St Helens hooker James Roby has targeted the Magic Weekend in Manchester as a perfect opportunity to exact revenge for his club’s recent Challenge Cup exit at the hands of Wigan Warriors.
Saints were eliminated from the last eight of the Cup with an impressive and efficient Warriors display, with Shaun Wane’s men winning 18-4 at the DW Stadium on Saturday.
That compounded the pain for Saints, who had already been beaten by their fierce local rivals at home on Good Friday.
Roby know wants to exact revenge on the big stage of Manchester City FC’s Etihad Stadium, with the eyes of a huge TV audience watching.
“We have a point to prove at the Magic Weekend,” Roby said.
“We want our revenge and this means turning them over at Manchester.
“Wigan are our arch rivals and it is always a massively important game for us and the fans so I can’t wait to face them again.
“Hopefully there will be a large proportion of St Helens fans in the crowd that will get behind us.
“It is a fantastic weekend for the fans. They can witness every team in the competition and all of the stars of Super League in one venue across two days.
“I am really looking forward to it. It’s something different to the usual weekly rounds of Super League and being at the Etihad Stadium after Manchester City have just won the Premier League is really special.
“It probably adds to the occasion for me knowing that the Etihad is home to the current Premier League winners and now we can show everyone how rugby league can light up a stadium.”
Roby knows now that Saints can only focus on the Super League, something he admits he is desperate to win.
“The Super League title is the only thing we have left to play for now,” he added.
“So our focus is on lifting the Super League trophy.
“The Grand Final is the pinnacle of the competition and it is what the team works hard for all season.
“To have been there six times and only won once is really hard so we want to get back to Old Trafford and hopefully this will be our year.”