St Helens 46-6 Castleford: Ben Barba on fire for Saints in lop-sided Super League opener
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Ben Barba provided a dazzling reminder of his talent as St Helens laid down an early marker by putting Castleford to the sword.
Full-back Barba had shown glimpses of the form that made him the NRL’s best player in five appearances at the end of last season.
By his own admission he had yet to fully find his feet - but this was certainly a step in the right direction.
Barba touched down twice and created four other tries, including a hat-trick for England centre Mark Percival.
It was more than enough to account for a disappointing Tigers side who have not won away at St Helens since 1992.
1. Tale of two Bens
There was plenty of pre-match focus on opposing full-backs Ben Barba and Ben Roberts for differing reasons.
Saints star Barba is being widely tipped as a potential Man of Steel after showing flashes of his genius at the end of last season.
Roberts has the pressure of replacing a former Man of Steel in suspended Zak Hardaker for the Tigers.
It’s fair to say that man of the match Barba came out on top.
The home full-back touched down twice and had a hand in everything his side did well, as well as dumping last year’s top try scorer Greg Eden into touch when he threatened to break away.
Roberts made a couple of notable errors including a knock-on close to his own line and allowing a Jonny Lomax 40/20 on a tough night for the Tigers.
(Image: Getty Images Europe)
2. James Roby is a natural St Helens captain
That was never really in doubt, given Roby’s influence at the club for over a decade.
But in his first match as new skipper - and his 400th for the club - the England hooker showed all the right qualities to lead Justin Holbrook’s team this year.
As industrious and effective as ever, Roby epitomised the phrase leading his side from the front.
Can he lead Saints all the way this season?
(Image: Getty Images Europe)
3. Questions for Castleford
Of course, this is only week one of the season, and to read too much into 80 minutes of action would be folly.
But having been so dominant during the regular campaign last year, the manner of this defeat was at the very least a wake-up call for Daryl Powell’s men.
They had precious little opportunity to showcase the thrilling style they displayed in 2017, due to being dominated up front, and made uncharacteristic mistakes with the ball.
Powell will be looking for an immediate response against Widnes a week on Sunday.
(Image: Getty Images Europe)
4. No World Cup blues
Mark Percival certainly isn’t dwelling on his World Cup disappointment on this evidence.
The left centre was reduced to a bit part role in Wayne Bennett’s squad, featuring only in the group match against France.
But from the moment he split the Castleford defence to send Barba away for the opening try, Percival looked in the mood.
He finished with a hat-trick of tries - all from Barba passes - and the duo could form one of Super League’s deadliest combinations this year.
5. Hope for the future
In an era where the bemoaning of a lack of homegrown half-backs is common, having two rising young stars line up against each other was a mouth-watering prospect.
Danny Richardson doubtless came out on top of any head-to-head assessment against Jake Trueman, but both players have a bright future.
Richardson linked well with Jonny Lomax and Ben Barba throughout, converted seven of Saints’ eight tries and displayed a quality and varied kicking game.
That’s a quality that teenager Trueman undoubtedly shares, although he found the going tougher.
With his side on the back foot he made handling errors before being withdrawn with a 68th minute injury, though he never wavered in his efforts.
Hopefully both players continue to get opportunities throughout the 2018 campaign.