SAINTS’ daunting mission to reach Old Trafford and become the first ever team to win Super League from sixth place begins on Saturday (5.30pm) with a play-off eliminator against a Warrington side that comfortably beat them two weeks ago.
Should they overcome that significant primrose and blue hurdle then Saints would have to travel to the well-rested League Leaders Shield winners and reigning champions Wigan in the following weekend’s semi-final.
Given the poor form, pattern of results, chopping and changing and lack of match fitness – all products of an unprecedented casualty list throughout the year - simply making the play-offs to maintain a unique record is an achievement of sorts, even if Saints set the bar much higher.
If securing qualification on points difference ahead of Catalans was fraught enough then getting to the Grand Final from this place on the starting grid seems like Mission Impossible.
But coach Paul Wellens is encouraging and challenging his side to make history – and has lauded the group for the way they have stuck together despite at one stage having more than 10 first choice players sidelined.
He said: “It is incredible for us as a club to have qualified for every single play off in Super League – and I’m very proud that we could continue that on this year.
“A sixth-place finish is certainly not what we wanted at the start of the year but given the circumstances and the challenges that we’ve faced, that’s the reality of the situation.
“So we give ourselves a chance now.
“I’m really proud of how they have stuck together in tough circumstances this year.
"One thing’s for sure that when we go to Warrington on Saturday we’ll have a large number of fans behind the sticks, really behind the playing group, so I couldn’t ask for anything more as coach.”
The league table does not lie, and Saints have finished 10 and 14 points behind Warrington and Wigan respectively to underline the massive turnaround in fortunes required at this knockout stage, for all the talk of it being a one-off and clean slate.
Wellens knows that his side faces a huge challenge – but wants his players to rise to that.
“Well, it’s a different challenge for us, isn’t it?
“I think there’s only four teams in the history of the play-offs to win the competition from outside of the top two places.
“And no one’s ever done it from sixth.
“Now we can look at that in two different ways. You can look at it as no one’s ever done it so it’s impossible to do.
“Or do you want to be the first team to do something that’s never been done?
“I’m very much very much in the latter in terms of how we want to approach it, so get excited doing something different.”
Saints have again been spending a day training at Sale Sharks to try a different environment, and to give the players a freshen up and a lift.
Having now got most of their bodies back, admittedly short of match fitness, it is now about how they get their heads on the big game and put their know-how and ability into action.
Wellens said: “I’ve got within the playing group a number of vastly experienced players who have played in many of these types of games and know what they look like.
“Jonny as the captain is very vocal and Morgan Knowles has been incredible and delivered a really strong message to the group as well after the game on the weekend.
“We have a number of players off across the board are delivering strong messages.
“But it’s also important that the messages don’t just become messages but become actions.
“And that’s our challenge on the weekend.
“If we can build on the last few weeks this week, we give ourselves a chance against a very good Warrington side.”
Saturday’s game kicks off at 5.30pm.
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