SAINTS boss Kristian Woolf hailed the resilience his side showed to beat Huddersfield 25-0 despite having Sione Mata'utia sent off in the opening quarter.

Morgan Knowles was also sin-binned, meaning Saints finished with 11 men but they kept the Giants out with a resolute and determined defenc.

The win strengthens Saints' grip on the top of the table with eight regular rounds to go.

Woolf said: "I couldn't be more proud of the effort.

"I thought they were outstanding.

"We had a great energy about us from the start and, when we had the red card, we found another gear and we had to. The effort always shows through your defence.

"We made sure they didn't find points and, when they got on the outside, we scrambled really hard. That type of performance will help us at the back end of the year."

Mata'utia was given his marching orders by referee Chris Kendall after 16 minutes for lifting Giants hooker Danny Levi as he lay injured on the ground.

"I understand where we're going there but we've not quite got it right," Woolf said. "It's not even a high shot to start with.

"Blokes are lying on the ground trying to milk penalties and we're reacting or over-reacting to that. We've just got to get these decisions right."

Huddersfield coach Ian Watson said of the red card: "I thought it was harsh but the rule is you can't touch an injured player. Danny got a two-match ban for touching someone's collar earlier in the season."

Watson wants his side to be as good Saints.

He said: "First of all I thought Saints were outstanding. It looked like we were a man down.

"In the first half we were fine, we worked hard and did the right things, we just didn't execute the shots we had but that's down to them.

"I thought their crowd lifted, they gave them that energy to defend their goal line.

"In the second half we just got rolled and that's a massive pat on the back for St Helens. We've got to be as good as them."