Leeds coach Brian McClennan is refusing to look beyond Friday's top-of-the-table engage Super League clash with St Helens.

Victory for the champions over this year's long-time leaders in their penultimate regular season fixture could all but secure the league leaders' shield.

The Rhinos currently head the table on points difference from Saints with just one more game, against lowly Salford, to come after this week's Headingley blockbuster.

Yet McClennan insists he is not yet thinking about claiming the shield, or even looking ahead to the play-offs, as he focuses solely on beating Saints.

"It is a really important game," said McClennan. "It is a really big two points - but whoever wins does still have one game to play and we can't lose sight of that.

"We have just got to concentrate on the job in hand. We have got a big challenge and we look forward to that. "We will just concentrate on this game first - we just want to get out on the pitch and be the best we possibly can be."

Leeds and Saints are favourites to meet again in the Grand Final for a third successive year.

The Rhinos have come out on top in the last two Old Trafford showpieces but McClennan claims that counts for nothing and does not believe Friday will have any bearing on later meetings.

"We don't talk about a psychological advantage," said the Kiwi, whose side boast the better form with nine wins from 10 while Saints have lost three in seven.

"If that was a case we couldn't have won the Grand Final last year, because they beat the living daylights out of us in the semis.

"It's all on the day."

Finishing top could earn the Rhinos the perceived advantage of being able to choose their opponents for the second round of the play-offs should they come through their first game.

It is the first time such an innovation has been tried and McClennan likes the idea.

He said: "I think the semi-final series format is very good, the new initiatives are exciting."

Leeds will be close to full strength with Ian Kirke's return from a broken leg leaving only Danny Buderus on the sidelines with a similar injury.

The game looks set to attract the Rhinos' biggest crowd of the season with two stands at the 20,500-capacity stadium already sold out.

St Helens coach Mick Potter, whose predecessor Daniel Anderson guided the club to four successive League Leaders' Shields, admits it is a must-win match for his side if they are to maintain their proud record.

"If we did win this week, we'd still have to win next week, given Leeds' for-and-against situation, so they probably only need to win this week," he said.

Although Saints have won on their last two visits to Headingley, most recently in the Challenge Cup in April, Potter admits the Rhinos have started to find their form at right time.

"We will have to be good," he said. "They're pretty strong across the park and they're on a roll - maybe the week off will have done them no good!"