James Graham hits back at excuses made for Penrith after St Helens defeat

St Helens legend and a man who was brilliant during a near decade long stint in the NRL James Graham was in the crowd as the Saints defeated Penrith Panthers to be crowned World Champions in their own back yard.

Speaking on his podcast The Bye Round, Graham emphasised how big of an achievement it was.

“In a two horse race and a game like rugby league that’s massive,” he said of the odds.

“Consider Penrith’s record at home, it’s just one of those sporting moments where you’re just ‘wow, I’m witnessing greatness here.'”

Graham also hit back at the excuses people have made for Penrith:

“After the fact of the result people are talking about the weather, but that’s the same for both teams. I think people have a misconception of the weather in England, yeah it rains a lot but it doesn’t rain like that.

“You don’t get that type of storm in England, it’s not like St Helens are accustomed to those conditions.”

He has also emphasised the difference in between spending between the two clubs.

He said:

“One thing that nobody has mentioned is the net spend on players between St Helens and Penrith, they’ll have double the amount to spend, like every NRL team would.

“The spend that’s available to that club and the resources is nowhere near what the NRL clubs have. It’s a huge win and a big lesson out there for any kid or aspiring athlete about having meaning in something and care factor.

“You can see that in St Helens, I’m not saying Penrith didn’t but perhaps they didn’t treat it with the same level of importance that St Helens did. It’s a big lesson that if you care about something then you increase your chances of success.”