- Published
"It's something I've dreamed about for years and it used to be a bit of a pipe dream," said Tom Johnstone, when asked about the prospect of Wakefield Trinity winning a Super League Grand Final.
asserted
Trinity → dream → Final
That dream could become a reality for the England winger on 3 October, after Wakefield shocked treble-chasing Wigan Warriors 33-6 in Saturday's play-off semi-final to secure their place in the Old Trafford showpiece for the first time.
uncertain
Wakefield → become → time
Wakefield, who will play Warrington Wolves in the title decider, have been a club transformed in recent seasons.
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who → play → seasons
So often competing at the wrong end of the Super League table, they lost their top-flight status in 2023 - but that proved to be the beginning of the club's reinvigoration, sparked by the completion of a takeover by kitchen magnate Matt Ellis.
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that → compete → Ellis
His financial support, along with the leadership and experience of head coach Daryl Powell, have led Wakefield up from the Championship and now to within 80 minutes of becoming Super League champions.
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support → lead → champions
Johnstone, 31, began his career with Wakefield and was back for Trinity's return to the top division at the start of 2025 after a two-year spell with Catalans Dragons.
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Johnstone → begin → Dragons
"I went to Matt's kitchen factory with my agent and we had a chat about everything they want to achieve and everything they promised to do," Johnstone, who scored two of Wakefield's five tries against Wigan, told BBC Two.
"We left and said: 'If they do any of that, it's going to be something special.'
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it → go → that
I couldn't say no."
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I → say → no
Powell, who was appointed shortly after Wakefield had dropped into the second tier, added: "The journey's been an interesting one.
"
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journey → appoint → tier
We got relegated but it was probably good for us.
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it → relegate → us
It allowed us to stabilise the team, get our staff in and sign some players that got us out of the Championship.
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that → allow → Championship
"We started to sign high-quality players like Mike [McMeeken] and Tom, and some of the guys we signed the year before have really grown and prospered."
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we → start → guys
Prior to the semi-final, many viewed Wakefield - who finished fourth in Super League - as second favourites against a Wigan team that had won 16 successive matches and were seeking a second domestic treble in the space of three seasons.
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that → view → seasons
But Trinity responded brilliantly to falling behind early on and took full advantage of Adam Keighran's second-half yellow card, seizing control of the contest and winning it with 33 unanswered points.
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Trinity → respond → points
Ex-England half-back Kevin Brown, working as a BBC pundit, described Wakefield's display against Wigan as "definitely their best ever performance in Super League", adding: "It's been an incredible story where we're at right now and we're going to run out of superlatives if they go and win it."
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they → work → it
Captain McMeeken has played in three previous Grand Finals with Castleford and Catalans, while he was also part of the England side that played in a World Cup semi-final on home soil in 2022 - but the significance of Saturday's achievement was not lost on him, either.
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significance → play → him
"To take in an experience like this is up there as one of the best moments of my career so far," he said.
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he → take → career
At Old Trafford, Powell will come up against the club he coached for a season and a half before his exit midway through the 2023 campaign.
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he → come → campaign
He said: "It's not about me or my journey, it's about the players and how they're writing different scripts every time we take the field."
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we → say → field
Whoever is victorious will be a first-time Super League champion and Powell added: "It'll be awesome for the game.
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It → add → game
I think it's awesome that we're there in particular, Warrington have been there before.
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Warrington → think → ?
"For us, it's about not getting too ahead of ourselves, playing the game as it is like we did tonight, and if we do that, we've got a great chance."
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we → get → chance
The Aporia
