Co-operative Championship One all-star team member Gavin Duffy is hoping Cougars’ Grand Final experience can bring them success on Sunday.
The Keighley winger, who was voted into the division’s dream team for the season this week, was part of the Cougars side that reached the end-of-season showpiece at Warrington’s Halliwell Jones Stadium in 2009.
They beat Oldham 28-26 to win promotion, and Duffy believes that coming good on the big occasion can only stand them in good stead this time round.
He said: “Most of the squad played in the play-off final two years ago, so we know what to expect and that gives us an advantage, but it’s important we treat it as a normal game.
"There’s no extra pressure on us, we will go in to the game confident and hopefully get the win.
“We’re confident we can get the result we need on Sunday and, if we do, then we’re confident that we can compete in the Championship and finish in the top half of the table next season.”
Keighley clawed their way back from 16-2 down against Rochdale Hornets to seal their place in the final, and Duffy has attributed the team’s success this season to head coach Jason Demetriou, who inspired Sunday’s spirited fightback.
“It was great to get the win after the start we had on Sunday,” said Duffy.
“We started slowly and we were chasing the game. Jason told us at half-time to carry on what we were doing but not to force the game as we had plenty of time and his words really boosted us.
“He has brought a lot of new ideas to the club this season and all the boys like him.
“We have played more expansive rugby which has worked well for us all year.
“Our goal at the start of the season was to gain automatic promotion but when Swinton won the league we had to re-assess – we’ve got to the final and now our goal is to win.
“We will train hard this week – the same as usual. We will concentrate mostly on ourselves and not worry too much about Workington.
“We know with the right game-plan we can win.”
Workington have come out on top twice in the three games between the sides this season but Duffy said those results won’t be on their minds.
“Losing to Workington two weeks ago will not affect us,” he said.
“We know that we need to turn up with the right attitude. We’ve played them a few times this season so we know them well enough and how they play.”
* The Co-operative Championships Kids Go Free offer returns for this year’s Grand Finals Day on Sunday, meaning children under-16 have free admission when accompanied by a paying adult.
The East Stand of The Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington, has been dedicated solely to families. Call the RFL ticket office on 0844-8561113 or visit rugbyleaguetickets.co.uk.
Adult tickets for the day cost from £14 and spectators can pay on the gate.
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