IF Wire, Wigan and/or Leeds had gone all out to finish top rather than aim for the top four in the best possible shape, would Huddersfield still have finished top? Personally I doubt it.

Despite finishing in first place, and considering big game experience, I still think Huddersfield are the weakest of the four semi-finalists. That isn't to say they are incapable of beating us, or even going on to win at Old Trafford (of course they are), but if I had to bet my mortgage on one of the four going on to win at OT, I would bet on the other three before Huddersfield.

good call i say,hudds were not exactly runaway winners of the ll shield,also,imo,i think the wire have the measure of hudds.so good choice ,cant wait for thurs

Nice battle for the family Grix. Their crying on the Hudds board regarding g our arrogance at picking them. It was a freakin choice of two teams. Had Hudds had club call would they not have been arrogant picking a team.
Childish. That's what it is. Tell them to park their skateboard that the fans travel down on near the club shop

Spot on....The problem with clubcall is that it actually penalises the side who it is supposed to be benefitting....The benefit is supposed to be that you can choose your opponent, yet, in reality, it just gives that side more pressure, while giving the opponent an added motivation.

The only way round it IMO, is that the side with the clubcall should have the added option of being able to make it a random draw if they feel that the 2 choices they have are too close to call, which was obviously the call this time around.

Probably the best commercial choice, as asking fans to pay to watch the same fixtures as a fortnight ago wouldn't have been popular.

To show what a complete load of bollox it all is Tony Smith should have tossed a coin, end of.

Would have said to the RFL and Sky shove your club call nonsense up your instead you have picked the most consistent team in the league.

You hae beaten us 3 times this season sorry to say but a 100% record does not last forever :-0)

The most interesting part for me is that the decision was supposedly made BEFORE the Huddersfield and Hull game that the winner would be our opponents regardless of who won between Leeds and Saints!

I must admit I am very surprised at the choice - even considering your results against us recently. I get the general impression from Wire fans is that it is not just getting to Old Trafford but winning the Grand Final. The team that everyone seems to have respect for regarding their recent play off record is Leeds, therefore surely to have the best chance of knocking them out would be to play them at home in front of a partisan crowd, after having a week off to prepare, and Leeds looking pretty tired (and potential injuries) after a close game with Saints and your recent win against Leeds.

Sending the Giants to Wigan would be a tough game, but we have a good recent record there, then if you had beaten Leeds and we had beaten Wigan, you would have your usual walkover against us!!!!!!
Roll on Thursday - I can't wait, hopefully it will be a good game!

Seems to me you are hoping that someone else can knock Leeds out for you!!

--nawwwwww i would not read to0 much into the club call myself,whinos are not that unbeatable as we shown last wk,,seems ,with only a point diff between us in the league and our recent form over your lot wire chose to pick you! as simple as that ,nothing more nothing less--imo--

If there was no club call the highest ranked winner would play the lowest ranked winner, so by picking the lowest ranked team you aren't specifically sending out a message you see them as weaker, you are simply picking the lowest ranked who you would be playing if there was no club call and thus you negate much of the negative psychology involved.

'On paper' hudds are not the weaker team. They finished top and just put on a record playoff score. By picking them instead of the lower ranked you are sending out a message that you see something in them as weak, something that you fancy. It's bad psychology. You might as well send them all a text saying you think they are easy and that you will win.

What's also interesting is the general shift in opinion on here. Before the club call it was basically - we'll pick leeds, correct choice, we just shallacked them, they are battered, easier to beat them at HJ than old trafford etc etc.

Now suddenly it's - Hudds, correct choice, we always beat them and one of wigan or leeds will be battered for the final and lambs to the slaughter (obviously hudds warrington will be tiddlywinks).

Suggest that warrington didn't fancy either leeds or saints and as one was guaranteed to go through it meant they could already determine it would be the winner of hull hudds.

Who cares? Really?

Its a 80 min game, people reading this much into it need to get out more.

The way to negate that is to select the lowest ranked. Club call is never going to be any advantage, so you select who you would be playing if there was no club call and take away any of the negative psychology.

I think the side with ClubCall should be allowed to pass it on to the other Week 1 play-off winners if they so wish. As in, we don't want to choose, you can have the 'privilege'.

I'm in the get rid of Club Call club. Hopefully it will get resolved in the next shakeup of rules.

There have been two votes on ClubCall in as many years, last off season the clubs voted unanimously to keep it and the year before everyone voted in favour except Saints who voted against and Warrington who abstained. Quite ironic that for someone who professes to hate the system, Smith has ensured it won't go anywhere, it has created a huge talking point and shed loads of coverage.

I don't believe for one minute that the decision was made by the board, and not Smith for what it is worth.

I know for a fact when we got beat by Leeds the year Sinfield scored with a late penalty when Myler was offside, think it was 2011 that it was the players who decided to send Saint's to Wigan to let them bash it out. Smith asked the players their opinions and this was passed to the Board.

Yep, I had a look back at Morley's book this morning-

No, not Moz but another senior player who came to see me whilst I was ill.

Well, they've got to raise their game for a big match sooner or later, or at least the law of averages says so. I've made no secret of the fact that I think Brough is overrated and their pack has a collective soft underbelly, but I'm also mindful of the Hull games.

Be vigilant Wires, the most damaging threat comes from within.

another way of looking at it is thru the bookies eyes wire are favs then wigan then leeds then hudds so really we have picked the worst of the 4...make of that as you will...champs being 4th favs

Barely enjoyed a single week of RL since losing in the GF to Leeds last October. All i've thought about all year is this and next weekend.

I have fire in my belly today.

NOW THE WIRE!

EXACTLY THIS for me too. I haven't enjoyed this season at all because all I've wanted is the end prize. I didn't even really care when we lost the CC semi to Hull as that wasn't the trophy I crave so much anyway. For the first time this year THE ONLY THING that matters is on the line tonight.

WE'RE ON THE MARCH WITH TONY'S ARMY

I'm in the Caveman and Dropkick camps. Any knockout game against Super League opposition in the cup mattered to some degree and it's always a good feeling to beat Wigan, St Helens, Leeds in the league, but tonight is the first game where I will be devastated if we lose.

Shish it took me weeks to get over the Hull Semi defeat.! I went to Castleford the week after but I was still sick after that win.