St. Helens RLFC recently trained at St. George’s Park in preparation for their Betfred Super League play-off semi-final fixture, having been left with a week off after the end of the regular season.
During their time at the Staffordshire facility, the Saints utilised the world-class pitches, high-performance gym and elite recovery facilities; all in close proximity to the on-site Hilton Hotel.
Of their experience at St. George’s Park, St. Helens Head of Performance, Matt Daniels, said: “The hotel in close proximity to the elite facilities provided us with a base for the team to interact closely with each other, as well as providing a logistically smooth transition into the required training modality.
“The athlete flow of the facilities enabled the us to provide a first-class performance and recovery-based package over the three-day stay.
“The pitch we used was excellent and the ground staff ensured that the markings had been completed to our exact specifications.
“The staff played a pivotal role in ensuring we could implement a smooth and successful performance package for the players. We had a great deal of communication pre-camp, but also with the adjustment of timings during our stay.
“The overall experience was extremely positive; both players and staff departed feeling that the camp was extremely successful and met the goals we set out prior to booking.”
St. Helens’ preparations were not in vain, as they ran out 19-12 winners against Salford Red Devils in the semi-finals, before then beating Leeds Rhinos 24-12 in the grand final on Saturday 24 September.
Source: The Football Association