TONIGHT James Roby will lead out his hometown Saints against rivals Wigan in what will be his ninth Super League Grand Final.

In a game which sees James Graham and Sean O'Loughlin sign off, following the long-serving Gareth Ellis in hanging up their boots the former Blackbrook Junior sees no sign of letting up.

Again this season when it has mattered Roby has pulled out the 80-minute displays - and his mature head and lead by example approach makes him a valuable cog in the Saints machine as they gear up for back-to-back titles.

Jonny Lomax, as another one of Saints leadership group and fellow key members of the spine, has seen at close quarters the things that have made the 35-year-old Mr Perpetual Motion such a special player.

When asked to comment on the skipper, Lomax said: "He is unreal. The longevity of career and what he has produced speaks for itself.

"He is incredible – what is fantastic about him is how humble he is as a fella in and involves everyone in the group, he is so welcoming to everyone.

"I can’t speak highly enough of him to be honest in terms of what he has achieved in his career but how he holds himself.

"He will go down as one of the best, if not the best, in the Super League era in terms of the consistency and longevity and being on top of their game for so long, there are not may to rival him in that respect.

"There are certain things he does that you have to follow.

"He is still up there as the fittest at the club, and still one of the best, if not the best, trainers.

"He does all the little things so well and a lot of those things don’t get noticed. He makes 50 tackles every week and it is only when he takes it over 60 that it gets noticed.

"He is a constant perpetual motion in what he does.

"There won’t have been many in Super League to rival that consistency and longevity."