Controversial St Helens coach Ian Millward today risked incurring the wrath of rugby league by sending a vastly-weakened team to Super League champions Bradford for the second time in three years.

Millward left out 11 players from the team that drew 21-21 with Wigan on Good Friday and brought in eight teenagers, including five debutants.

The outcome was a highly-predictable 11-try rout as the Bulls took the opportunity to boost their points difference and avenge their Challenge Cup fourth-round defeat. But the 15,623 crowd left largely dissatisfied after what should have been one of the highlights of the season was reduced to a farce.

Among the Saints players left out were Great Britain internationals Sean Long and Paul Sculthorpe while unknown youngsters Phil Anderton, Liam Bostock, Ian Kenny, Mike Roby and Peter Cook were brought in for their first appearances.

Millward's actions were reminiscent of his decision to rest 12 players for the corresponding game at Odsal two years ago when Saints were fined £25,000 but subsequently won an appeal.

That move came just a week before St Helens were due to meet Wigan in the Challenge Cup final and they were accused by Bulls chairman Chris Caisley of bringing the game into disrepute.

Saints' patched-up side battled hard and scored the first and last tries but in between were no match for the near full-strength champions, who ought to have won by an even bigger margin.

Brian Noble's men converted just four of their 11 tries, had three touchdowns disallowed and fluffed a host of other chances through slipshod finishing.

Saints had the audacity to take the lead when acting captain Martin Gleeson, the Great Britain centre, marked his return from injury with a third-minute try but the outcome was obvious from the start.

If the odds were not already stacked against the visitors, they faced a hopeless task after being forced to play all but nine minutes with 12 men following the dismissal of makeshift centre Jon Wilkin for a high and late tackle on Paul Deacon.

The champions were already 6-4 ahead thanks to Lee Radford's sixth-minute try, which Deacon converted from the touchline, but they lost much of their cohesion when Deacon was carried from the field.

The loss of their pivotal scrum-half meant a re-shuffle and an unaccustomed role for Michael Withers, who also took over the goalkicking duties, landing just three from 10 attempts, including an early penalty.

Right winger Tevita Vaikona twice made use of the obvious overlap to score first-half tries, the first of which brought up a century for the club and Lesley Vainikolo was equally devastating on the left flank, running over the top of full-back Ian Hardman for his 11th try of the season.

Substitute Jamie Langley and centre Shontayne Hape both grabbed further tries before half-time, when Bradford led 30-4, and Langley and Vainikolo were both denied tries by the video referee early in the second half as the Bulls lost their composure.

Vainikolo eventually claimed his second on 52 minutes and then turned provider for Hape's second before Withers followed up a kick from skipper Robbie Paul to touch down.

It was always a matter of how many tries the Bulls would score and Hape, completing his hat-trick, and Withers, with his second, added further scores before Samoan winger Dom Feaunati replied in injury time with a consolation effort for Saints.