I was previously feeling quietly confident about Saturday. However I've just watched the Wigan-Leeds game, and I've change tune.

I'm now outspokenly confident



I really don't get why people are worried or nervous. Is it the thought of Matty Smith tearing us apart? Or super Sam suddenly not dropping any bombs? Or O'Loughlin making a comeback and proving once again that
curly hair is cool? Or that we might choke in another big game cos that's what the Wire always do?

My current calm, confident state comes from watching a lot of RL over the years, and the pleasure of seeing the Wire's rise over the past few seasons. Through my promise and blue tinted specs I can only see the end of 58 years of waiting. It's our year!!

Doesnt always work out though, we watched Leeds just edge Wigan last year and I thought we would out score them after that plus the Wembley result.

It didnt happen, that said Wigan werent impressive, Leeds were out on their feet carrying players for 80 mins and we blew a more healthy Leeds off the park two weeks before.

It's as much about us as them though, and watching Wigan v Leeds wont tell you anything about how we will play. I'm still nervous.

The big question with Wigan and one their fans were asking before the playoffs is does Wane have a plan B? Its all about defense and if Wire can get on top an cause the defense problems how will Wigan repond?

Its not been tested in these playoffs yet.

Upsets do happen in sport, look at the FA Cup final, plucky small town Wigan beat the game's glamour club at Wembley, the Wiganers might be inspired by Latics to dare to dream the same way and cause a David against Goliath upset.

We've dropped points against sides like Widnes this season so we have to view this tie as a potential banana skin. Remember for a club like Wigan this is going to be their cup final.

Do Wigan have a plan B ? I think the question should be do we have a plan B in case the weather & circumstances conspire against us ?

Stick to the gameplan and the points will come, its when we dont and we try to score off every play the problems start.

Wigan are a team (Sheffield apart) that turn up in finals that's why I'm not confident, funnily enough I was super confident last year and look how that panned out.

I would be confident except for the fact that I was confident last time. Made losing far worse.

I am never confident with the Wires, I dont know why as we have a great team!

I'm more confident than this time last year as we've not been beaten by the Pies in SL games since February 2010. That's a double over them in 2011 and 2012, and a win & draw this year. Leeds had a better pedigree in finals games than Wigan, so always knew it'd be tough last year.

Having said that the Pies beat us in the CC quarter final in 2011, so there's no guarantee of a win. If there were we'd all be getting on with our lives and not caring a hoot over the game this weekend. It's the uncertainty that keeps it interesting.

Play to our potential and keep silly mistakes out of the game and we've as good a chance as we've ever had of finally getting to say that we are the champions!

NTW!!!!!

Oh we are a pessimistic bunch!

If the last 5 years hasn't given you confidence in the Wire's ability to deliver then I'm not sure what will. I'm not saying we're the greatest side ever, but in an era lacking any such sides we're more than capable of picking up trophies.

Wigan good in finals-they've lost 2 or their last 3 GFs (their 1 win being against perennial GF chokers Saints

)

Worried about the conditions-that old myth has been debunked before. 2012 Cup Final anyone??

We will rightly go into the game as favourites, with no guarantee of success. But I saw last week a Wigan team that didn't show the factors that would make me genuinely concerned. They are most effective in attack when they have multiple options, running strong lines, and that requires a big effort. Of course they'll raise their game for the final-but I thought they would for the semi.

We have a great record against them, and in recent weeks have looked the better team/survived a testing comeback. I see a lot more things to be positive about than worried about.

Two days out I remain calm and confident. I have a sneaky feeling the players will be in a similar frame of mind.

I don't think I've ever looked forward to a game as much as this

I really do admire the OP optimism however, after years of watching this team try and fail on so many occasions it is has meant the very essence of my being is fearing another loss....even with the team we have....even after the progression the club and team has made since moving to the HJ.....even if we had a 16point headstart on Saturday!!

I love this club, but too many instances in the past will mean I'll never be confident going into any game, let alone one of this magnitude!!

I honestly feel sick to the stomach with nerves and we still have two days to go!!!

I hope that you are right NtW and whilst I agree that we have a decent record lately against Wigan I am a bit more cautious/bordering on but not quite pessimistic about our chances.

They, like us have players leaving so it's a last chance saloon for quite a few and our success may have been linked to keeping Tomkins relatively quiet (one more time please)?

Also, I don't get these Matty Smith jibes. I don't watch a lot of SL apart from our games, but, he's not the worse scrum half in the league and he has always done ok against us even when playing for Salford at their vulnerable 'best'.

Contentment = Actuality - Expectation

i just know that wire will have learned from last years defeat and this will finally be!our year!i also think the scoreline will not be as close as some ppl think,cant wait for sat!bring it home wire!

Saints obviously learned from all their defeats to Leeds and Wigan.

My current thinking is that we will lose. That's not based on any rational thought though, just horrible anxiety.

When iestyn brought his lad to rylands, he was asked will Wigan win sl? He said he didn't recon they had a strong enough team to finish top, but if they make a final...they'll win it.

I refer you to an interview with Kenny Dalglish just after an FA cup draw :-

Plank - "Kenny, You've got Arsenal at home - That's a tough draw?"
KD - "Not half as tough as the draw Arsenal got"



Games between us this year have shown Wigan have got to be 100% and we've got to be less than 100% for them to give us a game on Saturday, and I'm sure TS will be reminding the players of that right up to the kickoff.

Ours to lose .....

- i was actually talking about warrington learning from their defeat last year, not interested what saints did or did'nt do after their defeats

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I can only think that it the reason behind the general consensus on here. People certainly seem to be trying to manage their own expectations!

Please don't think I'm some kind of newbie fan-I'm certainly in the long suffering camp having started watching the Wire in 1988. I've seen us lose a couple of finals to Wigan; I was there for the 80-0, and the 84 off Bradford, and all the other disappointments and let downs along the way.

My optimism and relaxed state comes not from an overbearing confidence that we will win (I think it will be a tight, nervy game), but from the fact that I've seen enough of our side in recent years to know they can deliver when it matters, that it doesn't matter that we're playing 'the famous Wigan rugby league team', that it doesn't matter that we've not won it for 58 years, that it doesn't matter we lost last year. This team is more than capable of being crowned Champions, and they know what it takes to do it. I see my responsibility as being one of the thousands cheering them on to hopefully do it-so I'm going to enjoy doing that, not pooing myself that Riley might drop a Matty Smith kick right into Tomkins' arms in the last minute to seal a 2 point defeat!

I'm refusing to get confident because it just makes the letdown more painful, if we get beat.

However, as I constantly go over the form lines, omens and all that type of stuff, the one thing that gives me huge hope is our record of gradual improvement under Tony Smith,

2009 - 9th
2010 - 3rd, played 2, lost 2 in the play offs
2011 - 1st, got beat in heartbreaking fashion in the semi to Leeds
2012 - 2nd, this time we made the final but got beat

2013??... Surely if that record of gradual improvement is to continue, then Saturday has to be ours, doesn't it??...

My current thinking is am going to explode if do it.

Winning it against them would be perfect, all day the songs will be, have you ever seen Wire win the league, always your year etc

Just 80 mins Wire 80 f'in mins.