JOEY Lussick could be feeling the weight of expectation rather than hoping for an upset as he aims for another Challenge Cup semi-final victory.
He could be hearing nothing but, 'you have to win, you must win,' as St Helens look to hold on to the trophy.
But the hooker is adamant everything is the same as when he inspired Salford to their first final in 51 years, everything else is external.
Even though Saints are three-times Super League champions and current holders and Salford had been nowhere near silverware, the only demand is, ‘do your job right.’
He said: “There’s big excitement and a big game against Wigan but there’s a really calm feeling about every player.
“Expectation is more about outside noise than anything – because of the success the club’s had, people probably expect us to be in semi-finals and finals.
“When you join a new club, you’re not really sure about how things are – for me it was, ‘With their success, what do they do so differently?’
“But it’s nothing too different. It’s the standards they set, the expectations they uphold to one another and the respect everyone has for each other.
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“There’s a lot of constructive criticism. If someone needs to be told straight, they will be but everyone knows we’re all trying to help each other, it’s never just a personal attack.
“Everyone knows the Salford story and the run we had but that team was similar to this group, within it we knew what we had and what we could produce if we did things to our ability.”
Lussick's try earned Salford a 2020 semi-final victory over Warrington but Wigan v St Helens is something else.
And having experienced the game that counted the very term derby just three weeks ago, he is up for an Elland Road repeat.
The 26-year-old, who returned to English rugby league from the NRL, added: “It was unreal. It took most players 15-20 minutes to just walk into the stadium.
“Even driving to the ground, there were people in shirts everywhere. I loved it – the game itself was a step up and with the reward for winning this one, everyone’s going to step up a bit more.
“The phrase ‘play the game, not the occasion,’ definitely applies. We try to not get too caught up in it. If you do, the game can pass you by.”
St Helens and Wigan are Super League's top two and the Good Friday derby was the highest quality game of the season so far.
With a place at Tottenham on the line, today's (Sat) tussle at the stadium where he watched England play New Zealand in 2018, could be even better.
And now he is back after a stint in the NRL, Lussick is better placed than most to know the standard over here has gone up – as has the level of interest from stars Down Under.
He told SunSport: “The quality of players across the board is growing. You see superstars in all games and the youth that’s coming through is brilliant.
“The game’s heading in the right direction and is getting a lot more interest from overseas, you see a lot more quality players coming over.”
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