Kenneth Jarvis, Warrington Wolves Blogger

After the 2009, 2010 and 2012 Challenge Cup finals, Warrington felt invincible in the biggest games. Shortly after that 2012 cup win was the Grand Final, and that aura of invincibility came crashing down with an almighty thud, and has stayed there ever since. The 2013 defeat followed the season after and it took Warrington nearly three years to get to another final again, the time difference between the 6th and 7th finals of the modern era however was just two months, and we have lost them both.

I still remember walking down Fletcher Street to get to Wilderspool Stadium to watch the Wire desperately try and not get beat time and time again. At that time the Old Trafford showpiece final looked like a million years away from what Warrington could ever hope of achieving. Building ourselves up to the position of appearing in that final three times, and winning three Challenge Cups along the way is something to be proud of, regardless of how much those Old Trafford losses have hurt.

Putting the loss into that perspective makes you proud to think how far we’ve come, but regardless of how good you are, you always want to get better. Warrington have the potential to be one of the rugby greats, and be the best club in the country, but have fallen short too many times now. The reason for the failures isn’t too clear, but Warrington are unable to take that extra step to greatness.

Once again we have to start a season wondering, “Will this be our year?”, we thought that at the start of this season and have done for nearly a decade, the answer time and time again has been a clear no. Will it be our year next season? Well we’re not going anywhere, so we will appear again at Old Trafford sooner or later to do it all again. Hopefully we get that chance again next year, but there are no guarantees. It’s the way it is in rugby that the winner of a 30 game league comes down to how you perform in a one off match, it’s crazy how that’s the way the system works, but it’s something fans have to live with.

Warrington have won the actual league twice since the formation of Super League, but unfortunately that counts for very little in the world of Rugby League. The sport’s biggest achievement is seen as its third biggest trophy. If you swapped of the league victories over Wigan for a playoff loss, then Warrington would have been standing there as Super League winners, not caring that they hadn’t won the League Leaders Shield. The sport of Rugby League however comes down to being able to be at your best in a one-off match, and it’s something that Warrington haven’t been able to do in four years.

Walking around Old Trafford you see shirts from other teams who might not ever get the chance to see their own club at such a final. It’s a pleasure being a Warrington fan, and I’m thankful that I get to watch such a great team play rugby, something I didn’t think was possible in those Wilderspool days. On the way home I travelled over the Barton Bridge, looking down at Salford’s ground, and thought back to the match they had to play against Hull KR, and what KR’s fans now have to go through after their relegation. Warrington are a million miles from that now, and we’ll be competing with the best again next season. I’m bitter about the loss, and bitter about the four times in a row. Our time will come again however, and it will be our year sooner or later, I’m just praying that it actually is the next one.