Mark Percival reflects on changing role in 10 years at Saints

A decade after forcing his way into the first team as a pacy 18-year-old with a good eye for space and equipped with a Matt Gidley flick pass, Percival’s biggest value to the team in recent years has been his willingness to take the toughest of yardage carries.

Despite his slender build, Percival’s willingness to repeatedly hit the ball into a thick defensive wall of muscle and bone with little thought for the personal consequences has been a key component of Saints’ recent glory years.

Purists may not like the switch from the rapier to the sledgehammer, but the work the back five does in sparking that go-forward makes a huge contribution in a sport that is ultimately built decided by the territory battle.

It is a role that Percival has bought into wholeheartedly – even it is one that is tougher and less glamourous one performed by previous Saints centres.

Percival said: “When I was first coming up it was all about the flick pass and the tries you can set up and how many breaks you can make – and I used to love all that and tried to do that, having watched Jamie Lyon and Matt Gidley as a kid.

“But the game has just changed. It is all about the back five getting your sets started and if you do that well you can put another team in a pretty dark hole.

“I don’t get as much good ball now, as in running out wide. It is just the way it – my job now is running hard and doing my job for the team because the respect I get from my teammates means more to me than scoring a try or making a break.

“If it means running in, getting your heads taken off so be it – but that tough stuff gets the respect of your mate beside you. That is where we are now.

“It is not just Saints. If you watched the Australia v New Zealand World Cup game there was not much in the way of free flowing shapes out the back, it was all about kicking into a corner and winning the territory and then putting your plays on.

“It takes time to do that. You have to run hard first and that is what we at Saints do well and pride ourselves on doing it longer than any other team.”

Percival shirks none of that physicality on either side of the ball; rugby league thrives on the bravery of its combatants but on occasion the 28-year-old Widnesian’s willingness to put his body on the line has ended up costly.

One such occasion was the February 2020 game against Warrington, when Saints were struggling to arrest the Wolves momentum – prompting Percival to single-handedly attempted to meet 18st 8 Tongan powerhouse Ben Murdoch-Masila head on.

Percival explained: “I flew out and tried to put a shot on Murdoch-Masila – I don’t know why I did that.

“Something felt funny in my shoulder, but I got through to half time. When I went back out and tried to hit Anthony Gelling it went worse so had to come off.

“The scan showed I had fractured my shoulder and my ribs and had a bleed behind my sternum. I had to wait for my surgery because the bleed was too bad.”

But that toughness is just part of the Percival DNA, he has plenty of more strings to his bow – elements that were spotted at a young age by Academy coach Derek Traynor while watching the future star playing for Halton Farnworth under 14s against Blackbrook.

He worked his way up through the Saints system, twice touring Australia with the Saints Academy tour and then the England Academy.

And aged 18, Nathan Brown handed him a debut at home to reigning Super League champions Leeds.

And he immediately caught the eye, with his dashing runs and confidence demonstrating the old adage that if you are good enough, you are old enough.

“My Leeds debut was probably the best game I have played in.

“I was up against the experienced centre Carl Ablett and I was quiet in the first half but second half made about four breaks and a couple of try assists.

“I came off and couldn’t believe what had happened. I came off thinking that was amazing – I want to do that again,” Percival said.

And so he did, as he focused on his own game in a tough transitional year for Saints, until he was advised to have a shoulder operation.

Although handed the 22 number for the 2014 campaign, but was effectively the starting centre in a year that saw him win his first Grand Final.

It was a game that taught him a lot about what success meant for St Helens – and vowed never to take it for granted.

“We were underdogs because we had no half backs and had players out of position but when Ben Flower got sent off I thought this is ours to lose.

“Realistically we should beat them with 12 men, but then it was tight as anything and because we had no halves, we struggled to break them down.

“We played the game well and saw the game out.

“It was the best feeling I ever had, winning that first one because you think ‘I’ll never win one of these again’ because it was so hard to do.

“I had the belief I could, but I thought best cherish it just in case.

“But seeing Wello and Robes so happy afterwards made me think even more about what we had just done.

“They had tried for five years and got beat at the biggest stage and it must have killed them.”

But it would be another five years until Saints would win another Grand Final – with a couple of semi-final defeats and a Wembley loss particularly stinging.

But that run was broken after they suffocated Salford in the 2019 finale at Old Trafford – the start of four-in-a-row.

And the hunger remains – and now the target is number five, something the players are back working towards.

The international centre feels he is in his prime years and has set his sights fixed on the future, citing the form of thirty somethings Jonny Lomax, James Roby and Tommy Makinson.

Percival said: “We are back in now and there’s no difference with our attitude, everyone still striving to get fit and start the season and defend what we have got.

“I don’t see why we can’t do it again. You can see the hunger is still there in training.

“I am hungry to do more because even though I played in another final I still didn’t have the season I wanted. I played 15 games in a row and was thinking I could play every game and then my knee happened.

“I know how much I can still give to the team still.

“I still feel young and have a lot of drive and want to look after my body and still be playing good rugby till I am 34/35.

“I am 28 now coming in to potentially my prime years, if you look at Tommy and Jonny have played their best rugby over the past four years as well. I am hoping I can replicate that.”

The time has flown, and Percival’s benefit year will give an opportunity to reflect on his contribution over this 10-year spell – one that has seen him graduate from young gun to a vocal leader.

Despite his success he remains a grounded and grateful for the support he has received along the way, whether that is from family, junior coaches, teammates or fans.

Percival said: “The support the fans showed me coming through as a kid was massive because they believed in me.

“I loved playing in front of them and a soon as I played my first game at home I got a good reaction. That made me want it more and play well for them.

“You want to play well for the fans because they pay your wages at the end of the day and they are all great people.

“I am still sat here 10 years on, five times champions and with a Challenge Cup and more to give I feel quite privileged and honoured really.