Isn't this the year we went to JJB in the Play Offs and put 54 on them? I think we had to be favourites going into that Grand Final

1999 definitely and for me possibly 2002

Whatever the bookies or "experts" say is pretty irrellevant we all know the best 2 teams are in the final and it can go either way.
There's a lot of emotion attached to both squads and we all know there's no love lost either.
Am i confident of 3 in a row?? Absolutely but that doesn't mean that i would be surprised if saints won either.

Yes,

But they were the league leaders in that year IIRC....

The bookies are very rarely wrong but in this instance I think there is very little in it and the outcome will be decided on some small incidents or mistakes.

It would be an incredible achievement to make a third straight win over a team who have been consistently the best side in SL over the past decade bar none so I think the chances favour Saints on this occassion.

Having said that Bluey is a master at the mind games and the psycholigical aspects of getting a team to perform at the right time.

Injuries may well play a part this year and we need a full team on the park so far Webb Bailey Lauititi on the treatment coach.

I suspect a couple of yours are playing with knocks so it may well balance things out.

Looking forward to a close game and may the best team win ( and the losers take it like true RL sportsmen).

You are quite correct - we lost to them at home in the last game of the season to lose top spot. I just think the momentum from Wide to West and the subsequent tonking we gave them on their own pitch made us favourites that year.

This year is hopefully going to be a belter, i'm just glad we are involved after the supposed crisis year we've had.

The two teams are hardly lovers of each other, there are niggles between several individuals across the park, Saints probably feel there are a few scores to settle and we do owe them at least one GF win.

It should be a rough, tough & hopefully clean-ish contest (don't mind a bit of biff but don't want fighting to spoil the spectacle) & the best team on the day will out.

You obviously haven't been watching us play much, although you are right about the defence.

We haven't beaten two quality sides. We beat Huddersfield and Wigan who are both very, very average. The standard of the third placed and below sides in Super League is pretty dismal, in my opinion, and if we had been anywhere near the side we were last year both would have been hammered.

If we win this, it will be on a par with that of 1999. No doubt about it. With ball in hand, I can never remember us being as out of sorts as we are now. I'm just hoping that for eighty minutes it can just click into place. Early season performances do suggest that it's still possible.

I hope we can play like we did v's Cas away

Brian had a blinder

We've been scratchy to say the least of late but our pack seems to have got its game in order over the last couple of weeks, and I'm pretty confident we can match it with Leeds in this department. Also our defence has been very well organised and we can be confident about that.

Everyone knows Leeds have a pace advantage over us, but I think the key area we need to improve is in our last tackle plays, which have been shocking this season. We're really letting our opposition off the hook by panicking on the last and getting caught in possession or putting in stupid kicks. If we can get the ball into the in-goal area and win some repeat sets then I'm confident our attack will look after itself. If we make the same errors we'll invite Leeds onto us, and we won't be able to hold them out for sustained periods like we did Wigan and Hudds.

We will win this, and we will win it with style. I'm fully confident for one reason.....

Saints want it more than Leeds.

Err..where`ve you been the last 3 years......

I am emailing this to BLuey he cah post it on the dressing room door.

That's pretty much it and it's quite surprising given Catalans, under Potter, were one of the best teams in terms of last tackle options. Our intelligence close to the goal line has gone out of the window.

The former point is irrelevant because we've beaten them in spite of that a number of times before. It's your second point which is the key IMO. I think Potter has royally screwed them up either through necessity (to try and find a way around the slower PTBs, which have ruined our natural game) or because he's a naff coach. I can't see us sorting it by Saturday night myself as we hadn't managed it even after two weeks of match-free practice (although at least we don't bump into each other anymore). It looks like we are going to have to defend like our lives depend on it and live out the adage that defence wins games. Anderson would be jumping up and down with glee!

Dont post crap like that!

It has been shocking, and shown no signs of getting any better. Had we have lost against Wigan, it would have been the primary reason. Our outstanding defence has helped us get to the final, but you feel we have to do more offensively if we are to stand a chance against leeds in the final.

Wigan in contrast, had Tomkins putting the ball consistently in the right places on the last tackle. How many drop outs did we end up defending in the end?

This is wishful thinking on your behalf mate! Last year was a real example of people thinking it was a done deal before kick off!

everyone knows these sides are even and I can tell you nobody will be announcing it as a forgone conclusion on this side of the 62 like vagas did on tv last year.

I think the general feeling amongst rl fans who know owt about the game is it's too close to call

it could be tight as or a blow out like 07 for either team.