I'd agree with what most on here have said.

As brilliant as it is to be Champions, winning back to back Challenge Cups is a fantastic achievement.

Who have we had to beat? You are kidding aren't you? Last year we had to beat Wigan in the Semis and this year we had Leeds, the (debatably now I grant you but) best team in SL in the final? Think about what you are saying please.

Of course winning the GF and SL is special. Of course I would love Warrington to win both. Frankly I am happy for us to win ANYTHING. Beats an empty cabinet.

I think I am old school though. Having watched the Wire for over 20 years, the CC and Wembley will always be special. I still get goosebumps when I remember that journey, that game and that win. Incidently I think it is Wembley that 'makes it'. The years when the CC was played elsewhere didin't appear to have the same magic?

In all honesty why compare. A winner's medal is a winner's medal. The Warrington players do have 2 back to back ones to clean however?

Could that be because we didn't compete in any of those finals? I wonder what people would answer to this question if we appeared in and lost both finals next year, or even lost one and won the other?

Probably cos I'm a bit younger so wasn't around for all the Wigan dominance in the CC. But for me the GF means a hell of a lot more, but as I say thats just me.

I agree though, both are very special. My point is though which (as a player) would you feel looking back on your career as a greater achievement?



Wigan who were a poor side last year. Leeds who haven't been the best this year.

But for what its worth, I don't think anyone could have beaten you in either cup.

C C ,you win 6 games some against very low league competitors and get a trophy. The G F means you have to win at least 15 games (nearer 2 dozen in Wigans case)to get to the play off stage then win another 2 or 3 against the top 8 teams in Europe to be crowned winners !!! No comparison.

Spot on



Winning the Challenge Cup is a special acheivement but winning the Grand Final can not be put in the same bracket?

I'd rather win one Grand Final than 5 Challenge Cups

I'd rather be SuperLeague Champions. Mind you, Back to Back CC winners is awesome too.

It is a point because Old Trafford never sells out for the Grand Final, so it wouldn't matter if it could hold 100,000.

Before we'd been to Wembley and won the cup, I'd have chosen Wembley everytime. Now we've done it twice, I'd happily swap Wembley for a third time for a Grand Final. As Bondi says, neither us nor Wigan should be jealous of one another as we've both achieved great things this season.

Or alternatively, to win the CC you cannot lose a match. Whereas to win the GF, you can lose a fair few on the way.

to be fair i got carried away putting "on the bounce". I had thought you had won more titles in "total" in that 80's-90's period but on research that isnt true at all so i apologise,
However I suppose it emphasises the significance of Wembley as it is clearly your wembley wins that give you the reason to put the quote about Wigan being the most famous club in World RL in your sig...is it not...

surely Wigans most famous ever game is the 85 final against Hull and your most famous Wingers, most famous Moment was his wembley try against leeds.

could you for example name the season you lost only twice in the League and both times it was to Warrington......(without google or a Rothmans yearbook)?? not a chance

I think you know that I also meant to say you havent Won at wembley for Fifteen long hurtful years i'm sure the 2002 win somewhere less memorable may have softened the blow...

however it was a tardy post but still did a job in the current scheme of "Wigan fans rubbishing Wembley" era

correct..... and you can still lose in the knockout Section and have another go.... they seem to brush this to one side when dissmissing our its a knockout win....

Back to back challenge cup wins is a great achievement but we cant win both. Due to expectation if we lose in CC to a mid table team in the Quarter Final it will be seen as a massive blow. Expectations are too high and cant be sustained. Maybe this time next year if we don't win the Cup, the public wont be so focused on CC.

Happily go out first game to Wigan if it meant getting to the grand final, nevermind win.

i think with all the age 30+ players in your team it's next year or never with this group

care to explain that reasoning. Is it just players are getting old?

discounting we could never know how many years are left in a player.

and discounting that we have a lovely group developing and players can be released in waves. Unlike Saint Helens who have all their players on contract till the end of next year.

and discoutning Money bags Moran could just buy more players... probably. Everyone seems to think that is the case ATM.

I think tbh it's quite obvious you have a ageing squad with you key players reaching the end of there life span

No.

If it was one then yes but we went and defended it against the then 3 times in a row Super League Champions who were really set on winning the Cup, winning any Cup in rugby league these days back to back is very hard because of how competitive the top level of the game is, also doing it again proved the doubters wrong who compared us to the Eagles an said 2009 was a one off.

Briers is the tough one to replace ATM. The rest are replacable in the years that follow. It is by no means next year or bust.

It's not simply a case of Wigan fans rubbishing Wembley fella, it's each to their own. I'd take the GF over the CC every time. Some interesting opinions here....

[urlhttp://viewtopic.php?f=2&t=467414[/url

As a Wigan fan for me it would depend on the season we had to determine which prize would be bigger. Wigan have been the most consistent side in Super League this season, finishing top and won the grand final in the end. I think making that grand final after the season we had was the very least we deserved.

Going back to 2009 I don't think anybody would have realistically expected Wigan to win the league from the season they had (we over-achieved with our semi-final berth) so a good cup run was a more realistic ambition as its based on knock-out rugby league rather than consistency over a season and can be won by anybody - it came as more of a disappointment for me during the Noble era we never won a cup but Super League for me personally is a bigger achievement as it shows a more consistent performance and reward for hard work during a long season.

I have no problem with the each to their own..but people (wigan fans) [iare[/i rubbishing the challenge cup which I find astonishing

anyway I thought this thread was more interesting
Wigan fans showing the Least support throughout Superleague for the play off format only 4 weeks ago...whats changed ....oh yeah...



[urlhttp://viewtopic.php?f=28&t=469863&start=15[/url

and this from a wigan fan

It's all a little relative. For Wire fans, having not seen us lift any silverware in many fans lifetimes, lifting the CC and then retaining it is such a huge achievement that is probaly is better than just the one GF. I would imagine that for wigan fans, and this is true for the few I am friends with, lifting silverware is a relatively recent thing which, combined with their history, makes a GF win this year far more important than 2 CCs.

Personally I wouldn't swap 2 CCs for one GF, however I would far rather win the GF next year than a third CC.

I don't see the point in comparing our achievement with wigans. Both teams have come a very long way in a very short period of time, both can be very very proud of what they have acheived, and both will be at the very pointy end of the competition by round 27 next season.

in the last 23 years the Challenge cups been won by
Wigan, Saints, Leeds, Bradford, Hull, Sheffield, and Warrington

the last 13 years Superleague grand finals have involved all the above except Sheffield and Warrington........

oh yeah the challenge cup can be won by anybody

Have a look at the result of the poll, the MAJORITY have voted in support of the playoff system. And that has absolutely no relevance to the point discussed on this thread, so why link to it? I've still yet to see a single Wigan fan 'rubbish' the CC!

Nobody has said it can be won by anyone, but it offers a more realistic chance of glory. Could you imagine a team of similar calibre to Toulouse making it to a SL semi final? Not the best analogy I'll admit, but the perception of most fans is probably that the Cup is in closer reach than the SL trophy.

The comparison you have made is invalid as you've compared teams that have competed in the GF v teams that have WON the CC. Add in Halifax, Cas, Widnes, London, Huddersfield and Catalans to your stat.

The GF is a closed shop

Apart from your fellow Wigan fan one page earlier to whom FB was responding to when you qouted him