St Helens legend reveals the Super League ground he “dreaded” as he endured “horrendous away days”

James Graham was one of the most feared players in Super League especially during his first stint at St Helens.

He was a treble winner in 2006 and Man of Steel by the time 2008 concluded.

A no nonsense prop you didn’t want to make him angry, however one club had him dreading every away day trip over to play them and that was Wakefield Trinity.

“I used to dread playing at Belle Vue,” Graham said on his podcast the Bye Round, “Did Wakefield have a groundsman? I don’t think so. The field was always like concrete, you couldn’t stand up in the away dressing room.

“I don’t know who the coach was at the time, maybe John Kear, but he painted the away changing rooms pink.

“Ian Millward started that and we’ve turned up to play Wakefield and it was pink. We used to have horrendous away days at Wakey.”

This came as he spoke to South Sydney Rabbitohs coach and former Wakefield star Jason Demetriou who shed further light on this:

“There were two parts to the away changing room but they would always use the sliding doors and make you all sit in one side.

“We’d played at St Helens earlier in the year and the changing rooms were pink for some reason when they came we were like we’re going to do it.

“We won like seven straight after that.

“Ian Millward says it causes fatigue, it takes your attention away.

“As soon as we lost we painted it again.”