Another exile here.

I remember Widnes nilling us in the Regal Trophy final at a foggy Central Park. That was the closest we got to a trophy in my early days as a supporter. To transform the fortunes of this club from that shambles to one of the best in our game's history is nothing short of miraculous.

Went to my first game 1980 with my dad supported them since then. Seen some Barron years (not as many as some have like my dad been going since 30's)
Was quite a nice experience watching last night with me my dad and the little one!!

My wife only started watching in 2006 (fed up with me disappearing off and decided to join me, really caught the bug)
My dad said to me last night that we are very privileged to watch this team play. We probably won't get to see another period in our clubs history like this. A good time to be a rhino

Like others posters above... Have seen the highs and lows of watching the team since the age of 3 (since 196icon_cool.gif ... I'm just sorry my dad isn't still alive to see this remarkable team, led by a remarkable captain..

That remains the darkest day for me. Widnes destroyed that team in a final which had seemed destined to be ours after the run leading up to it. The drive back over the '62 that night was awful - suddenly I realised that my heroes were a bunch of underachieving losers. I don't think I've ever really gotten over that childhood betrayal.

It's nothing to do with the current team, of course, but having been there on that dark day, and the same place 14 months later, it casts into relief the last eight years - comparing that Leeds team with this Leeds team shows up everything that used to be wrong with our club.

Fantastic post.

I want to mention the highlighted section because the contrast between these players and the players that wore the shirt in the eighties through to mid nineties couldn't be more stark. Yet still some fans crave those big name signings.

to be fair G the likes of webb, buderus and peacock have been big name signings. nothing wrong with signing big names as long as they fit in to the ethos of the club

Fair comment.

I can associate with so much of this... My timing was superb - I started watching Leeds in the early 80s thereby missing the back to back cup success in the late '70s, and embarked on a decade and a half of "nearly's"... The 24-24 draw with Hull K R in the cup semi, the painful replay, the one point defeat to Saints in the final of the John Player Trophy having knocked Wigan out in the semi, the humilitaing nilling by Widnes in the final mentioned above by others, and a similarly painful hammering, again by Widnes, in a Challenge cup semi - both games I genuinely thought we were going to win... Wembley in '94, when I didn't think we were going to win, but started to believe during the 2nd half comeback and enjoyed my first trip to Wembley too much to be too disheartened when we eventually ran out of steam, then the rematch a year later when I genuinely thought we were going to win, and all we got was yet another throwback to the dark days, until finally the pain ended (well, temporarily...) in 1999. Not a right lot in between on the positive front, bar the '88 Yorkshire Cup run - the Paul Medley inspired comeback from 21-8 to 24-21 against Bradford, the late Sam Backo winner against Hull, and the two interceptions from Schofield and Gibson in the hammering of Cas in the final (for some reason I can't remember anything about the '84 John Player Trophy win). I did win a signed ball once by collecting all the player cards from the policemen outside the ground - think I got presented the ball by John Basnett if I remember rightly - I suppose that was a highlight

But the past 9 years, and in particular the past 6? Way more payback than I could ever have imagined for all the pain, suffering, quashed expectation and hopes that the 80s and 90s brought. Very few fans get to be as lucky as we have been to enjoy such success, and every single moment of it will be treasured always. Every Grand Final win has been special, and I will never, ever grow tired of nights like that. For some reason though, last night seemed like the most special of them all... What these players have achieved against all the odds over the past couple of years has been astonishing, and what makes me more happy than anything else is the pride they all clearly have in the shirt... pride I assumed my boyhood heroes had also had, only to have my eyes opened painfully by various revelations since. There are no show pony "superstars" in this team, simply a group of normal blokes whose performances time after time after time are anything but normal. For 15 of the 17 last night to be British (and the vast majority of those Yorkshire born) is especially pleasing, as is the fact that the two imports in the team have blended seemlessly over the past few years into the club mentality, a far cry from some of the highly paid under performing "mercenaries" of the 80s and 90s. It certainly seems like money means very little, if anything at all, to any of those players - it's all about the club, the shirt, and each other. For that, we are the luckiest fans in sport right now.

I think there is something to be said for homegrown players. It means something to them to pull on the shirt and when they play together from a young age and grow up together

I got my first season ticket in 2003, having gone to my first game in 2002. The first year brought the CC final disappointment and the bridesmaid tag lived on. We all know what happened in 2004...

Then came the 3 in a row and players breaking records on what felt like a weekly basis.

Fast forward to mid way through 2011 and I thought maybe this was the end of the success and I was going to experience a spell of re-building with key players getting on a bit and being replaced with people who would take a year or two to bed in. Can't say I'm too bothered about admitting I was wrong!

Had a thought the other day, if the club put on a re-union event to mark 10 years since the first SL championsip win then it will probably all be set up next year. That means we'll be planning to mark a decade since that win at the same time as being reigning champions with the same core of players. That just sums up how good this last few years have been for IMO.

Fortunate to have come to the game when I did, watching this group of players has been an unbelievable experience and a great pleasure.

To all involved making these few years happen, I think we owe you a thank you!

Started watching Leeds in the early 80's and remember when beating Cas in the Yorkshire cup final was the highlight of the season.It's been a privilege to watch this team grow together and give us fans some great memories.

One of the uprights on one of the goal posts had blown down in a Central Park gale the night before and they had to go with what was left of it. David Creasser knocked a few over it - no disputing they were all legit.

Mark Laurie was the Man Of the Match and John Holmes finished off a great team try for one, Kevin Dick for the other with some Widnes roughion trying to rip his face off. Maurice Bamford's arrival coincided with Dean Bell's Leeds debut and both enjoyed a dream start as Leeds went on an 18 match unbeaten run - which surrounded that 1983/84 JP Trophy win.

Bonus point for the name of the sacked Leeds coach that preceded Bamford?

Robin Dewhurst unless this is a trick question. It's a trick question, isn't it?

Robin Dewhirst? I seem to remember him having done a couple of years or so in between Hynes and Bamford.

Beat me to it