8-0 up, cruising and we had Leeds right where we wanted them and like previous years we've gifted Leeds points and let them back in it when we should've killed them off. Diskin's try was very poor from our POV, to split from marker like that when Diskin is prowling a yard from the line is shocking decision making and the momentum switched from there.

Leeds' 2nd try should never have happened. Why Maurie offloaded that ball I do not know and Meli's error was a shocker. That should've been kicked to me in the Stretford end.

The drop goal came from a Gardner error at the kick off. That was simply schoolboy stuff and it sums up his season - rubbish!

Leeds penalty - Cunningham, our most experienced player does something stupid like that in front of the sticks. Unbelievable brainfart moment.

Leeds final try - Forget the offside decision for a moment, Meli again makes a costly howler giving Leeds field position.

We played really well yesterday but little things have cost us and it was our own undoing.

Gutted, completely gutted!

You summed it up well there Blobby.

yup, and good gift it was as well.

christmas come early

I agree we were our own worst enemy again but if you read the Leeds forum it seems our pack was totally and utterly owned so Im not sure it would have mattered anyway.

Well, they quite clearly weren't 'owned'. Had they been, we would have been tonked.

Once we took Jammer and Tony P off, they totally got on top.

Old, tired and average players make mistakes.

That was the crucial difference.

The will and effort was there, just the composure and overall quality wasnt

I think there is more to it than 'owning' the pack. By that time we'd shot ourselves in the foot at least twice.

Our mistakes did gift Leeds chances in which they took so credit has to go to Leeds.

They took there chances and we didn't.

I do agree though we was looking like we would go on and win the game but if were being honest our attack wasn't up to much again.

IMO if we could have had a ok attack last night we would have won the game.

Defence was awesome again.

Did either of the big cock ups happen when Jammer and Tony P were still on the pitch? I can't remember. I know that with those two on, Leeds barely got a sniff. Obviously the percentage game rugby league is, they would've gotten on a roll eventually, but I think having to bring them off and Bryn and Maurie on was definately the beginning of the end for us last night.

Bryn played his normal game when he came on. He worked hard but being honest he's a waste of space.

Maurie worried me a lot when he came on. We was going through our sets pretty well with graham and tony p and was not dropping much ball at all.

Maurie dropped the ball twice when he 1st came on which give Leeds what they had been waiting for.

Graham and tony p have looked very good as our props over the last month.

Bryn was at fault for Diskin's try though. He turned his back on the PTB on the try line. Shocking mistake that one. Maurie's 2 dropped balls also allowed Leeds the field position to level the game up.

I didn't see diskins try as some idiot in front was stood up so I missed it.

I've never rated bryn. He's to small for prop and not mobile enough for back row.

He hardly makes a yard with the ball.

I'd rather we got gaz haggerty than keeping bryn.

Can't argue with any of that Blobby. We should have gone in at half time totally on top. Instead, despite being level, it felt like we were on the back foot and it was only our own mistakes that put us in that position. The Gardner error just after half time meant that in effect, we started the second half behind rather than level. That for me was the turning point. I felt we should have banged a one pointer over when we were at their end on our next attack.

I said on the Leeds board that if Leeds played with the structure Sts have we'd be a hell of a lot better. If you added the pace Leeds have out wide, Sts would be darn near unbeatable in SL. That's what makes the games between us so close IMO.

All the points in the OP are true, but only because thats what happens in most close games, you could just as easily argue that your try was as a result of a Leeds error.

If you removed all of those errors from the game what would you be left with ?

Five tackles and a kick, gathered safely by the full back and returned for more of the same ?

It was an arm wrestle of a game where the side who took advantage of the few mistakes on show, won.


I don't understand why so many of you are bagging your players and coach, you've just competed in one of the most competitive Grand Finals of all time, if Smiths last try hadn't been given can you imagine what you'd all be saying now having lost by one or two points ?

MF makes a good point. I think our disappointment and anguish at losing three GFs in a row has clouded our collective judgement somewhat. It was a close game that with a couple of decisions and silly errors being different could have seen the game go our way. It probably was the most competitive GF for a long while and looking back after I've calmed down a bit I think we should be proud of the effort the players put in. Yes, we made costly errors but we had two really close calls on the Gardner and Eastmond 'no tries' and for the first half hour were pretty well in control. Had we gone in at half time ahead instead of level (and behind two minutes later) I think we'd have kicked on.

Leeds absolutely deserved their win and it is an incredible achievement to bag three in a row but we played our part in a fantastic game and maybe we should reflect on this rather than the negatives. No trophy but unquestionably the second best team in the competition. A poor return by our recent standards but I'm sure there are many clubs would swap their position for ours.

Individual errors that play a key role in lost games will always annoy. It's the nature of following a team. But very few fans hold it against them for long. Unless they're a repeat occurance.

I agree with MF's sentiments but it is frustrating to lose wen it could be avoided.

Potter again left Puletua on too long in the 1st half and brought him back too late.

Pryce was anonymous and should have been withdrawn or swapped with Eastmond.

We kicked up and unders all night - not one grubba - where's the variety. THe pitch was greasy for christ's sake!

Finally, same old telegraph backline move. Time after frigging time. It nearly worked once or twice but Pryce bottled it and passed it rather than shwoing and going.

Leeds were good value as always and they deserve the trophy. But if someone had told me after the first GF defeat that we'd be beaten twice more by Leeds playing pretty much the SAME TACTICS I'd have laughed.

We knew they'd kick for distance turning our back three around. We knew they'd target Meli. Short of sitting in the Leeds dressing room for the pre-match discussion by McClennan there was very little we didn't know.

Once bitten, twice shy, three times ... err...m?

What should you have done to counter it?

You made good ground with ball in hand and put in some mammoth defensive sets when we were trying to clear.

You created a few openings as well with gardner and eastmond both going close.

Brought in one, possibly two (the second coming up from the academy) wingers last season who are quicker and safer would have been a good start. We should also have worked on our long kicking game as the one we currently possess costs us between ten and twenty yards per set.

Fair point and the game wouldn;t be interesting without talking points.

But, some of the errors we made weren't forced errors, which is frustrating and we've done this for 3 years consecutively. Meli's was a bad error and he;s done this in all 3 finals now. Fa'asavalu's was his own doing as he tried to offload the ball in an impossible situation. Cunningham an experienced pro gave away the stupidest of penalties when we were 10-9 up.

Little things cost you in big games and we were cruelly punished. A good performance overall, but let down by critical errors at critical times.

Seems I called things just about spot on last week



Great Game by the best 2 teams in the comp. and you took it on the chin like true sports...well most of you did.






If I had time I would dig out my posting at the start of the season on this forum stating the Potter appointment was a HUGE mistake also for your team.

Fair comment. It was a very tough match played at a fast pace with great commitment and with the odd exception was played in good spirit by the top two teams in Super League.

Of course there would be mistakes and it was inevitable to have a couple of 50/50 calls by the video ref. Very very few people at the ground would have been in a position to see the exact view of either call and the Sky cameras did not have the right angle for any one to be 100% positive on Smith's second try.

Smith's body was leaning well forward as he appeared to check his run and the line from where the ball touched the kicking foot to Smith's feet was obscured by another player. So for any of us to be 100% certain either way has to be based on emotion and not fact. The Leeds coach stated on the BBC TV tonight that the Sky people had got it wrong about the rules and the Smith's front foot was in the air anyway. The video ref had to make a judgement.

You can look back on any game and say "if only" and "what if" but the reality is that players and officials do make mistakes particularly when under pressure that is the nature of sport and without these incidents it may would be too predictable and so less existing.

I do not believe the St Helens players gave up after the Smith try or tried any less to score, so in the end it was not crucial in the outcome of the result.

On Saturday neither side was at their best in attack but this was due in the main by the superb defence of both teams. Well done to both teams