Is this some kind of wind up?

What did we do to achieve that? Wigan are 80 mins away from the double and we've stunk the competition out all year and get a trophy for it?

CLUB...not team....

What did we do? (Not being negative here, just wondering what we did that elevates us above the rest this season?)

Nothing like a bit of bigging up your own club, you sure your not a Troll, from another club????




How about the fantastic effort by the club to get the stadium together, not only that, but to go the extra mile and respond to the fans by adding the cladding after the event. Have a look around SL and see how many clubs have actually made strides forwards since the last franchising on developing their stadia.

It's been a huge effort by the club and sometime I think people forget how difficult it was to do.

But never mind nothing like an excuse to have another moan.

So lets get this straight, you think we got the award for finishing off the piece of the stadium we forgot to put on last season? The stadium was done for the start of the season before this one, so it surely isn't based on that?

Isn't it awarded on academy team quality (Great, but not the best in SL), finances (Again not the best), community work (Being an out of towner, I have no idea) and team performance?

It's a recognition for the work that the CLUB has done off the field at LP. I'm sure that the recent statement made by the chairman regarding the clubs improved finances has been taken into account. And rightly so.

The continued success of the academy too. This season we have promoted more academy players into the first team than we have ever done before. It's also about the scholarship as well (which is the best in SL).

The last thing is the partnerships with Rochdale and Whitehaven. Both have been very successful.

Yes, this season has been terrible on the field in terms of the first team. But a rugby league CLUB is more than just a first team. So to say "what did we do to achieve that?", is pretty pathetic.

I'm glad we won it but not sure we deserved it and it's a funny award IMO.

To be honest if like to know what the criteria to win this award is.

Community work, academy setup, training facilities, stadium facilities , we're the best in the league by far

Which town are you from, Saddo? My guess is Wigan. Why not do the "Wigan Walk" and do us all a favour? I recommend the River Douglas - which I guess won't be far from the bridge you obviously live under......!!!

Let's give thanks to the man who's doing his best to help Saints back to the top of the game - yes, I mean Eamonn McManus and, if you think I'm still being sycophantic, does this face look bothered......??

Good news also that Danny Brough is 2013 Man of Steel. Well deserved.

Fair point, what have Saints, as a team or CLUB to achieve this over Wigan? And before you talk about roofing consider all that Wigan has acheived off the field as well as on.

Yup, Wigan have the link ups with Wales and have found several news and innovative ways to avoid adhering to the salary cap.

Leeds Rhinos won the community club of the year.
Wigan were U19's academy league leaders and champions beating Leeds 34 - 10 on Saturday in the Grand Final.

To quote the SL website: "St Helens rounded off the evening’s awards when they were named the 2013 Super League Club of the Year for their investment in developing a world class facility at Langtree Park and their continued success in the area of youth development."

We have obviously got it because we have developed a top class facility which we actually own and can play in whenever we want to, rather than being the rent boys of a football club and play when they let us. Our academy IIRC started the season very well and were blowing most other teams out of the water - sadly, the knock on effect of the injury hit season we had meant that players like Walker, Greenwood, Swift, Richards, Thompson, Hand etc have all found themselves playing first team and the academy performances suffered because of this. That said, credit must go to our youth development for the work they have done with these guys as all came in and performed very well when we needed them to.

Couple this with the fact we have formed a number of successful community partnerships, both in and out of RL, and the links with Rochdale (who have ironically just become champions of their league under guidance of one of Saints coaches) and Whitehaven and I think its well deserved.

Tbh, I don't care.

It's a meaningless award, I'm not sure why people are analysing it like we've been given the SL crown again.

It's nice recognition for the club. Leave it at that.

Not wishing to cause an argument, but only none of those players you named were eligible for the U19 academy this year.
Maybe Greenwood?

Only none? At the start of this season, Greenwood, Swift, Hand, Percival, Thompson and Richards were all 19 and under and therefore eligible to play, not to mention likes of Speakman, Charnock who have been with first team squad for a handful of games as well.

There is no argument, you are wrong. Simples

I'm pretty sure Wigan were already an A grade licence club. We where a B teatering on a C licence club. The reward is for the club doing what it said it would do.

I have no wish to bag other clubs, but in terms of moving a club forwards as a business Saints have put great efforts in on all fronts to meet what the RFL required.

Like has been said it's recognition for the club. I'm sure Wigan have had club of the year in recent years and I did not bat an eyelid about it. It's a nice award by the RFL to say thanks for putting in the effort. It's not claiming that Saints quantitively better than anyone else.

Team of the year is recognised via the following awards; the CC, LLS and GF. So there should be no confusion that on the feild matters are also rewarded.

It isn't at the start of the season it's from 1st September.

As of the previous September, Thompson, Richards, Percival were definitely under the age of 19 as all 3 are still younger than that now. As for the rest, I am sure I have seen both Swift & Greenwood play in the U19's team this season so would imagine they also were in order to be able to play. The likes of Charnock, Speakman, Tilley have also been called into the first team squad to cover injuries, as was Savelio until he got injured himself. All of these started the season as U19s so are all below that age.

Either way, at least 3 of those who I named in the original post are still under 19 now so definitely more than the "none" you stated so either way you are wrong

You never mentioned Percival, I got Richards and Thompson wrong. How many first team games did they play?

Pretty sure Percival is in there unless I am mistaken...hadnt included him on the first post (had forgotten him as he missed last part of season through injury) but definitely mentioned him

Doesnt matter how much you try to dress it up, you said none of those listed were 19 or under in your original post and the majority of them were so therefore you were wrong...just admit it

Of the six you mentioned in your original post (Walker, Greenwood, Swift, Richards, Thompson, Hand) only two were eligible for the U19 academy. So we were both wrong.


Just to balance it up the Wigan side that won the U19's final contained only two players who won't be eligible next year, and three who are U17's this year. We too had players, Hampshire, Williams, Tierney, Manfredi and Burgess who played first team this year, and also lost the U19 captain Farrell to injury halfway through the season, so you can't use that excuse for Saints not making the final.

My point was that someone said that Saints academy was the best, it is very good but still lags behind Wigan and Leeds.

But you were more wrong than I was





I wasnt meaning that was the reason Saints didnt make the final, but they started the season off very well then a combination of injuries and losing players to the first team (and as per our luck some got injured from that) which disrupted the team throughout the year and without this they would have stood a better chance.

I think Saints are up there with Wigan and Leeds in terms of academy, we have some very good talents, and a lot of younger players who are under 21 and will be first team regulars next season - biggest example being Lomax, Makinson, Jones & Swift will be 4 of our first choice back line which looks good for the future. Obviously as Wigan v Leeds was the U19 Grand Final so they would rightly be classed as the best 2 teams at that level this season but think we arent too far behind them and expect more to come through to the first team over the next year or so