Harry Sunderland Trophy James Roby Attendance 70,102 Champion St Helens R.F.C. Man of the match James Roby Referee Phil Bentham | Referees Phil Bentham Broadcasters Sky Sports Date 11 October 2014 Stadium Old Trafford | |
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Location Old Trafford, Stretford, United Kingdom Similar 2015 Super League G, 2010 Super League G, 2012 Super League G, 2016 Super League G, 2014 NRL Grand Final | ||
The 2014 Super League Grand Final was the conclusive and championship-deciding match of Super League XIX. It was held on Saturday 11 October 2014, at Old Trafford, Manchester, UK with a 6pm kick-off time. The game was played between the top two teams from the regular season, St Helens RLFC and Wigan Warriors.
Contents
Background
The 2014 Super League season (known as the First Utility Super League XIX due to sponsorship by First Utility) was the 19th season of rugby league football since the Super League format was introduced in 1996. Fourteen teams competed for the League Leader's Shield over 27 rounds (including the Magic Weekend in Manchester), after which the highest finishing teams will enter the play-offs to compete for a place in the Grand Final and a chance to win the championship and the Super League Trophy.
St Helens
Def Castleford, 41-0 in the Qualifying Final on 19 September
Def Catalans, 30-12 in the Semifinal on 2 October.
Wigan
Def Huddersfield, 57-4 in the Qualifying Final on 18 September
Def Warrington, 16-12 in the Semifinal on 3 October.
Match details
Following a fiery opening that started with the kind of big tackles that this derby game has become known for, the game suffered a dramatic twist in only the second minute of the game when Wigan Prop, Ben Flower, was sent off by referee Phil Bentham after he punched a defenceless Lance Hohaia.
This forced Wigan to play 78 minutes with 12-men, causing a switch in the Wigan approach to one of smash-and-grab. A valiant first-half performance by Wigan's 12-men meant they entered the break with a 6-2 lead.
Despite further strong defensive displays by the Wigan outfit in the ensuing second-half, Iosia Soliola forced himself over the Wigan try-line in his final appearance in the Red-Vee to put St Helens ahead and in control of the game. An admirable yet desperate display by Wigan to get themselves back into contention was halted when Tommy Makinson crashed over for Saints 12 minutes from time to make the score 14-6 after a precise kick over-the-top of the Wigan defence from Saints stalwart, Paul Wellens. Despite a late Wigan flurry, Makinson's try proved to be the one that sealed the game and the championship for St Helens meaning that the Saints claimed their first championship title since 2006 and their sixth overall in the Super League era (St Helens are now equal with, Leeds Rhinos for titles since 1996, both have 6 titles).
World Club Series
By winning this match the Saints had qualified for the World Club Series final, to be played early in the 2015 season against the winners of the 2014 NRL Grand final, the South Sydney Rabbitohs.