside-back agreed a season-long loan deal with Huddersfield Giants at the back end of March.

Scoring two tries in four appearances, his loan was brought to an abrupt end earlier this week, with Saints going up against the Giants on Thursday night in Super League action.

But Douglas, who still awaits his debut for Saints, has not been named in Paul Rowley’s 21-man squad: and will not feature.

St Helens coach lifts lid on Jacob Douglas loan return as admission made on youngster’s future

Notably, Huddersfield have drafted in winger Lee Kershaw on a short-term loan deal from Hull KR, and he will line up against them on Thursday night at the Accu Stadium rather than their own man in Douglas.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon, Red V head coach Rowley explained: “Ultimately, we didn’t want Jacob playing against us, and Huddersfield have brought in a loan player there, so they’ve covered that spot.

“Huddersfield felt that they were comfortable and strong enough without him, so that’s ended for now, and we’ll take it as it comes further down the road.

“He’s trained with us today and he’ll play in the reserves this week with a few of the other boys.”

Douglas played a total of eight games at first-team level for Wigan, and now has 25 senior appearances on his CV having donned a shirt as a loanee for Whitehaven, Oldham, Bradford Bulls and Barrow Raiders prior to this year.

He has scored eight tries in those 25 appearances, including a Super League hat-trick last term for Wigan against Salford Red Devils.

A decision is still to be made by Saints as to whether he will be allowed to head back out on loan after this week, with Rowley confirming: “If this season’s taught us anything, it’s that we can’t make any predictions.

|First and foremost, we’ll get Dougy back in and integrated back with the lads.

“He’s a great lad, it’s good to have him back around, and we’ll take it from there without any significant plans laid down in concrete just yet.

“He works hard, he’s fitted in really well and he’s popular. We’re more than happy with what Dougy’s been doing.”