Our first league success in 10 years.

Lets make Friday a Party Atmosphere and celebrate the success before the serious stuff of the play off's start.

I'd rather see a good win TBH.

Id rather everyone try and focus on the Grand Final TBH, couldnt care less about league leaders really

I'm also in the focus on the Grand Final camp. Not interesting in that tin pot. It means nothing if we don't win at Old Trafford. All I want to see if a good professional victory and a quiet presentation of that trophy.

Dont believe the hype. And dont underestimate what the club has achieved this year.
They deserve to get a brilliant reception, AND a massive cheer for winning the league.
The cup competition for OT will take care of itself........[size=50And i'm not so confident about that one! [/size

Agreed, winning this tinpot isn't a 'league success'.

Everyone knows the rules at the start of the year - finishing top simply puts you in the best position for the playoffs.

The players could use it as a frisbee for all I care. If it was up to me it wouldn't exist. We all know finishing top is an achievement - we don't need some token gesture trophy to confirm it.

To an extent I agree that the big prize is certainly a victory at Old Trafford, but I wouldn't say the trophy is meaningless to us supporters after such a turbulent last four years or the club for that matter if we don't win at Old Trafford. I think what it symbolises is an excellent achievement from our players and is something as a club we should be very proud of. Okay, I wouldn't go as far to make a big deal out of it, but if we don't win the Grand Final I will still look on this season fondly as the year that Mike MaGuire and Shaun Wane started to turn things around & blooded some fantastic youngsters who have blossomed in an ever improving Wigan team to be proud of to finish top of the league for the first time in a decade.

The players deserve an excellent reception for me & I hope supporters stay after the final whistle to applaud the team's efforts and don't just dismiss it as a 'tin pot trophy'.

I'm with Tricky on this one and i can't understand the negativity on here regarding the hup cap?

It's a massive achievement to be able to say that after all the weekly rounds we were the most consistent team in the league this season.

We won't be champions if we don't win the GF but to say that it doesn't mean anything devalues the excellent work the guys have done this year and it deserves a good celebration and not some half d presentation.

No matter how much people want to write it off Friday is a day to party.

If we start singing 'Championee's', i will cringe like hell. We havn't won anything, it is a sign of a massive improvement from last season and thats about it. Clap em' off and lets get ready to give everything in the play-offs!!

Spot on

Years ago winning the league was THE major achievement and then playing in the top eight/sixteen was a bonus. But to win the league title was always the main honour.

Party atmosphere my arris. No ones interested in the hub cap tin pot. Lifting the trophy at OT is the one that counts and nothing else. We deserve a round of applause maybe but that's about it.

Concentrating on getting to OT is the next task, lets just concentrate on that instead of looking forward to jelly and ice cream!

Absolutely. But it seems to count for naught these days.
Many on here are saying that to win the CC only takes 5 good games......And then say we've won 'nowt' yet by taking the league.
But surely, winning the playoff's is exactly the same as doing the CC or the old Premiership Trophy??


What is the point of playing all those matches, all season long, and then finishing top?
Hardly any advantage, or any recognition for being the best and most consistant team in Super League.
It doesnt seem to matter if you win the league by 20-points, 2-points, points difference, or even finishing 4th!
Even after all these years, i still find it a bit baffling.
Theoretically, you could limp through a season (as we have done in recent years), finish 8th....Be great in one-off cup ties (Ala Wire), and become SL Champs!
Logically that just makes no sense at all.
How many other team sports so undervalue consistancy the way that RL does?
Its usually completely the opposite.
Methinks we have been brainwashed too easily by the always-right NRL and Sky tv.

Ok, rant over....

Not as embarassing as singing 'championee's' when you've finished 2nd/3rd/4th! Now that is cringeworthy. I'm still surprised at how people regard winning the playoffs as the major acheivement, everyone has been brainwashed by Sky. We've just accepted it without any resistance. Finshing top of the league after playing everyone at home, and everyone away, over 8 months, in all weather conditions and against all styles is the hardest thing to do. Full stop.
You can fluke winning the playoffs. You can't fluke finishing top.

I'm proud of the fact we've finished top and imo we should be crowned champions. However, that isn't how the comp works. We know that, wire know that and cas know that.

Ask saints if they enjoyed coming top in 05, 07 & 08.

Exactly, that great Saints team we're only Champions once in that era because Leeds kept catching them in monsoon conditions in October. Totally wrong to have the season decided in them conditions. Its got to the point where there is no use in playing open fast flowing rugby because it was worth nowt when it came to October and you couldn't throw the ball about. We promote 'up the middle' rugby league and that can't be good.

I hope they allow the lads who won the nines at Headingley to parade that trophy. For many of them it will be their last year at Wigan

Agreed. In fact I would go one further, they should be allowed to have the nines trophy included in their team photo for next season.

I don't see why they wouldn't

Agreed, but that doesnt make it 'right' though, does it?
Had Leeds beaten us in '98, i'd have felt utterly cheated out of a title that we'd already 'won' weeks before.
And i'm sure that many Saints fans over the age of 20 will feel the same way about the years you mentioned.
Trying to explain our championship to non-RL fans, usually ends up with nothing but puzzled looks.
Yes, its the system we have. And yes we all know the rules.
BUT, is it fair?
How will you feel if we win the GF? For me it will be just relief again (as '9icon_cool.gif.
Stupid system. Nothing more than a money-making exercise.
Needs changing.
And thats the bottom line!

Ainscough
Thornley
Veivers
Howarth

Anyone else from that team expected to be departing?

Agreed. Definitely should be paraded at HT by those who won it.

Never said it did make it right. Their simply the rules. In 2000 when we lost to saints I was gutted as I will be if we lose this year.

Probably Walker and Dandy.

Playoffs are not exclusive to RL. Far from it.

FWIW, the primary reason in my view why playoffs are a necessity in RL is the lack of any form of secondary prize to aim for. If we had a first past the post system, unlike football there would be no point aiming to finish in the top 4 (Champions League) or the top 7 (Europa League) or avoiding the bottom three (relegation). We have none of these to aim for (or avoid in relegation's case).

Just think - if playoffs didn't exist, how many Wigan fans would have completely run out of interest in the Super League from 2003 onwards when we were only ever going to finish 3rd at absolute best?

I simply won't enjoy winning the GF if we do. I will just be relieved that we have been rewarded rightly for finishing top. We have never been in danger of finishing in any other position than top since we got there in round 3. When Wire beat us to go within 2 points there was a slighht bit of doubt but they give that much into beating us that they lost to bottom of the league the following week - meanwhile we smashed 4th placed Hull away 46-0.

Joke system to make teams playoff for the right to be champions after a long hard league system. I hope they change but i doubt they ever will. Makes me wonder why I buy a season ticket, and if i doubt it, others will. May end up with attendances decreasing if we carry on.