Moving to Widnes Vikings has been a “breath of fresh air” for Nathan Connell – and now he wants to start rounding off his stellar maiden campaign with 1895 Cup glory.
The in-form full-back, 23, has been a revelation for Allan Coleman’s side this term after making the switch from relegated Salford.
He has proved one of the Championship’s top No1s and hopes to highlight that in the upcoming showpiece final against favourites London Broncos.
Connell, who largely played wing for financially-troubled Saford in Super League during his breakthrough campaign last year, admitted: “I’ve loved it.
“It’s been nice to have some consistency of going into games and winning.
“Last year was a bit different; it was up and down, and I had to make the best of a bad situation.
“But this year’s been a breath of fresh air to be able to play in position where I back myself and I’m thriving.
“I’ve really enjoyed being part of a different group and pushing myself out of my comfort zone.
“That was a big thing; I’d been at Salford since I was 14 and knew it like the back of my hand so to step out of that has developed me as a person and player.
“I’ve a lot to thank Widnes for what they have done for me.”
Although big-spending Championship leaders London are much-fancied to claim the silverware at Halliwell Jones Stadium, Connell knows his Widnes side well enough to know they can cause an upset.
Granted, they were vanquished 44-12 by Jason Demetriou's side back in January. But the last time they met, only last month, Vikings almost inflicted Broncos' first loss of the season before narrowly falling 42-36.
They have comfortably booked their place in the Championship Play-Offs and Connell, who has scored 20 tries in just 26 appearances before last weekend, conceded: "From that first game of the year when we lost to them, we always penned the return fixture in the diary as the time that we'd really be able to test ourselves.
"There are good teams in this comp' with OIdham [who became the first team to beat London a couple of weeks ago] and Doncaster up there.
"London are clearly the pinnacle but that last performance against them does give us belief.
"We're not naive enough to think they won't have gone away and worked just as hard to counteract what we did, and we'll have to find different ways to beat them.
"But it's set up now for a great final."
Wigan-born Connell, who grew up idolising the likes of Sam Tomkins, Dom Manfredi and Blake Green at his hometown club, was such an instant hit at Widnes that he had already penned a new two-deal by March.
He said: "I was delighted to sign.
"Clearly, I want to get back to Super League and Widnes want to get there, too.
"It's those ambitions that really intrigue me. I know my ability and I want to push for that.
"Whether it ends up being with Widnes or not, who knows?
"But I'm loving my rugby league here and am really excited by what we can do in the next two years."
Clinching the 1895 Cup would be a great reminder of the potential Widnes do have.
They reached the inaugural final in 2019 only to miss out to Sheffield Eagles.
And prolific Connell, who scored hat-tricks against Dewsbury Rams and North Wales Crusaders, said: “It’d be massive for the club and the town itself to go on and do it.
“The club’s not had any silverware for a number of years now but it used to thrive in Super League.
“They were once World Club Challenge winners, too, and we need to go out and do it for the fans and the club.
“We all know it’s there and we have the potential. It's now up to us to go and deliver. We can't wait to show what we can do."
The 1895 Cup Final will take place on Monday 31 August at the Halliwell Jones Stadium (K.O. 3pm).
Get your tickets here!
