1. How fantastic was it to hear Saints fans going through the full repertoire of Wembley songs on Saturday.

We have not had that buzz for a long while and goes to show that absence makes the heart grow fonder.

There were times in that period between 1996 and 2008 where going to Wembley – or Cardiff, Twickenham or Murrayfield – was almost taken for granted. I recall a conversation with one fan who suggested he and his family were going to ‘give it a break this year’ – admittedly for a good enough reason, but with an inevitability and expectation that next year would be fine….10 years is a break enough now.

It is not simply the length of time that has created a build-up of eager anticipation, it is the fact that Saints genuinely have a team of players who would grace the national stadium; men who could etch some lines of their own on rugby league’s most prestigious of occasions.

2. Of course, a couple of those blokes who would grace Wembley are the speedsters. Saturday’s win at Cas showed what a difference having pace in the back line makes. The two tries that broke up the tight game up were the length of the field efforts from Ben Barba and Regan Grace. How good would it be for those two to run them in at Wembley and be talked about 50 odd years hence like Voll.

3. It was not all about the flashy stuff. Saints’ defence was magnificent on Saturday. They tackled really well in that first half when Cas probably had a greater number of attacking sets.

Nor did Cas find a weak link with the cross kick to Grace, who took them all.

4. It is understandable that so much focus is on Barba. He has dazzling skills and is genuine box office in a game that has lacked the real stand-out personalities for a few years.

But there are other performers of note. Each week, we see Danny Richardson grow into the boots of Sean Long. He is still learning, and it won’t always be perfect – but he has the skills, traits and attitude to be a top-notch number seven.

At the start of the year there was still genuine uncertainty as to who would take the scrum half spot, but Richardson has nailed it.

5. There was a good turn out from Saints at Cas, probably around 1,700, but it was a disappointing home support. We can look at all the excuses in the world – and talk about the cup’s appeal, but it boils down to people not wanting to pay for games not covered by a season ticket.

If you want evidence, ask why the away support is never really affected and is often significantly up. It not only looks awful, but it diminishes the product. Why don’t we just throw the extra games on the season ticket?

6. Saints can’t complain at the quarter final cup draw – at home to Hull. But it makes me think if we revisiting the last few years of cup knockouts in reverse order, and exacting revenge like Vincent Price’s character in Theatre of Blood. Cas done, now Hull who trounced Saints at Langtree 47-18 in 2016. If Saints get past them we would have to get Leeds in the semi to keep in sequence…..