Mate,

We are big underdogs for this final.

I think most people outside of Saints fans think the writing is on the trophy for Leeds already.

I'm happy with that.....

The spirit of 99 can be recreated.

We can't use that excuse anymore. Leeds would be far worse affected by rain than we would. It's not like we throw it around anymore.

Lol nice overplaying of the underdogs tag.

Of course you are underdogs, but to suggest people outside of saints think leeds name is on the trophy, or that it is anyway comparable to bulls 99 when they beat you by 40, 2 weeks earlier is laughable.

Leeds were bigger underdogs last year.

For some reason you guys over being underdogs but in reality it has little impact on the game and you have won as many finals as favourites as you have as underdogs.

I think you are right here.

Traditionally, rain is a leveller. As Leeds are clearly the better side at the moment then such weather would be a help for us.

As you rightly point out, times have changed and now we are strictly a five drives and a kick team (or more appropriately, five drives and a stand around looking confused on the last tackle, side) then it's certainly more likely to affect a team that moves the ball about more like Leeds do.

If they were, they should not have been. Our form hasn't been bad for months now, it's been terrible.

That 1999 side was in significantly better form than this one, as we had played some great stuff in destroying Leeds and Cas in the play offs either side of the Bradford debacle.

Your form isn't as bad as you make out when you've just beaten 2 quality sides to make the grand final.

Your form, especially in defence is pretty good.

I don't think anyone denies you are underdogs.

But the way your fans go on you would think there are odds of 100000-1 on you winning the grand final, and then if you do win you can claim it as one of the great back to the wall victories, blah blah blah.

Without a doubt we are underdogs for this game and rightly so. Leeds are the form team and Saints have been stuttering along for the last three months

I was confident and had a lot of faith in winning in 07 and was disappointed we didn't win, especially the margin of the defeat. 08, I was more than confident in us winning until it started to rain. Then I knew we had no chance.

Saturday if the weathers fine, Saints are in with a chance.

The key on Saturday is Saints have to have the ability to control the ball for more than 50 percent of the game and that is a must if they want to win.

Finals where I believe we were favourites and lost:

Vs Halifax - 1987
Vs Wigan - 2002
Vs Leeds - 2007
Vs Leeds - 2008

Add the CC semi finals against Hull and Huddersfield in 2005 and 2009 respectively...

Finals where I believe we were favourites and won:

Vs Bradford - 1996
vs Wigan 2004
Vs Hull - 2006
Vs Huddersfield 2006
Vs Catalans 2007
Vs Hull 2008

Finals where I believe we were underdogs and won:

Vs Bradford 1999
Vs Wigan 2000

Isn't this the year we went to JJB in the Play Offs and put 54 on them? I think we had to be favourites going into that Grand Final

1999 definitely and for me possibly 2002

Whatever the bookies or "experts" say is pretty irrellevant we all know the best 2 teams are in the final and it can go either way.
There's a lot of emotion attached to both squads and we all know there's no love lost either.
Am i confident of 3 in a row?? Absolutely but that doesn't mean that i would be surprised if saints won either.

Yes,

But they were the league leaders in that year IIRC....

The bookies are very rarely wrong but in this instance I think there is very little in it and the outcome will be decided on some small incidents or mistakes.

It would be an incredible achievement to make a third straight win over a team who have been consistently the best side in SL over the past decade bar none so I think the chances favour Saints on this occassion.

Having said that Bluey is a master at the mind games and the psycholigical aspects of getting a team to perform at the right time.

Injuries may well play a part this year and we need a full team on the park so far Webb Bailey Lauititi on the treatment coach.

I suspect a couple of yours are playing with knocks so it may well balance things out.

Looking forward to a close game and may the best team win ( and the losers take it like true RL sportsmen).

You are quite correct - we lost to them at home in the last game of the season to lose top spot. I just think the momentum from Wide to West and the subsequent tonking we gave them on their own pitch made us favourites that year.

This year is hopefully going to be a belter, i'm just glad we are involved after the supposed crisis year we've had.

The two teams are hardly lovers of each other, there are niggles between several individuals across the park, Saints probably feel there are a few scores to settle and we do owe them at least one GF win.

It should be a rough, tough & hopefully clean-ish contest (don't mind a bit of biff but don't want fighting to spoil the spectacle) & the best team on the day will out.

You obviously haven't been watching us play much, although you are right about the defence.

We haven't beaten two quality sides. We beat Huddersfield and Wigan who are both very, very average. The standard of the third placed and below sides in Super League is pretty dismal, in my opinion, and if we had been anywhere near the side we were last year both would have been hammered.

If we win this, it will be on a par with that of 1999. No doubt about it. With ball in hand, I can never remember us being as out of sorts as we are now. I'm just hoping that for eighty minutes it can just click into place. Early season performances do suggest that it's still possible.

I hope we can play like we did v's Cas away



Brian had a blinder

We've been scratchy to say the least of late but our pack seems to have got its game in order over the last couple of weeks, and I'm pretty confident we can match it with Leeds in this department. Also our defence has been very well organised and we can be confident about that.

Everyone knows Leeds have a pace advantage over us, but I think the key area we need to improve is in our last tackle plays, which have been shocking this season. We're really letting our opposition off the hook by panicking on the last and getting caught in possession or putting in stupid kicks. If we can get the ball into the in-goal area and win some repeat sets then I'm confident our attack will look after itself. If we make the same errors we'll invite Leeds onto us, and we won't be able to hold them out for sustained periods like we did Wigan and Hudds.

We will win this, and we will win it with style. I'm fully confident for one reason.....

Saints want it more than Leeds.

Err..where`ve you been the last 3 years......



I am emailing this to BLuey he cah post it on the dressing room door.

That's pretty much it and it's quite surprising given Catalans, under Potter, were one of the best teams in terms of last tackle options. Our intelligence close to the goal line has gone out of the window.

The former point is irrelevant because we've beaten them in spite of that a number of times before. It's your second point which is the key IMO. I think Potter has royally screwed them up either through necessity (to try and find a way around the slower PTBs, which have ruined our natural game) or because he's a naff coach. I can't see us sorting it by Saturday night myself as we hadn't managed it even after two weeks of match-free practice (although at least we don't bump into each other anymore). It looks like we are going to have to defend like our lives depend on it and live out the adage that defence wins games. Anderson would be jumping up and down with glee!

Dont post crap like that!

It has been shocking, and shown no signs of getting any better. Had we have lost against Wigan, it would have been the primary reason. Our outstanding defence has helped us get to the final, but you feel we have to do more offensively if we are to stand a chance against leeds in the final.

Wigan in contrast, had Tomkins putting the ball consistently in the right places on the last tackle. How many drop outs did we end up defending in the end?

This is wishful thinking on your behalf mate! Last year was a real example of people thinking it was a done deal before kick off!

everyone knows these sides are even and I can tell you nobody will be announcing it as a forgone conclusion on this side of the 62 like vagas did on tv last year.

I think the general feeling amongst rl fans who know owt about the game is it's too close to call

it could be tight as or a blow out like 07 for either team.

TBH I'm not under an illusions, i think it will be tight. Last year everone had written us off after you hammered us at Knowsley Road, so the boys wanted to show they were the side they are.

2 straight defeats on the run in means nothing, we've had that and more this year. Pundits seem to be going with you guys as favourites, with the 3 finals in a row thing being a big motivational point.

As for my prediction, i think if the 'real' rhinos who we saw second half v KR, 10 minutes either side of half time v Catalans turn up, we should win. But if the numpties we saw in the rest of those two matches show up, it'll be a long evening.