There’s understandably been some celebrating this week after beating Wakefield to claim the Super League Leaders Shield on Sunday. Is there a risk this could be a distraction ahead of the play-offs?
Absolutely no chance whatsoever – and that’s because we simply won’t allow it.
Yes, this is a fantastic achievement for the club and one that deserves to be celebrated.
But nobody needs to tell any of us that it’s ‘job done’.
Finishing top of the table at the end of the regular season is just a stepping stone towards our ultimate goal of winning the Grand Final.
And we also know that when it comes to the media, it’s a case of us having to prove people wrong once again – which is something we enjoy doing.
All year, many sections of the media have been saying we won’t do this and we won’t do that or this will happen to us or that will happen to us. It never has.
So now what will happen is that many will say our season’s completed because we’ve lifted the League Leaders Shield.
Those who think that clearly don’t know anything about the Giants of 2013!
We’ve finished top of the Super League XVIII table on merit after proving to be the most consistent side in the competition.
We’ve beaten most teams in the top eight on a consistent basis and always come up with the perfect response following a defeat.
Having won a major piece of Super League silverware for the first time has come as something of a relief and will bring us belief and confidence going into the play-offs.
What we have just achieved sets us up perfectly for the exciting games that still lie ahead of us.
Do you believe more credit should be given to the side that lifts the League Leaders Shield, because it’s still all about who wins the Super League Grand Final?
It is all about the Grand Final.
But I think our Shield success has helped bring some of the romance back into the competition, when you think of where the Giants were as a club just a decade ago.
The Leaders’ group of five is now a group of six – we’ve followed in the footsteps of Bradford, Leeds, St Helens, Wigan and Warrington – and that’s a very select band.
We’ve shown anything can be possible, and that’s good for our sport.
OK, the Grand Final will always be the ultimate, but apart from the recently-retired Stuart Fielden, Shaun Lunt (Grand Final success with Leeds last year) and Danny Brough (Challenge Cup success with Hull FC in 2005), nobody in this squad has won a major rugby league trophy before.
But now they can all put down a piece of Super League silverware on their CVs.
As you can imagine, that means so much to them. They certainly all know how significant winning the League Leaders Shield is.
Could you ever have imagined your first year as a head coach would have ever gone so well?
That’s not really something I thought about. I was more focused on what we could achieve as a club rather than what I could achieve as an individual.
If we were to be successful this season, it would be down to the collective effort rather than anything else. That’s been our key.
Everyone deserves credit for the season we’ve had so far, and the focus certainly shouldn’t be just on me.
It should be on all of the players, all of the coaching staff, all of the medical staff and all of the backroom staff. In fact, everyone who has been involved in the club at some stage during 2013.
As the head coach, it’s an easy job.
It’s my role to win games and win trophies, with all those around me making that possible.
Having said all that, I was apparently the favourite to be the first coach to get the bullet at the start of the season, so I’d like to thank all those who felt that for that extra slice of motivation!
The last part of the League Leaders’ Shield celebrations was the private civic reception with Mayor of Kirklees Martyn Bolt. How much did that mean to the Giants?
It meant an incredible amount.
It was very important for the club and it was an honour to be recognised in this way.
When the Giants are playing a game we know we are representing the town and this very famous club.
An event like this at the town hall shows these efforts are being widely appreciated, and it’s something that makes us proud.
