Underdogs ready to soar in Championship Grand Final

Sheffield scrum-half Simon Brown is urging the people of South Yorkshire to get behind the club and turn out in force to spur the Eagles in their quest to secure the club’s first major trophy in over a decade by beating rivals Featherstone Rovers in the Co-operative Championship Grand Final at The Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington on Sunday (4:30pm).

Sheffield have defied massive odds to reach this season’s showpiece event, beating Widnes, Halifax and Leigh in successive weeks to become the first team ever to finish the regular season outside the top two and claim a place in the Grand Final and Brown says the Eagles are ready to step up to the mantle and continue making history this Sunday.

“Training is going really well and everyone’s really buzzing at the minute. There’s a great felling around the club,” said Brown. “No-one expected us to get this far but we’re ready to go and we can’t wait to get out there and play in the Grand Final.

“Obviously it’s a massive achievement for the club because it’s the first big final since 1998, so there’s a lot of hype. We don’t want to let the club or each other down and we want to know what that success is like.

“It would be a massive boost for us to see a big crowd come across from Sheffield. We don’t get the biggest crowds but our fans are very proud and they’ve been through thick and thin with the club so it would be great for us to see them turn out in force to spur us on.”

Sheffield know it will be no mean feat to overcome Featherstone in the Grand Final, with the Eagles having already conceded 68 points in their two previous encounters this season but Brown, who has led from the front all year, believes that all will be forgotten when they go head to head in Sunday’s climax.

“Featherstone will be the favourites, we know that, but anything can happen and we have the belief,” he said. “Our confidence is high and we want to play on the big stage and this is the biggest stage at this level.

“Everyone wrote us off before the last few games but we believe in ourselves and we know we’re a good side. Our past record against teams doesn’t matter when you get into knock-out games because anything can happen on the day.

“These games bring a lot more pressure but we’re just trying to focus on keeping everything as normal as possible and concentrate on the game in hand.

“We’re confident and ready to go and come Sunday I know we’ll be more than ready.”

The Co-operative Championships Kids Go Free offer returns for this year’s Grand Finals Day (Sunday October 2) meaning that for the first time at a Rugby League Final, children have free admission when accompanied by a paying adult.

The East Stand of The Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington, has been dedicated solely to families, so to take advantage of this offer select an East Stand ticket by calling the RFL Ticket office on 0844 856 1113 or by visiting http://www.rugbyleaguetickets.co.uk and book your free child ticket under Kids Go Free.

Adult tickets for the Co-operative Championships Grand Finals day at The Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington on Sunday October 2 cost from £14 and can be purchased by calling the RFL Ticket Office on 0844 856 1113 or by visiting http://www.rugbyleaguetickets.co.uk

Underdogs ready to soar in Championship Grand Final

Sheffield scrum-half Simon Brown is urging the people of South Yorkshire to get behind the club and turn out in force to spur the Eagles in their quest to secure the club’s first major trophy in over a decade by beating rivals Featherstone Rovers in the Co-operative Championship Grand Final at The Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington on Sunday (4:30pm).

Sheffield have defied massive odds to reach this season’s showpiece event, beating Widnes, Halifax and Leigh in successive weeks to become the first team ever to finish the regular season outside the top two and claim a place in the Grand Final and Brown says the Eagles are ready to step up to the mantle and continue making history this Sunday.

“Training is going really well and everyone’s really buzzing at the minute. There’s a great felling around the club,” said Brown. “No-one expected us to get this far but we’re ready to go and we can’t wait to get out there and play in the Grand Final.

“Obviously it’s a massive achievement for the club because it’s the first big final since 1998, so there’s a lot of hype. We don’t want to let the club or each other down and we want to know what that success is like.

“It would be a massive boost for us to see a big crowd come across from Sheffield. We don’t get the biggest crowds but our fans are very proud and they’ve been through thick and thin with the club so it would be great for us to see them turn out in force to spur us on.”

Sheffield know it will be no mean feat to overcome Featherstone in the Grand Final, with the Eagles having already conceded 68 points in their two previous encounters this season but Brown, who has led from the front all year, believes that all will be forgotten when they go head to head in Sunday’s climax.

“Featherstone will be the favourites, we know that, but anything can happen and we have the belief,” he said. “Our confidence is high and we want to play on the big stage and this is the biggest stage at this level.

“Everyone wrote us off before the last few games but we believe in ourselves and we know we’re a good side. Our past record against teams doesn’t matter when you get into knock-out games because anything can happen on the day.

“These games bring a lot more pressure but we’re just trying to focus on keeping everything as normal as possible and concentrate on the game in hand.

“We’re confident and ready to go and come Sunday I know we’ll be more than ready.”

The Co-operative Championships Kids Go Free offer returns for this year’s Grand Finals Day (Sunday October 2) meaning that for the first time at a Rugby League Final, children have free admission when accompanied by a paying adult.

The East Stand of The Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington, has been dedicated solely to families, so to take advantage of this offer select an East Stand ticket by calling the RFL Ticket office on 0844 856 1113 or by visiting http://www.rugbyleaguetickets.co.uk and book your free child ticket under Kids Go Free.

Adult tickets for the Co-operative Championships Grand Finals day at The Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington on Sunday October 2 cost from £14 and can be purchased by calling the RFL Ticket Office on 0844 856 1113 or by visiting http://www.rugbyleaguetickets.co.uk