Saints 4 Huddersfield 40.

SAINTS’ life under Nathan Brown got off to a nightmare start at Langtree Park with Huddersfield comprehensively outplaying them in every aspect of the game to claim their first win on St Helens soil since 1978.

Giants’ big pack gave a dominant display, bossing the Saints six and allowing halves Danny Brough and Luke Robinson to control the game.

And outside them, Saints had no answer when Giants shifted the ball to their pacy three-quarter line.

Saints never got a foothold in the game, and the longer it progressed and the more the Giants scoreline widened by twos, fours or sixes – the more they ended up chasing the game.

In the end it became embarrassing, with Saints only saved from the ultimate disgrace of being nilled at home for the first time since 1982 by a late Mark Flanagan try.

Jermaine McGilvary zipped down the right wing to open Huddersfield’s account on five minutes, goaled by Brough.

They doubled that lead when Brett Ferres barged through from close range, with Brough gaoling and then adding a penalty.

Leroy Cudjoe again showed great pace to add another, with another brace from Brough’s boot making it 22-0 at the break.

Any hopes that Saints would get a foothold back in the game were soon dashed within six minute with Luke George crossing.

It did not get any easier for the home fans in the 12,003 crowd with further soft tries from Larne Patrick from a speculative punt, and one from Shaun Lunt from a blindside scrum move.

Then from a Francis Meli knock-on Cudjoe picked up to cross for another.

In the end it took a Flanagan try on 75 minutes to save some of Saints’ blushes, but that could not disguise an awful start which they will have to learn and move on from next week.