THE final round of qualifying ends tonight with St Helens and Leeds Rhinos taking the race for pole position going into the engage Super League play-offs down to the wire.
St Helens, the leaders, need only a point at home to Wigan to secure the Le
ague Leaders' Shield for a fourth successive season. However, a week after their Challenge Cup final victory over Hull, Saints know that defeat could open the door for Leeds, who are just two points behind them.
If Saints lose, then Leeds could take full advantage by completing a bumper victory at Wakefield to overturn a points difference of 51.
"St Helens have their fate in their own hands and know that, if they win, we cannot catch them for top spot," said Leeds coach Brian McClennan.
"We will be concentrating on our own game first and foremost. The main thing for us is producing a quality performance.
"The coaching staff will keep an eye on what is happening between Wigan and Saints and, if the situation dictates that we are chasing something at the end of the game, we can react accordingly.
"However, if we don't play well first of all, that will all be irrelevant."
Wigan could yet finish fourth and will not want for motivation after losing the last three derbies against their great rivals, who have won their last 21 matches.
St Helens coach Daniel Anderson said his coaching staff will not be keeping him in touch with events at Wakefield.
"If we do our job, then we don't have to worry about what the score is there," he said.
Wakefield will be captained by Scotland international Duncan MacGillivray in the Australian's final appearance before he retires at the end of the World Cup.
The full article contains 303 words and appears in n/a newspaper.
