Super League Final

[Big Pete]

English Super League GF is LIVE.

St. Helens	vs.	Wigan Warriors
Paul WELLENS	17/1	Matt BOWEN
Tom MAKINSON	2	Josh CHARNLEY
Mark PERCIUAL	22/5	Anthony GELLING
Josh JONES	4/23	Dan SARGINSON
Adam SWIFT	5/32	Joe BURGESS
Mark FLANAGAN	15/6	Blake GREEN
Lance HOHAIA	6/7	Matthew SMITH
Kyle AMOR	16/10	Ben FLOWER
James ROBY	9/19	Sam POWELL
Mose MASOE	8/17	Dominic CROSBY
Louie McCARTHY SCARBROOK	10/11	Joel TOMKINS
Sia SOLIOLA	11/12	Liam FARRELL
Jordan TURNER	3/13	Sean O'LAUGHLIN
Willie MANU	13/22	Eddy PETTYBOURNE
Alex WALMSLEY	18/24	Tony CLUBB
Luke THOMPSON	28/25	John BATEMAN
Greg RICHARDS	27/27	George WILLIAMS

 

[Big Pete]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

The numbers are a pain in the ass in the ESL! What about us measly message board members?

19 minutes gone.

Wigan leads 2-0.

However, they just had one of their props sent off for a foul on Lance Hohaia who's been ruled out for the rest of the match.

 

[Big Pete]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

34 gone

2 all.

Just caught a replay of the Flower send off. What a dog act, needs to be rubbed out for a season.

HT

6-2 Wigan

Green beats one and fires a long pass to Burgess who dots down in the corner to give the Warriors an unlikely four point lead.

Been a fairly low quality game. Saints have had the better of the exchanges but just couldn't convert pressure into points. They're really missing Lance Hohaia and they're trying to many fancy plays to compensate.

64 gone

8-6 St. Helens

Wigan just missed a fairly tough penalty kick to tie it all up after a big break down the touchline. To be honest, the Saints player should have been binned for a professional foul.

It's been an ordinary match. Not a good advertisement for the ESL at all but to put it into context, it'd be like if Souths had George Burgess sent off but took Trent Hodkinson out of the game with him. Even then, I don't know if that does it justice since Saints are basically relying on a backrow in the halves as their playmaker - it'd be like having Reni Maitua there as your only option.

 

[Fozz]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

well, we can complain about parker's kicking game but I'd take Parker over Matt Smith. That was ordinary. 69% for the year too.

 

[Big Pete]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

Makinson claims a mid-field Wellens bomb, hits and spins over the line.

Saints 14-6

9 to go.

 

[Fozz]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

Geez, Wigan just keeps turning it over in the red zone. I don't think I've seen any repeat sets being forced since I tuned in.

 

[Fozz]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

Right so Wigan were down to 12 men for 78 minutes of that game. I'm amazed it was that tight in the end although I suppose with no Hohaia St helens lost direction a fair bit.

 

[Big Pete]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

St Helens 14

(Soliola, Makinson tries; Percival 3/3 goals)

Wigan Warriors 6

(Burgess try; Smith 1/3 goals)

I thought that was the theme of the match, Fozz. Nobody seemed content to just roll through their sets and apply pressure. Instead both teams just wanted to play what was in-front of them and kept throwing pressure passes that weren't on.

The one man advantage was always going to catch up to the Warriors eventually. They did well to hold in there and they'd have to be disappointed that they lost based on a mid-field bloody kick. I know I would be and was when the Storm scored through Fonua that one time.

Seemed like both teams went in with a fair amount of injuries. Wigan were missing McIlorum who is an absolute star for them while Saints had their star half Lomax missing, Wilkins had been injured all year and of course they lost Hohaia mid-way.

Not much of a contest, I'd say the take-home is definitely the send off.

 

[Fozz]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

Yeah, didn't feel like a Grand Final to me. Too much throwing the ball the around, not much of the gritty hard stuff you'd expect to see (in the NRL at least).

I only saw the Makinson try, which was a pretty good effort to roll around two players and plant the ball.

 

[ningnangnong]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

 

[Fozz]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

That was just brutal. I only saw pictures of it earlier but that video really hammers in how bad it was. He'll be missing a fair chunk of next season I'd imagine.

 

[Foordy]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

That was brutal, and disgraceful... I wonder what suspension he is looking at

 

[Porthoz]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

What a fucking sorry excuse for a human being.

Russell Packer would be proud...

 

[Kimlo]

Re: NRL General Discussion Thread

He should be rubbed out for a whole season at least.

 

[Dexter]

What a brain explosion from Ben Flower. He cost his side nearly all chance of winning and should be suspended for at least half the 2015 season IMO for one of the worst acts of thuggery you will see. It's right up there with Danny Williams Wigan's Flower sent off in Super League GF

 

[vertigo]

Yeah, sorry, that's not Rugby League.

That's flat out assault.

 

[Ari Gold]

The punch on the ground was a dog act, but I reckon Hohaia asked for the first one.

 

[Broncoman]

That is just disgraceful and possibly the lowest act I've seen on a Rugby field in either code. The first was bad enough but laying a blow when he was on the ground was crossing the line and he deserved to be sent off.