even if wire were to get ot nxt year i would prolly stay away unless they changed the time of k-o,as i said in an earlier post,my day was ruined by leeds nobhead fans,plus the whole day was tense as ppl were kicking off all arouind me,even in the toilets and bar ppl were looking for aggro!man city ground would be a better proposition imo,i loved it there! great atmosphere as well!!true rl fans having a good day out! also even tho a lot were

it was more friendly if you know what i mean!

Sadly, I think 6pm is a totally unsuitable ko time for such a big match. They ban alcohol at your seats but that actually makes it worse I think – it encourages people to spend as long as they can in the pubs and arrive last minute and then they get boisterous. Surely Sky don’t wield so much power that they’d be unwilling to screen it earlier? I wonder what the police say about it? After all, it’s clashing with prime time Saturday night TV, so why not put it on earlier? Apart from the problems at the match, you then have the scramble afterwards of people trying to get him by a decent hour.

She could always try drinking less next time....perhaps?

Strange thread.. seems a bit "lets cheer ourselves up by putting down the event" to me.

Ask yourself a question; would this post ever have been created if the game had finished Warrington 26 - Leeds 18? If we are honest. the answer is no.

Actually, if I am honest...........YES ITS WOULD. Like I originally stated, the feelings of deflation were felt by, and discussed between my daughter and myself before kick-off and at half-time, both times when Warrington were well and truly "still in it". The thread was not a knock at the result (we made too many mistakes to win it) or the fact that winning the GF trophy was THE GOAL, or even the playoff structure itself (which I personally think should be changed...but thats just a personal opinion). It was an obseravtion that after waiting so many years to make it to the final I suppose I expected "more". Leaving OT on Saturday I never had the gut wrenching "we just lost the final" feeling that I remember when losing to Wigan in the 1990 cup final. That may be due to having so many seasons of feeling numb at the loses or the fact that this year we already have a trophy.

My daughter is a relative newby to the Warrington supporters. Not a glory hunter as she started just before the success but it is only as she came into her teens that she started to follow the wire. Now at university its harder for her to get back for games but you do tend to think "is it really that special" when she says "dont know if I'd come back next year" whereas a trip to Wembley is a MUST.

Some people have brought up the crowd issues and that will affect their experience but I saw problems at Wembley, I remember the historical "agro" between Warrington and Wigan fans so that doesnt necessarily affect the opinion. Its rugby, people were drinking, drink causes issues. Prats who drink cause bigger issues. I get it.

At the end of the day though, it's not often you get to support your team (or even see RL in general) in a stadium with 70,000+ fans watching under floodlights with an electric atmosphere. I don't really see how it get's any better as a final. If it was that bad, it wouldnt attract so many people every single year.

Totally agree that its not that often you get these chances and thats my point. As a prize, yes as a Warrington fan I want it. As an event (ignoring what it stands for) I could take it or leave it. Good though that moment the teams came onto the pitch to the roar was, I felt more emotion watching Warrington v Australia under floodlights at Wilderspool with a far smaller crowd.

Part of the reason for the post was to raise the question from a general RL point of view, part was for my own self-doubt of "was it me". This was never intended as a "make me feel better" thread after all, not only did we lose but it cost us a packet for the priveledge..enough to depress anybody

. What it has meant though is that I cannot tell whether to be happy that its not just me, or whether I should be disappointed that its not just me !

I had a fantastic day out, the result was pooh but everything else that mattered to me was great. The pubs around O/T were poop but I don't drink a great lot so this doesn't score for me. The atmosphere was fantastic where I was sat & the hairs on the back of my neck were standing on end when the teams came out. The only negative were to many drunken fans around me, I was in block 205 and next to me were a bunch Leeds fans all young males who were a real pain. I deffo want to go back next year and not as a neutral.

I wonder if "The Trafford Pub" on Warwick Road charges £2.00 on United's home games to get in. When the "Premier Inn" was free entry & you could stand outside.
Much prefer Wembley even though London stinks.

I wouldnt go to the GF as a natural but go every year to the CC.

Before the game had a few pints in Manchester but it was off the train and into the ground. The game was great but I wasnt as gutted as I thought I would be about losing maybe because I not a fan of the play off system. Was more up for it when we beat hull away last year.

The kick off time wont change even though its Saturday night prime tv it pulls in the biggest figures of the year. It would only change if they made it a super Sunday grand final day with a 3pm kick off.

KO time for drinking doesnt really effect anything. Anyone thats been to Wembley will see people supping on coaches from 7am and pubs in London full of people from 10am if not earlier.

Fair enough post (not like you needed my approval anyway). Clearly just personal opinion and experience. I unlike you, didnt spend a fortune on the event either. Maybe I would have felt differently if I had.
I admit when I came out of the ground that I wasn't hugely bothered at losing. Though I never am when I think it's been a fair game and the best team has won. I was more depressed when they beat us in last years play offs at HJ than on Saturday. It didnt make the event any more dissapointing for me however, but that's just me. Like I said, it won't stop me going next year.

The Wembley experience is there because it's not a regular occurence and it's quite an effort to get there, when you go Old Trafford two or three times a month the Grand Final doesn't have a WOW factor.

natural.....strange

Didn't like the event and definitely didn't like the stadium. No enjoyment from me but would have been helped by;

A) Winning

B) Not being sat in the proximity of a load of bell-ends

The Etihad was better but is a bit shy on capacity. The Millenium Stadium was hugely better as was Wembley.