2008 Super League Grand Final
| 2008 Super League Grand Final | |||||||||||||
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| Date | 4 October 2008 | ||||||||||||
| Stadium | Old Trafford | ||||||||||||
| Location | Manchester, United Kingdom | ||||||||||||
| Harry Sunderland Trophy | Lee Smith, Leeds | ||||||||||||
| Jerusalem | Katherine Jenkins | ||||||||||||
| Referee | Ashley Klein | ||||||||||||
| Attendance | 68,810 | ||||||||||||
| Broadcast partner | |||||||||||||
| Broadcaster | Sky Sports | ||||||||||||
| Commentators | Eddie Hemmings, Mike Stephenson, Phil Clarke | ||||||||||||
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The 2008 Super League Grand Final was the conclusive and championship-deciding match of the Super League XIII season. Held on Saturday 4 October 2008, at Old Trafford, Manchester, the match was between League Leaders St Helens and defending champions from 2007 Leeds Rhinos.
Route to final
Regular season final standings
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  St Helens |
27 | 21 | 1 | 5 | 940 | 457 | +483 | 43 |
| 2 |  Leeds Rhinos |
27 | 21 | 0 | 6 | 863 | 413 | +450 | 42 |
St Helens
Position in Super League table: 1st
- Qualifying semi-final: Won 38-10 v Leeds
Leeds Rhinos
Position in Super League table: 2nd
- Qualifying semi-final Lost 38-10 to St Helens
- Final eliminator: Won 18-14 v Wigan Warriors
Pre-match
Pre-match entertainment was provided by Scouting for Girls, who performed a four song set, and Katherine Jenkins. Jenkins returned a year after bring forced to withdraw from the 2007 game to perform the Grand Final anthem, Jerusalem. And the coin to see who kicked off was tossed by 12-year-old James Baxter who won the opportunity through a competition
Teams
| St Helens |
Positions | Leeds Rhinos |
|---|---|---|
| Paul Wellens | Fullback | Lee Smith |
| Ade Gardner | Winger | Ryan Hall |
| Matthew Gidley | Centre | Carl Ablett |
| Willie Talau | Centre | Keith Senior |
| Francis Meli | Winger | Scott Donald |
| Leon Pryce | Stand Off | Danny McGuire |
| Sean Long | Scrum Half | Rob Burrow |
| James Graham | Prop | Kylie Leuluai |
| Keiron Cunningham (c) | Hooker | Matt Diskin |
| Bryn Hargreaves | Prop | Jamie Peacock |
| Lee Gilmour | 2nd Row | Jamie Jones-Buchanan |
| Jon Wilkin | 2nd Row | Gareth Ellis |
| Chris Flannery | Loose Forward | Kevin Sinfield (c) |
| James Roby | Interchange | Ali Lauitiiti |
| Nick Fozzard | Interchange | Ryan Bailey |
| Paul Clough | Interchange | Nick Scruton |
| Maurie Fa'asavalu | Interchange | Ian Kirke |
| Daniel Anderson | Coach | Brian McClennan |
Match details
4 October 2008 18:00 UTC+1 |
| St Helens |
16 - 24 | Leeds Rhinos |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Graham 6' Gidley 43' Gardner 59' Goals: Long (2) |
Report | Tries: Smith 24' Hall 37' McGuire 49', 63' Goals: Sinfield (4) |
Man of the Match
Harry Sunderland Trophy winner: Lee Smith, Leeds Rhinos
Significance
This game was the last in Leeds' colours for Gareth Ellis and Nick Scruton, who join Wests Tigers and Bradford Bulls in 2009, respectively. Similarly, it was the last game Nick Fozzard and Willie Talau played for Saints as they head to Hull KR and Salford City Reds in 2009, respectively. It was also Daniel Anderson's last game in charge of Saints.
Leeds' achievement of winning consecutive Super League titles marks the first time in their history that the club have managed to defend the Championship.
Leeds' victory also marked the first time that a Super League team had won both the World Club Challenge and the Grand Final in the same calendar year.[1]
2009 World Club Challenge
The Rhinos' win in the grand final earned them the right to play against the 2008 NRL season premiers, the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles on 1 March 2009 in the World Club Challenge.
References
- ↑ "Leeds Rhinos' Peacock: Grand Final victory best ever". 2008-10-06. Archived from the original on 9 October 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-17.