TOM JOHNSTONE hopes to put Wakefield on a throne at their dream Grand Final.
A bit different from the dreaded ‘mushroom chair.’
journey to Old Trafford is as unlikely as they come, especially when you consider where they were.
A dilapidated, ramshackled Belle Vue has been transformed, with on field development as huge as that off it – and owner Matt Elllis sometimes persuaded to not go further.
And few know just how far things have come than Johnstone, who recalls just how grotty things were.
The winger, who came through Wakefield’s academy, said: ” We used to have a mushroom chair in the showers.
“There was a chair next to the ice bath and when it got damp, it had grown a mushroom on it. It didn’t get moved for the season, so we used to be showering around the mushroom chair!
“Everyone was just like, ‘How long can that stay there?’ There were bets going on it for a week, two weeks, some people saying a year – by the end of the year it was still there.
“It wasn’t great and definitely not too good to be breathing it in.
“Now we’ve got outstanding facilities, great coaching. Anything you need, the club provides and sometimes there are moments where I probably slow Matt down and bring him down a little bit.
“He’s like, ‘If we need it, I’ll do it.’ I think there was a moment where they were talking about a team bus and Matt was just like, ‘We’ll just buy one, we’ll just buy his own team bus instead of renting one because we might as well have one.’
“I’ve talked about this moment for 10, 12 years now and said it was a bit of a pipe dream really because we used to be battling the bottom four.
“I used to say, ‘Can you imagine if we ever got a ring? And then, fast forward to now, came back with the aspirations to try and win something.
“We said it was a four-year plan to try and be pushing for finals and two years in, we’re in one.”
Johnstone moved away from Wakefield to , who he represented in 2023’s Old Trafford showpiece.
And life in France helped him blossom into the England contender he is now.
But as soon as he came back, he knew things had changed. Now they will face in their shot at immortality – and downing the man who helped bring him on, then coach now Wolves assistant Steve McNamara.
He added: “It came to a point where then owner Michael Carter said it’s probably best for both parties if you move on.
“I’d probably not delivered as well as expected on the injury front and we couldn’t really afford to have one of our higher paid players be injured all the time.
“And I wanted to see if I could challenge and win something. I got to Old Trafford in 2023 and just missed out, but when Wakefield said, ‘We’re going to try and do that back here,’ it was a no-brainer.
“Steve really worked with me and helped me a lot. I definitely came back to Wakefield a better player than when I left.
“I love Steve, but I want to win tomorrow.”
Rugby league bosses expect a 70,000 crowd as a new name will be etched on the trophy.
Still people in the West Yorkshire city are pinching themselves at even making it.
Now to end a 58-year title drought, two years after playing in the Championship, where several of their current squad turned out.
Johnstone, 31, told SunSport: “I keep thinking, ‘I’m about to come out of Grand Final and play for Trinity,’ and it blows my mind a little bit.
“Daryl Powell and Ste Mills found a system to identify players, good players, bring them into the team, probably nurture them a little bit. We’re reaping the rewards now.
“They found Caius Faatili, Caleb Hamlin-Uele, Ky Rodwell, people like that and they’re all just unbelievable.
“Then you’ve got the players like Max Jowitt, Mason Lino and Jay Pitts, who stayed we went down. Now they’re getting their reward.”
