St Helens claimed opening-night bragging rights against fierce rivals Wigan Warriors, kicking off the new Super League season with a 22-12 home win over the defending champions.

Saints were the standout team of 2018 with 26 wins from 30 league games, but Justin Holbrook's men then suffered a shock semi-final defeat to Warrington Wolves, who were in turn beaten by Wigan in the Grand Final.

The Warriors were dealt a blow on the eve of this year's campaign when they received a two-point penalty, subject to appeal, for salary cap breaches in 2017.

And their first game under Adrian Lam, who has succeeded the long-serving Shaun Wane as head coach, ended in defeat after they were out-scored by four tries to two on a bitterly cold Thursday night.

Defensive errors proved costly for Wigan in a fast-paced encounter that seemingly benefited significantly from Super League's new shot clock, with three of Saints' four tries eminently preventable.

Kevin Naiqama needed less than two minutes to mark his debut with a touchdown after brushing off a weak tackle from Dan Sarginson, before Dominique Peyroux beat Joe Greenwood all too easily to break the line and lay on a score for Jonny Lomax.

Wigan were level before half-time as Ben Flower powered over and Liam Marshall registered an 85-metre interception score, full-back Zak Hardaker converting both on his competitive debut for the Warriors following a drugs ban.

However, Saints were not to be denied and an acrobatic finish from Regan Grace restored their lead prior to James Roby, who signed a contract extension earlier this week, sealing victory with a trademark sniping finish from dummy half that should have been stopped.