Unless the points difference changes from 26 we will go 10th.

That is a scary thought and one of the reasons I'm so irritated by people saying tonight (and the SL) doesn't matter as long as we're going to Wembley.

Getting to Wembley is fantastic and I'm thrilled but it doesn't make the SL any less important and I think the result of this game has shown that. Wigan are quite probably out of our reach in the table now and we're going to have to put in some big performances to be assured of a top 8 finish. It is totally unacceptable to finish outside the top 8. Not a single one of you can tell me honestly that you believe there are 8 teams better than us in the league and that is why we should be fighting every single week to make sure we're proving that. Not sitting back and resting on the fact we've made it to one final. I know none of us like to think it but what if we lose the final? Huddersfield are not a team to be taken lightly and it's quite possible that we won't be victorious. What then? When we've no Challenge Cup and playoff place?

A top 8 finish is vital for the club regardless of Wembley. If we want to be the cup-winning, successful side then we need to be able to focus on more than one competition at once, not sacrifice one in order to compete in the other.

Sadly we drop to 9th

Fck me sideways, finally a Warrington fan has realised this. You can't turn form on like a tap. If you lose at Wembley and don't get in the play-offs it isn't a successful season. Just look at Hull Fc last year to confirm that.

Like to think we will but cannot see us being in the top 8.Lets enjoy the wembley experience.

You do in Hull don't you?

for god nsake we are going to wembley its been a long time i was there in 74 been to long,

enjoy we will win

Probably. I learnt that trick over here though mate.

the only 2 we need to win r harlequins and wakey imo, i for 1 feel 2nite didnt av much of an effect on the outcome of the top 8, we had a very weakened side out and next week they will be back hopefully and if/when we beat wakey we will leapfrog them back to the top 8, enjoy wembley for the first time in almost 20 years

Warrington are where they are due to their dreadful start to the season.
Under Smith they are better than the three sides just above them and it would be an absolute shame should they not make the play-offs.

You can't just assume we'll beat Wakey, they've been playing some good rugby this year. If we'd have won tonight then it would have taken the pressure off for next week and it wouldn't have been such a must-win game, which is something we could have done without the week before the final.

The fact is there are 2 trophies available, we are in the final of 1 of them, so let's not be too harsh on them.

It was always going to be difficult to win tonight, and I think it was the right decision to not take any risks over fitness. If anyone had an injury leave them out.

Our big focus now needs to be to go for the big wins over Wakey and Quins, which will hopefully see us into the 8.

If we finish 9th, then tbh, I would take that, a final appearance, especially after our poor start to the year is a positive result. Under Smith next year we need to get off to a good start, rather than the shocking first couple of months this year which has ultimately cost us in the SL, even if we make the 8.

If we dont make the top 8 our season will still be seen as a failure IMO even if we do win the challenge cup we had a good cup season but league wise we cannot be coming outside the top 8

I'm not trying to be harsh on the team, my posts are more aimed at the fans who are saying the league isn't important, which I don't agree with.

Nonsense.

If we win the Challenge Cup, it will be our most succesful season for decades.

But that still doesn't take away from our need to finish in the top 8. you cannot honestly say there are 8 teams better than us? We should be fighting to make sure we win these next two league games.

That's a seperate issue to the point I was responding to with this post.

I absolutely want us to finish in the top 8, and we are still in with a good chance. I want a full team next week, and want us to get a good win against Wakefield, which will probably put us in the 8th, and put us on a high for the final.

The two home games are realistic wins for us, and that should be enough to see us in there.

Us with a full strength team in the playoffs can be a threat.

If you win the CC you will be grinning far too much to deem the season a failure. Its one thing to say it but I doubt many could really feel too down after drunken victory at a very sunny Wembley.

I'm gonna squint all the way through and pretend its Leigh

Will you be supporting Wigan to beat Cas next week then so Wire can get in the top 8?



Nah seriously I think you should be pleased that Warrington didn't collapse to a 50+ points defeat last night because at 36-4 it was well on the cards. Those two late tries are priceless on your points difference and you've had a big favour in Castleford's points difference being wasted. I think if you don't win next week though you'll have to pin all your hopes on the cup final.

Yes you're right but if we miss out on the eight it will be because of our dreadful start, losing 5 on the trot including against Cats, Harlequins and Wakefield, three sides with whom we're now competing to get in the eight. From that nadir, winning the cup and finishing ninth can rightly be seen as a successful season - but we've got to win the cup first.

Who honestly thought that we would win last night ??

Wembley
9 first teamers missing
Opposition hurting badly

Of course we should make the 8, but as many have pointed out we didn't start the season until April while the rest kicked off in February.

We can also go to HKR and win, they may be established in 4th by then and rest players ??

In any non-Warrington game I'm always cheering the team to win that benefits the Wire most. If that's Wigan next week then GO PIES!







I don't think it's entirely fair to say that a bad start to the season has cost us the 8 (if we finish outside it). We've had plenty of games since then that we should have, and didn't, win. We lost Salford away and Castleford at home in April. We've lost to Bradford at home in June and they are all (arguably) games we should have won. There are also other games which we've been capable of winning which we haven't. We're not the only team to have a bad start to the season and in the past this has not stopped other teams finishing in the top 6. This year 6 has become 8 so we should have no excuse.

If that was under Cullen, with the lack of backbone we had, 50+ easily. I've seen our very best, first team get plenty of 40's put on them there.

I seriously dont think we will make the playoffs which is a great shame and a massive underachievement considering it is now the top eight.

The board should take the blame for that as it was the board that installed Jimmy Lowes as head coach when we all knew he wasn't head coach material.

It looks like all our eggs are in one basket for this season - The Challenge Cup. Huddersfield wont be easy though and look likely favourites what with their recent form and league position.

I think we're guilty of almost, how can I put it, continually looking back on this forum, and not enjoying what's ahead. Yes, we kept Cull too long. Yes, Lowes couldn't cut it as a head coach, but we've got to where we are now, with a fantastic set up, a quality head coach who's here for a minimum of two more years, a structure under him that I have great belief in, a team that's visibly growing in front of your eyes, some quality recruits on the way, and oh, our first final appearance in 19 years.

Brilliant.

I'm sick of wondering if we'd got Smith then or If he'd had a preseason with 'em or this or that, we didn't, get over it. We've made strides this season, we've made strides excluding results, in terms of how our club is perceived, we're certainly not as frail anymore, we're 'mentally tougher' and that should stand us in good stead for tasks ahead. If we make the eight great, if we don't as a consequence of Wembley, I'll take that.

Then we'll enter territory of Smith having a pre season, and some serious, serious belief that we can progress next year, maybe the past, maybe our belief was in fact built around hope, next year, we should have more solid foundations to found our belief on.