SAINTS’ outstanding hooker James Roby knows the defending champions have to hit the ground running at Headingley for Friday night’s do-or-die semi-final – or hand over their crown.

Leeds, who this week added the League Leaders Shield to their earlier Challenge Cup triumph, are seeking the first treble since Saints waltzed off with the lot in 2006.

And they have already prepared the script – with a packed-to-the-rafters Headingley ready to roar Jamie Peacock and Kevin Sinfield to Old Trafford one last time.

But Roby, who was this week named in the fictitious Dream Team for the fifth time, says Saints can dig in for the most important 80 minutes of the year so far.

Roby said: “We know Leeds are a great side – there are four of them in the Dream Team to underline that quality.

“We know we have got to be at our best and we really need to hit the ground running.

“We are in the semi final now so there are no excuses – we have to start well, and not be trying to build into it after 10-20 minutes.

“We are 80 minutes away from the Grand Final and they don’t come much bigger than this now.”

The Rhinos have got the better of Saints this term in three of the four encounters, winning two of those quite comfortably and knocking them out of the Challenge Cup.

That semi-final loss knocked the stuffing out of Keiron Cunningham’s men in the summer and subsequently floundered in the early period of the Super 8s.

It took a trip to Leeds, admittedly post Wembley, to finally get the Saints wagon rolling again.

And that win should give them belief that although the Rhinos deservedly finished on top of the pile, they are not invincible.

Roby added: “That Headingley win was only a month ago. We played very well that night with the way kicked the ball and completed our sets.

“We ground them down and that gives us a positive experience. If we can emulate that, play in a similar pattern we know we are capable of it.”

Although Leeds have been the outstanding team of the year, they have wobbled since Wembley and Roby reckons any of the four semi-finalists can take out the prize.

And although Saints have again been written off by plenty of pundits and a number of fans, Roby draws on the strength the group has shown this term and at the end of last season when they took out the top prize against the odds.

“The positive thing is the way we have regrouped and dug in.

“I know people don’t like it when we lose – but every team, no matter how good you are, is going to lose a couple of games every year especially with the standard of the comp.

“It was a negative time after the semi and morale was a little bit low, but you can never lose sight of how good we are and let’s not forget we are still the defending champions.

“We have done the hard stuff on the pitch, turned it around and got ourselves out of that rut.

“We have no excuses this year, we are more than capable and have done it before.”