Saints 18 Leeds Rhinos 31 TORN by off-field troubles they may be, but struggling Saints dug deep into reserves of character and commitment before finally bending the knee to the unbeaten Super League leaders.

Pride and passion - if not vital points - were restored by a revamped Saints' squad who remained in contention with Leeds until the 66th minute, when their hopes were dashed by a contentious penalty try.

After losing an early lead Saints showed splendid resolve in bouncing back from a 16-6 deficit to draw level in the second half and, having matched everything the Rhinos had thrown at them, there was more than a hint of a famous victory.

But it was not to be, and there can be little room for doubt that a Leeds side who have added steel to football skills were ultimately worthy of a win that strengthens their hold on pole position and Grand Final hopes.

Conversely the stark reality for Saints is that four victories and the same number of defeats bodes ill for staying in the top five, but there was at least a tremendous resurgence in team spirit to lift supporters' drooping spirits.

Individual citations abounded too, none more so than from non-stop hooker Keiron Cunningham who took the McEwan Lager man-of-the-match award, with Brett Goldspink and Apollo Perelini also earning their spurs up front. The Hartwell Rover accolade went to stand-off Tommy Martyn who forged a telling link with Sean Long, who was drafted into the scrum-half berth following the demotion of Bobbie Goulding.

Down the years clashes between these sides have invariably produced classics, and this one deserved that heady billing.

Saints enjoyed a dream start when Martyn, Paul Sculthorpe and Andy Haigh opened the way for Anthony Sullivan to scorch over after two minutes, but the Leeds reply was immediate when the outstanding Graham Holroyd and Iestyn Harris sent Francis Cummins in from 30 yards.

Harris converted, but Saints got on terms when Long kicked a penalty when Andy Hay was sin-binned for holding down.

However, the Rhinos were displaying a marked inclination to move the ball to Saints' right flank, and the ploy paid dividends when Holroyd's shrewd pass put Brad Godden in, and the scrum-half repeated the dose later to send the returning Hay through the same channel.

Harris added the goal to leave Saints trailing by ten points with half-an-hour gone, only for the home side to roar back when, after Goldspink had been stopped close to the try line, Martyn sent Joynt hurtling over for Long to convert.

Just 16-12 in arrears on the restart, Saints enjoyed a tremendous fillip on the restart when super-sub Karle Hammond chipped past Cummins to regather and take Harris over with him in the corner to square matters. The indefatigable Perilini and Goldspink were now in the wars as both teams exerted enormous pressure to snatch the lead, which fell to the12-man Rhinos when Darryl Powell touched down between the posts, although Leeds had the rub of the green from a dubious knock-on decision.

Long cut the Leeds advantage to 22-18 with a penalty when Harris was sin-binned for dissent, but the hammer blow soon struck for gallant Saints when Hay was awarded a penalty try after Atcheson dispossessed him in a two-man tackle.

Holroyd's conversion and a subsequent penalty and drop goal meant the game was up for Saints, but one could sense that - despite a club apparently at odds with itself - all is not lost given the true grit shown.

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