St Helens captain Paul Wellens excited for record 10th Grand Final appearance
Friday 10 October 2014 15:09, UK
St Helens captain Paul Wellens admits it is a bit surreal to be readying himself for a record-equalling 10th Grand Final appearance.
Live Super League Grand Final
Wellens will lead the Saints out against Wigan at Old Trafford on Saturday looking to end a run of five successive defeats in the domestic game's showpiece match.
The 34-year-old will match Jamie Peacock's record of 10 finals and admits to having the same excited feeling he enjoyed before his first in 1999.
"I'm very proud," Wellens said. "To be in the same company as someone like JP is tremendous. He's someone I look up to and respect.
"Not many people play 10 years at the top in this game, so to be able to play in 10 Grand Finals is quite surreal. But I'm just as excited about this one as I was about the first one back in 1999.
"I loved my first four - I thought it was all plain sailing and then I lost five on the run so it just shows in this game that you can take nothing for granted.
"But what's happened in the past will have no bearing on what happens in the 80 minutes on Saturday. There's only me and James Roby who were part of the team that last won it in 2006. The players here are a very hungry, motivated group."
Credit
The match will be coach Nathan Brown's last in charge of the club and Wellens feels the Australian deserves plenty of credit for helping them reach the final, given the injury list he has been forced to deal with.
Saints lost key playmakers Luke Walsh, Jonny Lomax and Jon Wilkin, Wellens has been forced back into a full-back role in Shannon McDonnell's absence and back-rower Mark Flanagan has been utilised at scrum-half.
"Huge credit has to go to Nathan Brown," Wellens added. "When we lost those players, there were a number of us looking round the dressing room thinking 'we're staring down the barrel of a gun here'.
"Nathan devised a different way for us to play and shifted a few bodies around which took some getting used to but, the more and more we've worked on them in training, the more comfortable we've become.
"What has certainly helped us as well is having a number of good players within the group who are comfortable playing different positions - the likes of Mark Flanagan, Jordan Turner and Lance Hohaia are comfortable in different roles, which gives us that little bit of flexibility.
"The guys are very focused and determined to do well this week. Nathan leaving adds that little bit of something to it, but, in terms of the way we prepare and want to perform, it's irrelevant really. Coaches come and go in rugby league.
"Hopefully we can perform well and he can go back to Australia a happy man.
"All the guys have the utmost respect for the decision he's made. We're quite aware he's been away from Australia for six years now. We wish him well for the future."
Watch the Super League Grand Final LIVE on Sky Sports 1 HD from 5pm on Saturday - or alternatively go online and read our live blog on the action from Old Trafford
