Hear Hear...

Top at the end of the weekly rounds are Champions, then have a separate top 6 playoff, knock out rugby, for a different trophy.

McClennan wrote a rather dramatic post about proving your might in the arena against the best, and how in ye olden times to become the champion at something you would have to seek out the current holder and beat them.

Whilst the league format seems a comprehensive examination, how many sports actually use it to decide trophies?
The American sports all use playoffs, but we know those guys are a bit zazzy, so perhaps we shouldn't look to closely. However, tennis, golf (i think), boxing, athletics and other olympic type events, hell - even snooker, their trophies are all decided by knockouts. Sure, there's seeding and ranking systems, but that could be deemed as the role of our league.

I'm not a fan of our playoff format, as too much dross got let in and to allow over half the league in seems to belittle the acheivemnt of qualifying, but doing it on GF night, on the biggest stage, against the best opposition is the mark of a real champion. The playoffs are a must.

Question, did any of you guys [ifeel[/i like champions the years we topped the league and then got bumped by Leeds when we had the chance to show who was the better team over 80 mins?

When the mighty Saints finished first, Certain club supporters (W) said we had only won the Hubcap, now they claim they are champions as they finished first

Like the Grand Final format and have done since their inception, however there is the contingent of fans that believe top spot should be champions... Why play in the Super League when you know that to be champions you have to be at Old Trafford in Early October?

au contraire

Most Wire fans like the playoffs as it usually presents our best chance of winning. This may be a brief oasis of us being top of the league, I wouldn't bet on this being a regular thing.

I like the playoffs as it exposes who can deal with the pressure.

I think the Saints need to take some lessons from Wire, we've been in 2 finals in recent years and won both of them - Saints have now lost 4 in a row... you are getting like the Bradford team of Brian Smith and Elliott.

Maybe Saints could ask Warrington for tips on how to stay composed and win major finals

Nice try but in some of those years that we lost finals, we also won them too, 3 cups on the bounce I believe.

Thank you sir, although I don't know where you get the dramatic from



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Superbly put.

Who were those finals against though....walk in victories against mid table sides

In 2009 we beat a team that finished 5 places above us in SL and in 2010 we beat the three times consecutive Super League champions. As for Saints in the Challenge Cup in those years, well knowing that the mighty Wire awaited them in the final I think the pressure was too much in the semis!