I'm easily pleased and would be happy with anything.

Just getting all misty eyed again, isn't it great that we can even consider winning the big trophy's, what would southstander.com be like if the interweb was alive in the 80s and early 90s.

It most certainly is. This is a very special time to be a Leeds fan and a very special group of players..............and Ian Kirke.

last year it was buzzing outside wembley. think it might just been when you went there but it was a great experience going down there outside the stadium and init. hopefully the better team wins on saturday and it's one of thebest finals ever.

No you're not and for the very simple reason that the rules before a ball is kicked at the start of the season says so.

Change those rules and we'd have a different emphasis on league games and potentially a different outcome come the end of the 27 rounds.

Completely agree mate the path to be Champions is very clear and the best way to go about it imo whilst the fixtures remain unbalanced and the play-off system remains in place.

I posted the following on the VT which sums up how I feel about the CC compared to the GF.




Exactly... 2005 for example.

I left the Cup Final feeling slightly disappointed at our last minute loss to Hull but soon got over it on the way home. Contrast this to my feeling of total devastation at the final hooter in Old Trafford against the Bulls. I felt that the Bulls had been nowhere near us all year only to snatch it off us when it really counted. I have never been as gutted after losing a game as I was that night.

Also I was at the cup final in '99 that we won and as good as the day was and as nice as it was to win ATEOTD it was just the cup to me. Again contrast this to 2004 when McGuire went over to seal the title with a few minutes left and its the only time I have ever cried at a rugby league game.

For me its the SL Title every time.

Being Champions is and always has been the bigger achievement but in the nations mind it was the Challenge Cup that got the sport noticed and an audience. The Grand Final has righted that wrong to some extent (although it's still restricted from the majority of the population by subscription) by raising the profile of becoming the Champions.

The Cup has always been secondary but it's still something every club and probably every true supporter wants to be involved in and win if at all possible.

The current timing of the comp in the modern game remains a problem for the sport though IMO as it's just much too close to the Play-Offs commencing.

But it was changed I believe at the request of the clubs because it was previously too near the start of the season.
I agree, though, that now it's too near the playoffs which can (for the successful clubs & their fans) turn into an extremely expensive few weeks.
The problem is I guess other events in the sporting calendar.

Pre SL the Challenge Cup final was in early May and the 'Premiership' play off final in late May, so there's in fact a bigger gap between the two finals now than there was in that era.

And to those posters giving many a reason as to why the GF is more important: I agree with you, but the thread only asks if the Cup is [iimportant [/i- and there is absolutely no doubt that it is.

I was talking specifically about the Superleague era.
Previously the premiership was almost an afterthought, the league leadership seemed to be more important at least in my eyes.
The cup was almost on a par with that too.

The Premiership didn't quite carry the same prestige as the SL Champions Trophy that culminates the modern era season. Leeds won it twice and while it's always nice to pick up a trophy it didn't rescue otherwise disappointing seasons anymore than an early season Yorkshire Cup would. On occassions there were two days between rounds of the competition as happened to Leeds in '75 or a round would be played the week before the Challenge Cup Final with teams choosing to field a scratchy side with eyes elsewhere.

Agreed.

CC cup every time, the true champions are the team who finish top after 28 rounds.

100% wrong for many reasons but if you followed the whole SL and play-off concept you'd know that.

A heck of a lot of people can't seem to get used to the Champions being based on the Grand Final.

For me the CC is clearly a major trophy and second to being Champions. I wouldn't claim it as meaningless, although I suspect that early-round knockouts are not the tragedy they were 15 or 20 years ago - either financially or for the fans.

I would give up winning on Sat if it means we can win at OT in October. GF is the No1 IMO followed by the CC and then the League leaders shield.

I'd rather take the CC on Saturday and go into the play offs with all to play for...

Leeds have never done the double in their history ..... that's ever.

The players and coach Challenge Cup winning experience, the new venue, injuries and the amount of strapping holding some players knees together are all concerns.

Underdogs but it's all on the day.

I dont know which i would rather win.

However i do know that this year with the leeds and warrington both getting to the final, it has renewed everyones enthusiasm, and i know that i (as a wigan fan) and everybody associated with rugby that i know.....cant wait for saturday!!

I think the challenge cup may become that little bit more special again after saturday! Good luck to both!

No they are not. It's like this, I'm sure most sensible posters will agree

GF>CC>WCC>Hubcap

Agreed.

I agree the championship has to be more significant because it is the climax of many more games home and away againts all comers. But the actual experience of the finals themselves is quite similar. I hope to report which I prefered in a few weeks time.

A sell-out crowd at a 90,000 venue 200 miles away (from most clubs) would suggest it's popularity remains high. The GF rarely sells out, played in a smaller venue & in RL heartland!!

In response to the OP, the Challenge Cup is extremely important. It's the way we sell the game to the nation. It's my opinion that the games are often scrappier than grand finals, but that's because the cup finalists tend to play with less inhibition than is typical of a grand final. For this reason, you're much more likely to see a free-flowing classic in a cup final which is good for the game's public image and also for the fans. Roll on saturday.