Paul Wellens hints at major Tristan Sailor decision ahead of crucial Catalans clash
Tristan Sailor could be moved to the wing on Thursday.
St Helens coach Paul Wellens has reinforced his backing for Tristan Sailor – but concedes he could permanently move him to the wing, starting on Thursday evening against Catalans Dragons.
Sailor has endured a difficult start to life in Super League, playing across a number of positions without much success. He started 2025 at half-back before reverting to fullback in recent weeks.
However, at Magic Weekend, Sailor was switched to the wing during the first half of the Saints’ defeat to Leeds Rhinos, with Jon Bennison the unfortunate man to make way to facilitate the change.
And Wellens admitted he could persist with that change on Thursday as he continues to look for his ideal spine. He said: “It’s certainly an option. When he went out there he acquitted himself really well.”
Wellens has defended Sailor on multiple occasions so far this season and he has again reiterated his support for the 26-year-old.
“He’s a dangerous player, there’s no getting away from it,” Wellens said.
“We’ve asked a lot of Tristan from him settling into a new lifestyle and building combinations with team-mates. He’s quickly understanding the standards and expectation that come with representing a club like St Helens.”
Wellens defended his decision to make the change to his spine mid-game: the second successive match in which he has done so.
“What I will say is that there’s no magic button or magic formula,” he said.
“What we’ve had is a real benefit of being able to get some really productive work into our training sessions. We feel that as I sit here, we’ve benefitted immensely in terms of wanting to work hard and put things right.
“I accept you don’t want to change things structurally through the 80 minutes but I have a responsibility to feel as though the team is performing the right way.
“It was a harsh call on Jon to remove him from the game because the kid was doing nothing wrong. I felt like we needed to make a decision to change that and that’s what I did. I’ll live and die by those decisions.”
