We lost. It's sport. We all have off days at work.

pity you have um al the time against Saints

Since 1992



A long off day against Saints

1994 actually.

we were robbed that day

I'm sure it will be the ref's fault when we do win.

That was more than an off game Graham, we looked low on energy, we had very little intensity and the tactics were all wrong for the conditions.

Very easy to get carried away with the negatives.

Ask Catalans if we're a side who can improve over the course of a fortnight. If we do our jobs next week, it'll be a very different Warrington that turns up 80 mins away from the GF, wherever we go.

Ive every confidence in the team that we can improve in a fortnight period which you refer to, thats in dry conditions though as were one of the best (if not the best) team to watch in dry conditions.

Do we have a plan B for when the conditions get testing, we didn't at Knowlsey Road earlier in the year and we didn't last night. The problem you have when you get a team thats like to play rugby by throwing the ball around is the weather can be a big leveller, look at Leeds beating St Helens at Old Trafford in testing conditions, saints were the most impressive team going into that final and they lost because Leeds played the conditions better.

We need that plan B game for when we come up against the bigger sides in knock out rugby, its for when the conditions don't allow us to throw the ball around Harlem Globetrotter style in keeping the ball alive.

Monaghan needs to get back to hooker asap as well, he isn't a scrum half and neither is Clarke a Monaghan, Roby or Cunningham influence on a game.

We won our last wet weather game, at Wigan.

We're capable, we just conceded a couple of soft tries last night that gave Saints a lead and given the conditions, we forced ourselves to chase a game that couldn't be chased. Had we kept the game at 0-8 longer, we could have started taking the two, kicking deep, etc etc, but we didn't, we gifted Saints two pretty soft tries, then they scored a well worked James Graham try and we were 10 behind which in those conditions, was always going to be tough to pull back. Missing the goals didn't help, if we'd been 12 in front, taking the two making it 14 etc, would have made Saints task extremely hard.

We need to get Monas back at hooker, agreed. Myler needs to prove his worth, quickly. We need Hicks back, I like our Wembley backline (1-5), Bridge could be a better option at 7 right now, if Smith really is on a downer with Myler, which it looks like he is given he wasn't in the 17 last night until things changed. Bridge set up the two tries last night, sure, but I like having King & Atkins at centre, taking the ball out, and King would muscle up to a Meli, Senior etc better.

Smiths' the man when it comes to knockout Rugby. Just ask Leeds, unbeaten in a knockout compettion with us for 2 years and never lost a game of knockout Rugby (yesterday wasn't knockout Rugby). I still think we'll be at Old Trafford on the 2nd October 2010.

I know we won that game in the wet, i had a feeling you would bring it up.

Wigan arn't saints, they don't put the same kind of pressure on you as saints do,they don't make the same kind of yardage with their pack that saints do. They also don't have the same winning mentallity bred into their present club like saints do, Wigan won the leaders shield but will they be winning a major trophy this season ?

I'd say no to that, i still think the winner of the GF will come from the saints semi final at Knowsley Rd. Wigan have some decent players but they don't have enough of them, their pack isn't as strong as either saints or Warrington's either.

I don't see Wigan as any kind of bench mark, saints is a different matter.

Thing is Rob, we didn't put in a performance to really 'out' their pack did we, being honest?

You look at say, Wembley, for example we asked so many questions of that Leeds pack, and basically forced them to admit that they didn't have answers. Similarly at Wigan, after the first 10 mins there when we didn't complete a set, we forced mistakes, we got repeat sets etc, and really made them dig deep. We made it easy for Saints last night for the most part and we got we deserved.

If we can get back to KR, or wherever. Get a fair split of posession, territory and all that, we'll then see how good this Saints pack is, last night, we boxed with one hand behind our back really, and we've nobody to blame for that.

We didn't put our best foot forward last night, just like we didn't in France, or when we played Leeds at the HJ (The last time I felt this flat). Both times, we learnt from those games, came up with a different set of tactics, and prevailed.

Saints and Warrington appear to following a very similar path, both doing well in the Challenge Cup when conditions really suit us, but falling down at the back end of the season when the weather closes in. We played the conditions far better last night, but would still prefer to play the next round and hopefully GF in the dry, particularly against Wigan who like a slow game.

if you do win

There's another thread on this board asking why Wigan don't like Warrington fans. Just read your own post for an answer! You think Warrington CAN win the GF despite finishing 2 places and over a hundred points difference below Wigan, can't beat Saints, didn't even make the playoffs only a season ago and, to my knowledge have only ever won one playoff game in their entire history! (apologies if this isn't correct). Yet the League leaders (and therefore the best and most consistant team in the comp) who, this season, have demonstrated they can beat everyone left in the playoffs and who have been 80 mins from the GF for the last 2 consecutive seasons CAN'T win it. You couldn't make it up...oh, my mistake, you just did!

Its not rocket science really, you havn't won a major trophy for 8 years which says that Wigan aint the force that they used to be and nobody fears them like they did during the glory years. You need viagra these days to get past a semi, Leeds, Saints and Warrington have all proven in recent times that they have the credentials to make it to a major final. Where are you credentials other than falling at the last hurdle or before ?

Where are Wigan's recent credentials to say they can make it past a semi ? Like i said, its hardly rocket science that i'd take either Saints, Leeds or Warrington ahead of Wigan to win the grand final based on recent evidence of knock out rugby as thats what you should be going on.

Being consistent over a season doesn't make you a good knock out side, look at your record on the big occasion in some of the recent games at the DW stadium, lost to Warrington, St Helens and Huddersfield. Yeh thats impressive form going into the play offs.

and people like you getting your facts wrong are the reason the feeling goes both ways...muppet!

2001
Warrington 56 v 22 St. Helens

Not Knowsley Road.

Where does it say Knowsley Road

80mins from the Grand Final is not quite 2 Challenge Cup finals at Wembley now is it?

I am not one to enter into tit for tat arguments and I have been impressed with Wigan this season. But you do leave out the fact we have won back to back silverware and we beat you at home. Very convenient.

There was me thinking that everyone is entitled to an opinion, how wrong I am.

I still remember that game.

Anthony Sullivan giving Ian Sibbit one of the easiest tries he could ever score.

Paul Newlove getting sent off.

Good time's

I'm leaving nothing out. Unlike the quoted poster I haven't said Warrington can't, or even won't, win the GF. Therefore I have no need to mention anything pertaining to Warrington at all, other than to point out the areas where Wigan have shown they are competative, or even superior. I'm making an argument FOR Wigan's credentials, not AGAINST Warrington's! Were I claiming that Wire couldn't win it, then it could be said that I would have a duty to point out a balanced argument. Funnily enough this seems to be a 'one-way obligation' on this board as I didn't see the quoted poster doing the same re: Wigan. Go figure...

'"