The defending champions will start tomorrow's engage Super League grand final against St Helens with few people outside Leeds believing they can retain the title, but McClennan has lost none of his faith that the Rhinos have what it takes to win through at Old Trafford.

Saints have already secured the League Leaders' Shield and the Challenge Cup and are 2-5 favourites to complete a clean sweep of domestic trophies, a feat which would see 2008 go down as a year of lost opportunities for Leeds, despite their status as world club champions.

"I haven't thought about what it would mean to lose on Saturday night and I am not going to," said McClennan. "We have the World Club Challenge sitting in our trophy cabinet and given the nature of that game and how we won it we are rightly proud.

"It was a good achievement and a great performance against a great team in terrible conditions.

"If it's a rainy old night on Saturday then good, because we've been there."

Leeds have struggled to consistently reproduce the high standards they set on a wild, wet, windswept night at Elland Road seven months ago, but showed tantalising glimpses of their best form in beating Wigan 18-14 last Friday to reach the grand final.

They went into that final eliminator with their confidence at a low ebb following a 38-10 defeat at St Helens a week earlier, but produced an emphatic response to leave their coach delighted by how his team's lead in to the grand final has evolved.

Having had a week off while Saints were beating Hull in the Challenge Cup final and then another bye in the first round of the play-offs two weeks later, McClennan feels victory at Knowsley Road could have been detrimental.

"I'd have been worried had we gone in to the grand final without the extra game," he said. "As much as we tried to win it, it was a concern in the back of my mind.

"You have to build up towards finals and for us it was good to play in a big match like we did against Wigan last Friday, just as it was good for Saints to win like they did at Knowsley Road.

"Last week was a good way to blow off the cobwebs and get our timing right.

"Reviewing the game we felt we made a lot of advances, especially in defence where we got more line speed and were more aggressive.

"It was good step forward and it gives us a lot of confidence that we can be a very good side in defence. On attack we weren't that far off jagging a few more tries and putting a big score together.

"Playing the extra game worked out well for us."

There were no surprises in the 19-man squads named by both clubs yesterday when Leeds were keen to play down speculation over the fitness of Brent Webb, the New Zealand Test full-back who missed a scheduled media event because of "family commitments".

Webb has been troubled by a knee ligament injury in recent weeks, but McClennan said the 27-year-old is certain to start tomorrow when St Helens are expected to recall Jason Cayless, the Kiwi prop who has been sidelined for a month with a knee problem.

Saints were handed a timely boost yesterday when their club captain Keiron Cunningham shelved his retirement plans and signed a new one-year contract.

"I didn't want to get to a point where I was just dragging myself around a field, but my form has been good this year.

"I feel as if I can carry on for another season," said Cunningham, who remains one of the world's best hookers despite being a few weeks away from his 32nd birthday.



Leeds Rhinos: Webb; Smith, Ablett, Senior, Donald; McGuire, Burrow; Leuluai, Diskin, Peacock, Jones-Buchanan, Ellis, Sinfield (capt), Lauitiiti, Bailey, Scruton, Kirke, Hall, Burgess.

St Helens: Wellens; Gardner, Gidley, Talau, Meli; Pryce, Long; Fozzard, Cunningham, Cayless, Gilmour, Wilkin, Flannery, Roby, Graham, Hargreaves, Clough, Fa'asavalu, Eastmond.