Regan Grace will be hoping to maintain a great Welsh tradition when he runs out at Wembley Stadium for the Challenge Cup final this weekend.
The young Welsh wing has already helped St. Helens to win the Super League’s League Leaders Shield and now he is eyeing up a first Challenge Cup winners medal against Warrington Wolves.
He scored in two of his side’s three games to get to Wembley and the 22-year-old has notched 19 in 27 outings this year.
Next on the agenda for the flying wing from Aberavon will be the Super League title itself, followed by a possible British Lions tour to New Zealand later in the year.
Grace’s speed and try-scoring ability have marked him out as one of the talents of the northern code this season.
Saints are chasing a 13th title in Rugby League’s showpiece event and there has been at least one Welshman in their ranks in their dozen wins to date.
Although they reached the first final way back in 1897, it took them 59 years to actually win the trophy.
That first triumph came in 1956 when they were coached by the great Jim Sullivan, who had won the cup twice with Wigan and was the first captain to lift the trophy aloft at Wembley.
That Saints side included three Welshmen in Glyn Moses, Steve Llewellyn and former Wales’ union cap George Parsons.
Don Vines was the sole Welshman in the 1961 side that beat Wigan, while ex-Newport and Wales forward John Mantle was a three-time winner in 1966, 1972 and 1976.
Another former union international, Kel Coslett, joined him in the 1972 and 1976 winning teams.
Scott Gibbs was a Wembley winner in 1996 in a 40-32 win over Bradford Bulls that marked the first of a magnificent seven triumphs for fellow Welshman, hooker Keiron Cunningham in a team that also included Welsh flier Anthony Sullivan on the wing.
The last of his successes came in 2008, which was the last time Saints were in the final.
Since then, Warrington have won in 2009, 2010 and 2012 and been the runners-up in 2016 and 2018.
St Helens’ Challenge Cup Winning Welshmen
1956: St Helens 13-2 Halifax
Glyn Moses, Steve Llewellyn, George Parsons
1961: St Helens 12-6 Wigan
Don Vines
1966: St Helens 21-2 Wigan
John Warlow, John Mantle
1972: St Helens 16-13 Leeds
Frank Wilson, Graham Rees, John Mantle, Kel Coslett
1976: St Helens 20-5 Widnes
Eddie Cunningham, Roy Mathias, John Mantle, Kel Coslett
1996: St Helens 40-32 Bradford Bulls
Scott Gibbs, Anthony Sullivan, Keiron Cunningham
1997: St Helens 32-22 Bradford Bulls
Anthony Sullivan, Keiron Cunningham
2001: St Helens 13-6 Bradford Bulls
Anthony Sullivan, Keiron Cunningham
2004: St Helens 32-16 Wigan
Keiron Cunningham
2006: St Helens 42-12 Huddersfield Giants
Keiron Cunningham
2007: St Helens 30-8 Catalan Dragons
Keiron Cunningham
2008: St Helens 28-16 Hull FC
Keiron Cunningham
