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JOSH JONES is praying next Friday’s play-off semifinal will spark a remarkable three-day personal fairy-tale.
The forward (right) is desperate to help Salford beat holders Wigan and clinch their first-ever Grand Final appearance.
That, in itself, would be a stunning feat, with the Red Devils tipped for relegation by many at the start of the season.
But, for Jones, it would be just the start of a oncein-a-lifetime weekend, which will definitely involve his wedding and also, possibly, a Great Britain spot.
He said: “It is definitely exciting, but I’m trying to keep my feet on the ground and we will see how things go.
“I get married the day after the Grand Final and, hopefully, I will get selected for Great Britain, but I am totally focused on Salford at the minute.”
Wayne Bennett will announce his Lions squad two days after the Grand Final, on Saturday week, and Jones is in the running after being part of the training squad.
That call-up a few weeks ago came out of the blue, with the 26-year-old not even previously involved in the England set-up.
It meant some hurried changes for Jones and partner Olivia, the mother of his three children.
He said: “We were going on honeymoon to Dubai but we’ve had to cancel it. It’s a shame, but Olivia supports me and we will get away at some point.”
First priorities, though, are helping steer the Red Devils past Wigan, a side they have lost to four times this season, including an 18-12 defeat in the play-offs last week.
Jones said: “I thought we were the better team then and we have proved that, on our day, we can beat anyone.
“All the pundits wrote us off at the start of the season, but we proved a lot of people wrong.
“Even at the start of the year, I thought we were good enough to get to the Grand Final – and win it.”
Jones won Super League in 2014 with St Helens, who have already booked their place at Old Trafford.
Two years later, he played in the 2016 Million Pound Game for Salford when they were just two minutes away from being relegated.
He said: “That game seems a lifetime ago.
“There has been a great transformation since then – but now we want a Grand Final win.” ZAK HARDAKER hopes a weekend of brutal honesty will help rescue Wigan’s title dreams.
The holders were condemned to another play-off game after dishing up a poor display in the 40-10 defeat by St Helens on Friday.
But Hardaker has warned Salford to expect them back to their best at the DW Stadium on Friday.
Hardaker (above) said: “We are going to have some honesty and this weekend will be sore for us, but we will get over it – it’s not that major.
“Come Monday, this performance is gone. We’ve beaten Salford four times this year, so we have got confidence from that.
“It will be amazing if we get to the Grand Final, considering where we were at the start of the season when people were saying we were the worst Wigan team ever seen.”
Saints now have a week off after booking their first Grand Final appearance for five years.
Centre Mark Percival, who played in that 14-6 Old Trafford win over Wigan, said: “It’s outstanding to be back. It was good to be there before, but I want to win it again and again.”