Wellens leads St Helens to Bradford win

Paul Wellens scored four tries as St Helens proved that there is life after Sean Long to produce a devastating display to beat the Bradford Bulls 38-6. Eyebrows were raised when the Saints allowed Long to join Hull in the winter, and those concerns seemed to be well placed as he condemned his former employers to a humiliating 32-12 opening night defeat last weekend. Mick Potter's men responded in style, although their cause was helped by an often shambolic display from the Bulls who failed to justify their heavy winter investment for a second week running.

Steve McNamara's side were beaten by Huddersfield in their opening match and were horribly off the pace, missing numerous tackles and failing to apply any serious pressure to the Saints defence as the visitors cut loose. St Helens, for whom Wellens excelled and Kyle Eastmond, Long's replacement, ended with a haul of 18 points, were good value for the win. Will Sharp helped himself to a hat-trick of tries as Harlequins hauled themselves off the foot of the table with a much-needed win over 12-man Catalans Dragons.

Sharp grabbed all three Quins tries as the London side won 16-4, their first victory of the season in a hard-fought contest that saw David Ferriol dismissed late on. "Will is much more than just a fast bloke," said Brian McDermott, the Quins coach. "He is a bit of a freak really and he does things other players cannot. "He is like a cat - you can throw him around or up in the air and he always seems to land on his feet."

Wakefield Wildcats were 28-18 winners over Leeds Rhinos in last night's late game. * With agencies