1. Saturday's dead-rubber clash between at Warrington was supposed to be a placid, largely pointless affair. Well if that is the sort of game that happens when there's nothing riding on it, then just wait till they light the touch paper a week on Thursday when a place at Old Trafford is up for grabs.

There was plenty of needle - maybe a bit too much, with a few incidents like the unnecessary flop on Danny Richardson, quite a few second after he had been tackled into touch, and the shot on James Bentley going unpunished.

But it was pleasing to see the Saints pack, featuring a cluster of young forwards, physically stand its ground in what is always a tough battle.

2. There was a bit of half time and full time discussion about Matty Lees' knee catching Tyrone Roberts' head for which he was punished with a yellow card. Just like Sean O'Loughlin's knee that concussed Ryan Morgan a few weeks ago - it was an accident - something that happens in a high-intensity, physical game. It certainly did not need escalating by players running in, especially while the injured player was still prone. And it certainly did not need him getting his card marked as some kind of bad boy.

In the context of the game it came in the run some aggressive tackling from Saints, paying Warrington back in kind for their aggressive stint a few sets previously.

As for Mark Percival being binned for running in - no he shouldn't - but look at the footage and the blue shirts that had already beaten him to it on top of Lees.

Are we saying that if players run in and create a melee then that turns the initial contact into something worse than it was?

3. Seeing a flurry of three yellows was just like the old days of feisty Saints v Warrington clashes.

Older readers will remember the the Lancashire Cup game at Knowsley Road in 1983 when Wire had three players carded, with Saints' Steve Peters and Roy Haggerty joining them for an early bath.

On top of that Wire had a couple of yellows too, but Saints remarkably still managed to lose.

4. Saturday saw another top drawer display from Jonny Lomax. Whether it was his body-on-the-line tackles on big man Ben Murdoch-Masila or his creativity and scoring prowess with the ball, Lomax was immense.

Given all the challenges he has overcome as a player - whether that is serious long term injuries or being displaced from his position - Lomax would be a deserving candidate in more ways than one for a Steve Prescott Man of Steel nomination.

5. How good was it to see Ben Barba back running in tries with a smile on his face. We saw that from the off, with him back to beating that man on the edge again to set up the attack.

Whatever the future holds, now those niggles are done with Barba looks like he's upped his game for when it matters. Saints will need the dimension he brings to win the semi final and lift silverware at Old Trafford.

6. And finally, after 16 seasons in a red vee we are suddenly running out of games to value the contribution made by Jon Wilkin.

One of the old heads in a youngish pack on Saturday, Wilkin provided plenty of guile, aggression and leadership in the win over Warrington. He is clearly a player who wants to sign off in style - and after missing out with injury in 2014, let us hope he gets the chance to deliver one last time at Old Trafford next month.