You need to stop drinking LeBron.

Great result for Wigan tonight - means one from three will get us 2nd. Ideally we would win on Friday, rest the whole squad against Hull KR and then prepare for the playoffs against Catalans. You can be sure Saints will be playing a reserve side on Monday. Let's not forget our squad hasn't had a break all year with making it to Tottenham.

I'm loving it, for me the pressure is on everyone else in the playoff positions to win silverware this season (especially Saints). We already have the Challenge Cup safely stored in our trophy cabinet, 2nd spot in the table is now very likely after tonight's result, we are in a great position to secure a spot in the GF having turned the DW into a fortress so far this season and probable home semi final.

We are exceeding expectations this season, look at the season predictions thread on the VT, most had us 4th-8th.

Id love for us to do the double, we are the only team who can do it this year. Its very much on.

And thats just our fans

Not me pal I had us down for CC/Hubcap (ed of about that)/GF-

Could see a massive change to the attitude of the players and staff when Peet and Briers took over.

Correct. Only a GF win stops our season being a disappointment now. Whereas if we win it you will still be disappointed but the Cup win still makes it a good season.

To answer the poster earlier who mentioned us only having 4 injuries - not that it matters too much but we are missing Grace, Percival, Dodd, Hopoate and Matautia. Not making excuses before anyone has a hissy fit, just simply correcting someone as they had missed one off.

Should be a great game Friday and one I'm really looking forward to. The difference in styles has been mentioned lots on here and I think that will be evident on Friday more than ever. If it's an open free-flowing game then Wigan will outscore Saints. If it's a playoff-style "grind" then we might just have enough but we will need to be extremely clinical and take whatever chances we can muster on the night.

Its not just the numbers as you could argue its only one more than Wigan, its the positions. If you look at Wigan's injuries they are:-

Thornley- Centre
Leuleaui- Half
Powell- Hooker
Havard- Prop

So they are spread across all positions in effect. Backs, halves and forwards. However with Saints:-

Hopoate- FB/Centre
Percival- Centre
Grace- Wing
Dodd- Half
Matautia- Back row but first pick to cover centre (Played for Australia at centre)

Ours are predominantly all in the backs. If say Hopoate and Percival were fit but Knowles and Lees were injured then we could handle it much better. Thats why my worry is that Wigan will have too much pace in the backs tomorrow. Of course I just get accused of making excuses even though I have literally posted numerous times on Red Vee that we can't use injuries as an excuse.

As I've said its not the number of injuries, its the positions that they play thats the issue. Not sure why people can't see the logic in this.

Not only that but it's all on our left edge too. Our entire first choice half, 2nd row, centre and winger on the same side are missing. I think we will see a lot of French and Field down that side like all their points were at Magic. They'd be silly not to.

People can see the logic Stu and you're spot on.

However, did you defend Wigan in the same way last season when we were missing our entire back line and playing two SRs (including one of the best in the league) at centre for most (or all in Isa's case) of the season? Or how about 2019 when we had our 3rd choice HB playing (until he got injured) and a pack made up of kids? We played two games last season missing 10+

You probably didn't defend us. You probably called us and told us to get on with it like everyone else did. Rightfully.

For 3 seasons you have been incredibly lucky with injuries and this season you're struggling. It isn't unique to Saints. If it costs you the title then so be it. We could argue the same in 2017 for example. From World Champions to not even making the playoffs.

Not to mention BTW that some fans on here spent the whole of pre-season telling us you had the best squad in the league and nobody could match your depth.

The final outcome is often less about the standard of rugby than the sport would like to admit. Injuries and subjective referee interpretations regularly decide games/trophy winners.

You're probably right there TBH

Well to be fair I did defend Lam by saying that he would have done a lot better last season if he had Field and French available.

Agree that we have been fortunate with injuries the past few years, that can't be denied.

I've not said we have great squad depth, other Saints fans may have. I think we have better depth in the forwards when we can bring in the likes of Norman, Bell and Wingfield but we haven't got that same depth in the backs.

Not to have a back-up half back was poor planning.

Agree. I was amazed that we didn't bring someone in on loan when Dodd got injured and then Lomax got the arm injury (even though he has played with it)

When Amor left I was convinced that it was to create room for a half but it never materialised. There was lots of talk of Mellor from Leigh coming in. We are probably too top heavy in the forwards and light in the backs.

Its what Wigan got right SC wise with having TL, Field, French, Smith and Cust all able to play in the halves and thats even without the emergency cover that a Powell or O Neill could provide.

Its a funny old world.
From Wanes World to Entertainers and the entertainers are now the Grinders.

Your defence is exceptionally good and that may well prove sufficient tomorrow unless we can unleash French & Field.
I think the bookies have it about right (as they do on the majority of games) that there will be less than 4 points separating the teams. Hopefully, this will be in our favour but if if you guys sneak it by a point or two I wouldn't be surprised. It's how games between the two clubs should always be perceived before the kick off.

My big concern about tomorrow is that Wigan haven't played well in any game since the Hull one in mid July. Flashes here and there (half an hour in the 2nd half against Warrington for example) but generally its been average to poor. I'm sure they'll raise their game but they'll need to raise it a fair way.

We'd have had them two digging us out of a hole (Bevan in 2020) but we wouldn't have necessarily been better. We certainly wouldn't have been at current levels.

The whole team has improved. Let’s not forget that Bevan was absent earlier in the season.

Maybe not but take those two out of this years team and where would you be?

French- 27 tries, 16 assists
Field- 19 tries 20 assists

That's a hell of a lot of firepower to add to last seasons team and a hell of a lot to lose this season.

The same can be said about Lomax and Welsby at Saints.

20 assists for Field, not bad for someone who can’t pass

The point I was making was using those stats to show that if they had been added onto last seasons totals at Wigan, you would have been significantly better. Both didn't play.

They wouldn't have been in the positions to score half of those tries last season.

You make a valid point MD in fact I've said something similar to the lads I go to the match with.
Our passing seems to have lost a bit of the crispness that we had. I'm quite hopeful that we are just going through a tired spell and that come the playoffs and tomorrows game we will pick up the momentum and play a faster game.
I think Cooper has a critical role to play and i'm quietly confident that he will deliver.

Numbers missing for both sides:

Saints…3, 4, 5, 7 and 11

Wigan…3, 4, 7, 9 and 17