The 18th Man: 'A brilliant Grand Final, shame about the result'

Now the dust has settled... how do you reflect on the Grand Final?

Sean Lawless: A brilliant spectacle of a final with an unbelievable moment to win it, just a shame it was the wrong way.

It’s a tough moment to take, but one that you can’t help applaud and admire and congratulate St Helens for winning a great arm-wrestle. For Wigan to come from a hammering in last year’s play-offs against St Helens to taking them within a second of golden point extra time in a Grand Final, shows great progress.

Jon Lyon: With nothing but pride. As galling as the ending was, the lads couldn’t have done any more, and the difference between the sides was a lick of paint at either end and a lucky bounce. That’s sport. We’ve won with a bit of luck before, sometimes it goes your way and sometimes it’s just not your day.

It was a cracking game, everything you’d want from a derby in a final. I feel for Lockers and Budgie leaving in such a manner, and poor Benny Flower missing out through injury, but someone had to lose, even if we didn’t deserve to. I hope Bevan isn’t blaming himself, he’s been a revelation all season and we probably wouldn’t have been there without him.

Steve Ford: Still in shock if I’m honest. When we scored our try I was very confident we would win the game. So much happened in the last few minutes of the game it was like a dream.

On reflection I think it highlighted our lack of good go forward from our props, which meant we spent more time in our home half in a constant battle to break out and try and put Saints under pressure in their own half. A great game but not a great result.

Darren Wrudd: My goodness what a game. From a heart in the mouth moment as Makinson’s drop goal hit the post, elation as it missed, and devastation as Shevington lad Welsby’s try was touched down.

All in a matter of five or six seconds, after a brutal encounter which saw Wigan create more chances as we looked all the more dangerous throughout. I was confident right up until that wicked bounce robbed us of the chance to go to golden point. But I came away from that experience strangely buoyed and proud of a group of lads who had absolutely given their all for our glory. A fantastic team performance showing commitment and dedication to defend at all costs.

Bravery from Gildart with a broken thumb and Burgess a broken jaw, both fighting on for three quarters of the game after their injuries hit. Of course I felt for Sean O’Loughlin but he has led us to glory in the past and knows how high he is held in the eyes of the Wigan faithful, and the rest of the game too which was evident as the Saints squad and coaching staff gave him an honour guard as he left the field. That showed some rare class from the plastic scousers.

From initially feeling sad that Jackson Hastings could not take big Jim, his poorly grandfather, a winner’s ring, I later looked at the game and wondered what Jim thinks of the class that his young charger brings to our game. Surely the best grand final the game has seen, and we were part of that spectacle and showed the world what rugby league is all about.

Has this been a successful season for Wigan?

Sean Lawless: The Leeds semi final will sting for a while more, as Wigan are a much better team and that still feels like an opportunity missed. But for a team that is, or was, in transition, it has been a good season, and one that sets Wigan up to not just challenge next year but win silverware over and above the League Leaders’ Shield.

Jon Lyon: It would be hard to think otherwise. Top of the league before lock down, top of the league at the end of the season, and a fraction away from winning the Grand Final.

Challenge Cup semi-final disappointment apart – and that was just one of those days – we couldn’t really expect much more. We missed Marshall, Gildart, Manfredi, George Burgess and Clubb for huge parts of the season, which makes the achievements even better.

Another huge success of the season is the amount of game time the young players have been given, even if some was enforced, and how well they played.

I can’t wait to see how the likes of Byrne, Havard, Shorrocks and Smith carry on next year now they’ve had a taste of first-team action.

We have also recruited incredibly for next year, retaining French and Hastings and adding Jai Field and the barely believable return of John Bateman. Exciting times ahead!

Steve Ford: Better than I expected and for sure an improvement on 2019. Winning the GF would have topped off a good season.

The success of the young guns coming through particularly Havard was really pleasing.

Darren Wrudd: A successful season, hell yes! A couple of blips along the way have cost us some glory, a semi final which we should have won perhaps, but we finished top of the tree, the most consistent side in Super League 2020.

Made it to a semi-final of the Challenge Cup and took part in the best game a final has seen since Super League began.

Offer that to any club at the start of a year and they would settle as a successful season. That we ask the question shows how high the expectations are here at Wigan and rightly so, aim high and you won’t go far wrong.

The sign off from Adrian Lam says it all for me, with an attitude of just wait and see what this group of lads can do next year... I simply cannot wait!

Joe Burgess and Ben Flower are leaving – sad to see them go?

Sean Lawless: Both Burgess and Flower have been great servants for Wigan and leave a gap in the squad sign their departures.

Joe Burgess never got back to the peak of his powers of the Cronulla game, but he has in name well and firmly secured in Wigan history by that performance.

Ben Flower’s resilience from coming back from the 2014 Grand Final, shows how highly thought of he is at Wigan and a great servant to the club.

Jon Lyon: Very much so. As often happens, like with Charnley and Sarginson, once we knew they were leaving they seemed to hit top form again.

Both have been great servants to our club and it’s a shame they are leaving without a proper send off.

I’m sure when they return with their respective clubs they’ll receive a huge welcome, until the game kicks off, anyway.

Steve Ford: Yes. Ideally I would have kept both for another season at least.

Joe Burgess when he first arrived on the scene was a breath of fresh air. A young fast winger willing to take on his opposite winger on the outside, confident in his pace and ability.

Ben Flower has been a great servant to the club and did a lot of the grind that is easy to overlook. A great competitor and I think that time may prove that he was better than people thought whilst he was at the club.

Darren Wrudd: I was slightly shocked when I looked at Ben Flowers stats. Has he really been here for nine years? It seems like yesterday that this fresh-faced Welsh lad turned up with a fierce attitude and built like a brick outhouse.

Having his highs and lows, Ben has been a great servant to this club and has shared in some of the glory along the way, quite right too.

Perhaps now the emphasis is on a younger more mobile pack and developing a long term core of players to take us forward, and Ben might just begin to struggle to keep up.

As for Joe Burgess, I do like Budgie and he has shown himself to be a good quality wing with an aptitude to graft like a second rower.

But when we produce the consistent high quality that we do at Wigan, some very tough choices will need to be made, and some like this one are made surely in the best intention for the players future. He will do well next year and no doubt will come back to haunt us.

And finally, are you looking forward to an off-season break?

Sean Lawless: The fact that the off season may bring around some preseason fixtures in which we can attend is where my excitement is at the moment!

If Wigan return for the Capital Challenge against the Skolars, they may inadvertently find a record crowd down in London from people desperate to get a rugby fix. I am looking forward to the world looking a bit more normal as we edge closer to March 2021.

Jon Lyon: Not really. While knowing the players deserve a well-earned rest, I miss the rugby like mad. The only way I can get through to the start of the season (March – it’s a lifetime away!) is with my vast collection of DVD’s. I’ll be watching half a dozen matches a week, mostly of us beating Saints.

I can never get enough of Liam Farrell’s last-minute try in 2011 or the 1989 Challenge Cup final, and need that now more than ever to get over last Friday.

Steve Ford: Not really! Need my weekly fix, but obviously the players need to recharge their batteries and sort out the various niggly injuries that I’m sure most of the players will have.

As supporters I think we owe a great deal of thanks to all the players and support staff in enabling the 2020 season to be completed.

I will use Wigan TV and YouTube to get my fix until March finally arrives.

Darren Wrudd: It has been a funny old year for all of us. A year in which the rugby league has given something to really look forward to, when little else is going on.

I enjoyed the NRL while it was on and watched many more games than usual, but the Super League I think has been brilliant.

I usually get to this time of year and look forward to an off season, both from watching and writing, but I could easily go on and have enjoyed it immensely.

I am sure aching bodies will need rest and the staff behind the scenes who work so very hard all year round are ready for a little respite although that won’t be for long.

But I suppose 2020 will leave me wanting more, looking for our next chance to cheer the lads on, welcome new players and say a proper goodbye to those leaving.

So it’s a split decision from me – yes I am sorry to see the end of year, but that just gives me another to look forward to and that can’t be bad.

Until then, take care all, have a lovely holiday and I look forward to seeing you soon.