There can be no more fitting tribute to Keiron Cunningham, an ever present member of the St Helens side who have dominated the game for nearly two decades, than that he is to have a bronze statue erected in his honour outside the club's new stadium while he is still playing.

Saints supporters put the Great Britain hooker ahead of such club legends as Alex Murphy, Tom van Vollenhoven and Kel Coslett to take pride of place when the 18,000-seater replacement for Knowsley Road is opened in 2011.

By the end of the 2008 season the St Helens captain had won 20 trophies since making his debut for the Lancashire club back in 1993.

Saints have reigned supreme in the modern era, landing the Challenge Cup seven times since 1996, the Super League five times and the World Club Championship twice.

Like many of the traditional Super League clubs from the Lancashire area they were one of the founding members of the Northern Union set up back in 1895.

However, amazingly for one of the most successful clubs in the sport's history, St Helens did not win a trophy until 1932, when they landed the League Championship.

Success really came after World War Two, beginning in 1952 when Jim Sullivan steered Saints to their first victory in the Challenge Cup final, as well as to two championships.

While the modern era will be regarded as Saints' most successful period, the club also enjoyed a golden spell in the 1960s when the likes of van Vollenhoven, Murphy, Dick Huddart and Vince Karalius were to the fore.

The highlight of that decade came in 1966, when the club completed the League and Challenge Cup double.

The 1960s also saw the introduction of the red V on their shirt for the 1961 Challenge Cup final against Wigan. Saints won the game 12-6 and the kit has become synonymous with the club ever since.