So to target the next trophy on offer after being knocked out of another is suddenly changing your tune? Everybody knows the order of importance so a poll is irrelevant. Last time you won at wembley warrington won the LLS and it was vice versa last year. There isn't a fan of either club who would honestly take the LLS over a wembley victory. Personally, as good an achievement as it is, i couldn't care less about finishing top. There is a good chance you could end up with a harder play off match than whoever finishes second.

Heart = Challenge Cup
Head = Grand Final

Then again I come from a mindset that thinks coming top of the league should get the most recognition - how stupid am I

The challenge cup will always be the big one to me having grown up during the 8 in a row but I hate losing and want us to win everything so obviously I'd like them all.

The grand final is the biggest and means the most nowadays. It's the game that everyone remembers the following season, gives you the tag of champions and allows you to wind opposition fans up with regardless of form and it gets you a place in the WCC. That's an even bigger incentive next year IMO with it being hosted down under.

We have had an easy cup run with our most difficult game being Hull KR away. So if we win at Wembley we will have won the challenge cup without beating any of the top 5 teams. The Challenge Cup Final is probably the best day out of the year but it is nowhere near as big an achievement as winning the GF.

That said, in 2011 we beat Wire away, Saints in the semi, then Leeds in the final which was probably as difficult as it could get. For me the CC is always second after the GF.

If we can only pick one it has to be the Challenge Cup, I love it, history, tradition, the occasion, the build up, coverage (even with Ray French) on national television, don't get me wrong I'd love to win the Grand Final, but it doesn't have the same 'feel' as Wembley, its seems more 'manufactured'...............IMO.

+1

+1
The sad thing is that the one that is most difficult to win is classed as the least important.

All three.

As stated above it will always be GF for the bragging rights, but my heart will always be for the Challenge Cup.

As an occassion, nothing compares to 'Abide With Me' being sung out at the CC final (no mater who is playing). Goosebumps every time.

Is it harder to finish top than to beat the very best teams in consecutive weeks in knock out games? Fair enough it is difficult to be consistent, even given the amount of p*** poor teams we play, but it's also very difficult to beat the best teams.

We finished top last year but we won 0/2 games against Wire, 3/4 against St Helens, 2/2 against Catalans and 2/4 against Leeds. So overall that's 7 wins from 12 games against top 5 opposition, and 1 win from 3 games against top 5 opposition in knock out games. I would argue that last year we were good at beating the 'easier' teams, but when it came to the top sides you might as well toss a coin, then when it came to big knockout games we really struggled. That's not the description of a champion team for my money.

We had that hymn at my dads funeral back in 1991, always makes me very emotional when I hear it, I'll probably have a few tears in the old eyes on the 24th (and I'm not ashamed to admit it), just another piece of tradition that makes me cherish the Cup Final.

--good post--bout sums it up for me as well! i did not like the whole occasion at last years grand final,not because we got beat, it just did not have the *wembley factor* and the atmosphere was less friendly than the atmosphere you get at wembley.

Sorry mate, but that's garbage.

For a comparison, let's look at Manchester Utd *spit* from last season.

They were crowned champions, having lost only 5 games, but those 5 include Spurs, City and Chelsea at home.

They also lost to Chelsea in both the League- and FA-Cups.

Therefore, they played the 5 teams who finished below them 12 times.
7 wins
5 losses

Does that mean that they should not be crowned champions, and should insted have been forced to play the 11 teams below them to "prove" that they deserved it?
(I'm equating 8 of 14 in SL to 12 of 20 in EPL).

Top of the league should be crowned CHAMPIONS, after a straightforward 1 home, 1 away, against every other team in the league.

And if we'd held out for 2 more mins against leeds (A Big if) and beat Wolfs making it 1 from 3 would that make us a Champion team?

If we'd have lost EVERY game against the other top 5 that season - But won 3 games in the Play offs (Maybe down to other teams injuries/suspensions etc. etc) would that make us a champion team.

Unfortunately comparing any system based on results from a year when a different system was used is flawed.