You can come down from the walls now. The waiting is over. Super League is back as Saints host Salford Red Devils in Round One on Friday night (January 31, kick-off 7.45pm).
Just 111 days on from the last meeting between the two sides at Old Trafford in the 2019 Grand Final, the pair lock horns again as the 2020 competition gets under way. Saints start the season as most people’s favourites to repeat their triumph, while Salford remain an underdog despite last season’s heroics after losing key players in the off-season.
The rules have changed on squad announcements during the winter. Mostly due to Warrington’s chicanery and skulduggery in this field teams must now name a 21-man squad as opposed to the 19 of years gone by, but if anyone from outside that 21 takes to the field for the game then the offending club loses one of its interchanges for that game. Interchanges are a precious commodity to the modern day coach so don’t expect to see too many attempts at deception or late loan recalls this time around.
The shiny new thing about Saints this year is the man at the top. It is well documented that the champions have not added to their squad since the end of last term, but with Justin Holbrook heading down to Gold Coast in the NRL after two glorious years it falls upon Kristian Woolf to take over the reins and continue that success. Woolf has led Tonga’s national side to the last four of the World Cup and to individual Test victories over Great Britain and Australia in recent times so has quite the pedigree. All eyes will be on him in the early part of the season to see just how much of Holbrook’s winning formula he has tampered with, or whether he subscribes to the well worn view that if it ain’t broke you don’t fix it.
His first selection has been influenced by the loss through injury of three key players. Captain James Roby continues to struggle with a troublesome groin injury while Tommy Makinson and Morgan Knowles are not quite ready to return following shoulder surgeries. Kyle Amor is named despite a shoulder problem of his own.
With everyone else on deck we can take an educated guess about how Saints might line up. Lachlan Coote should start at fullback while Makinson’s spot was filled by Jack Welsby in the recent friendly win over London Broncos in Louie McCarthy Scarsbrook’s testimonial. Welsby is an option there again but Woolf has also spoken about the ability of either Kevin Naiqama or Matty Costello to fill in for the England winger. Mark Percival and Regan Grace should form the left edge in the three-quarters, and with Danny Richardson now at Castleford Tigers there isn’t an experienced challenger to either Jonny Lomax or Theo Fages in the halves. Youngster Lewis Dodd has been gaining plaudits in the under-19s and could make his first team debut this season somewhere along the line, but for this week look for him to see plenty of action in the reserve grade which makes a welcome return at the weekend.
Without Roby the hooking role looks to be between James Bentley and Aaron Smith. The pair will most likely share duties, with Alex Walmsley and Luke Thompson the mainstays at prop. Matty Lees has recovered from the serious intestinal injury he suffered a week before Saints went down to defeat to Warrington at Wembley back in August. He should fill one of the spots on the bench with Amor, Jack Ashworth and one of either Bentley or Smith. McCarthy-Scarsbrook may earn a start at loose forward with Knowles out or else Woolf could turn to the silkier but somewhat less energetic Joseph Paulo. The second row pairing of Zeb Taia and Dominique Peyroux was one of the best in Super League last term and should be again. Joe Batchelor is also named but is another who could find himself benefitting from some game time in the reserves.
And so to much-changed Salford. Jackson Hastings has eventually accepted the fact that he is a Wigan player now and so Red Devils coach Ian Watson has a huge void to fill in the halfback position. The capture of former Wigan, Huddersfield, Widnes and Warrington man Kevin Brown could be a shrewd one. He is a fine player on his day, but he has been troubled with injuries of late. Brown missed all of his final season as a Warrington player but will be keen to show that he can still mix it with the very best halves in the division. His partnership with Tui Lolohea will be one of the keys to whether Salford can get anywhere near the level that they reached last term.
Also at Wigan is Jake Bibby, while Derrell Olpherts now plies his trade with Castleford Tigers. That could see goal-kicking centre Krisnan Inu pushed out wide with new recruit Dan Sarginson partnered in the centres by the ageless Kris Welham. Ken Sio was a star performer for the Red Devils in 2019 and should also feature in the three-quarter line ahead of one of the best fullbacks in Super League in the shape of Niall Evalds. Former London Bronco Rhys Williams is also in contention for one of the starting spots on the wing.
The Salford pack has been shorn of the talents of former Saint Josh Jones and the workmanlike George Griffin. Jones has moved to Hull FC after a great spell with the Red Devils resurrected a Super League career that looked in choppy waters when he left Saints for rugby union, while Griffin has joined Castleford Tigers as they look to return to something like their 2017 form. In to the AJ Bell Stadium have come Sebastine Ikahihifo from Huddersfield Giants and the giant Pauli Pauli from Wakefield Trinty. If they fire they will complement the likes of Lee Mossop, Gil Dudson and Greg Burke who have all recovered from a kick up the backside out of the exit door at Wigan to become consistent Super League performers. Luke Yates is an interesting addition from London Broncos and there is also experience in the squad in the likes of Tyrone McCarthy, Adam Walker, Mark Flanagan and James Greenwood.
The last meeting between these two sides needs no further explanation. The Red Devils’ fairy-tale run to Old Trafford was perhaps the best story of last season but in truth they were put firmly in their place by Saints on the night as they ran out 23-6 winners. Having dominated the league all year and finished 16 points clear of the rest in the race for the League Leaders Shield Saints just were not going to be denied. The previous meeting in St Helens was an absolute epic. Saints fought back from 30-16 down in the second half to eek out a 32-30 win thanks to Bentley’s highly dubious try which was awarded by the video referee. Saints passage to the two Super League points had been more straightforward earlier in the season at the AJ Bell Stadium, when two Roby tries helped them on their way to a 26-4 win.
On the face of it Saints look the more settled at the moment having had minimal changes to the playing staff. Only the exits of Richardson and Adam Swift will have impact on the outstanding depth that they had last term. By contrast Salford will be bedding in a whole host of new recruits although they have had more run outs in pre-season, playing friendly games with Swinton Lions, Leigh Centurions and Warrington Wolves. Saints have had just the one hit-out in that 36-6 win over the Broncos. Anything other than a Saints win would represent a surprise on the opening weekend but expect both of these sides to have a say in where the Super League trophy ends up come October 2020.
Squads;
St Helens;
Lachlan Coote, Kevin Naiqama, Mark Percival, Regan Grace, Jonny Lomax, Theo Fages, Alex Walmsley, Luke Thompson, Zeb Taia, Dominique Peyroux, Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Matty Lees, Kyle Amor, Jack Ashworth, Joseph Paulo, Aaron Smith, James Bentley, Matty Costello, Jack Welsby, Joe Batchelor, Lewis Dodd.
Salford Red Devils;
Niall Evalds, Kris Welham, Dan Sarginson, Krisnan Inu, Tui Lolohea, Kevin Brown, Lee Mossop, Joey Lussick, Gil Dudson, Pauli Pauli, Tryone McCarthy, Sebastine Ikahihifo, Adam Walker, Greg Burke, Luke Yates, Chris Atkin, Mark Flanagan, Josh Johnson, James Greenwood, Rhys Williams, Ken Sio.
Referee: Liam Moore
Weekly comment and analysis on all things Saints with perhaps the merest hint of bias...
Super League 2020 Preview - Wigan Warriors
Despite an appalling start to 2019 Wigan got within 80 minutes of Old Trafford. Everything that could go wrong early in the season did so. In the days leading up to their opener at St Helens it was announced that Wigan would be docked two points for a breach of the salary cap. It was a revelation which almost completely overshadowed the season kick-off, something which our sport is proving itself to be extremely good at.
The points were reinstated in short order, but then came the news that the planned arrival of club legend Shaun Edwards as head coach for the 2020 season was not going to happen. Edwards chose to stay in rugby union, the only place in world sport less likely to endear him to this writer than Wigan. Adrian Lam, who had initially agreed to coach the side for a fixed term of 12 months, was soon appointed on a more permanent basis. But the problems didn’t end there, with Gabe Hamlin suspended in April after a failed drugs test.
All of this off-field chaos was clearly having an effect on the team. Wigan won only one of their first six league games and only three of their first 11. After that they lost only three more times in the regular season. An 18-12 win over Salford put Lam’s team within one win of Old Trafford and raised hopes that they could defend the Super League crown they had won a year earlier. With Saints cruising the league and Wigan showing late season form there were eerie parallels with what had transpired in 2018. Thankfully Salford hadn’t read the script, bouncing back from that first playoff defeat to the Warriors to pull off a stunning 28-4 victory too book their place in the Grand Final.
So far the build-up to 2020 has been somewhat smoother. Lam has strengthened his squad well with the eye-catching addition being last year’s Steve Prescott Man Of Steel Jackson Hastings. George Williams has left for Canberra Raiders but in Hastings Wigan have bagged themselves an arguably better player. There has been some suggestion that Hastings will form an all new halfback pairing with the speedy former Canterbury Bulldog Bevan French but Thomas Leuluai may still get the nod at 7 because firstly he has great experience and secondly French can be deployed in almost any other position along the back line. That will be especially useful since the Warriors’ best centre is still out injured in the shape of Oliver Gildart. Jake Bibby is another option there after he followed Hastings to Wigan from Salford. Dan Sarginson moves in the other direction in a deal that must make Salford fans feel like I felt when Liverpool got Antonio Nunez and £8million for Michael Owen. Bibby played a lot of his rugby on the wing for Ian Watson’s side but with Liam Marshall, Joe Burgess and a fit again Dom Manfredi also on the books the battle for playing time there is a tough one even taking into account Tom Davies’ move to homophobia’s Catalans Dragons.
Wigan’s front row looked in need of an overhaul last year. Tony Clubb and Ben Flower are now of an age where they should maybe start thinking about making their living relaying tales of their shithousery on the after dinner circuit. George Burgess is the new man tasked with providing a bit more impetus at prop. Burgess has been with South Sydney Roosters since the age of 18 but now, at the age of 27, should have some of his best years ahead of him. He is joined by Mitch Clark, an under-rated figure at Castleford who should be an upgrade on either Clubb or Flower. Young prospect Sammy Kibula has been allowed to join Warrington.
Liam Farrell missed a lot of rugby last year but if he can stay fit in this his testimonial year he could provide the pack with the leadership it needs. Sean O’Loughlin is still around but seems to play fewer and fewer games with each passing year. The recent fitness history of both Farrell and O’Loughlin mean that Willie Isa will probably be a key figure again, as will Sam Powell at hooker. Throw in the raw talents of Ollie Partington and Morgan Smithies and the Warriors pack might just have a useful blend of youth and experience.
The best Wigan sides of recent years have been built on defence and they will be hard to break down once again. Lam’s side made more tackles than any side in Super League in 2019 and conceded fewer points than everyone except Saints and Warrington. Their attack has been functional more than explosive of late, but still there were only three sides (Saints, Warrington and Salford) who racked up more points in the regular season. Hastings was the second highest metre maker last year behind Saints Tommy Makinson. That running threat from the halves, particularly if twinned with that of French, will provide a different problem for defences coming up against the Wigan attack this year.
A faster start than last season is an obvious presence on the pre-season wish list of most Warriors fans. Opening night brings a visit from Warrington in what will be an early test of both sides’ credentials. Round 2 sees Lam’s men travel to Castleford before their first ever league meeting with Toronto Wolfpack on February 13. Hull FC are at the DW Stadium in Round 4 before March opens with a trip to Huddersfield Giants. If Wigan can get a good start and establish themselves as contenders early, they may be able to launch a more credible bid for the League Leaders Shield and an easier path to Old Trafford.
Wigan look a stronger outfit in 2020 than they did a year ago and anything less than a top two spot and a place in the Grand Final will be viewed as a disappointment.
The points were reinstated in short order, but then came the news that the planned arrival of club legend Shaun Edwards as head coach for the 2020 season was not going to happen. Edwards chose to stay in rugby union, the only place in world sport less likely to endear him to this writer than Wigan. Adrian Lam, who had initially agreed to coach the side for a fixed term of 12 months, was soon appointed on a more permanent basis. But the problems didn’t end there, with Gabe Hamlin suspended in April after a failed drugs test.
All of this off-field chaos was clearly having an effect on the team. Wigan won only one of their first six league games and only three of their first 11. After that they lost only three more times in the regular season. An 18-12 win over Salford put Lam’s team within one win of Old Trafford and raised hopes that they could defend the Super League crown they had won a year earlier. With Saints cruising the league and Wigan showing late season form there were eerie parallels with what had transpired in 2018. Thankfully Salford hadn’t read the script, bouncing back from that first playoff defeat to the Warriors to pull off a stunning 28-4 victory too book their place in the Grand Final.
So far the build-up to 2020 has been somewhat smoother. Lam has strengthened his squad well with the eye-catching addition being last year’s Steve Prescott Man Of Steel Jackson Hastings. George Williams has left for Canberra Raiders but in Hastings Wigan have bagged themselves an arguably better player. There has been some suggestion that Hastings will form an all new halfback pairing with the speedy former Canterbury Bulldog Bevan French but Thomas Leuluai may still get the nod at 7 because firstly he has great experience and secondly French can be deployed in almost any other position along the back line. That will be especially useful since the Warriors’ best centre is still out injured in the shape of Oliver Gildart. Jake Bibby is another option there after he followed Hastings to Wigan from Salford. Dan Sarginson moves in the other direction in a deal that must make Salford fans feel like I felt when Liverpool got Antonio Nunez and £8million for Michael Owen. Bibby played a lot of his rugby on the wing for Ian Watson’s side but with Liam Marshall, Joe Burgess and a fit again Dom Manfredi also on the books the battle for playing time there is a tough one even taking into account Tom Davies’ move to homophobia’s Catalans Dragons.
Wigan’s front row looked in need of an overhaul last year. Tony Clubb and Ben Flower are now of an age where they should maybe start thinking about making their living relaying tales of their shithousery on the after dinner circuit. George Burgess is the new man tasked with providing a bit more impetus at prop. Burgess has been with South Sydney Roosters since the age of 18 but now, at the age of 27, should have some of his best years ahead of him. He is joined by Mitch Clark, an under-rated figure at Castleford who should be an upgrade on either Clubb or Flower. Young prospect Sammy Kibula has been allowed to join Warrington.
Liam Farrell missed a lot of rugby last year but if he can stay fit in this his testimonial year he could provide the pack with the leadership it needs. Sean O’Loughlin is still around but seems to play fewer and fewer games with each passing year. The recent fitness history of both Farrell and O’Loughlin mean that Willie Isa will probably be a key figure again, as will Sam Powell at hooker. Throw in the raw talents of Ollie Partington and Morgan Smithies and the Warriors pack might just have a useful blend of youth and experience.
The best Wigan sides of recent years have been built on defence and they will be hard to break down once again. Lam’s side made more tackles than any side in Super League in 2019 and conceded fewer points than everyone except Saints and Warrington. Their attack has been functional more than explosive of late, but still there were only three sides (Saints, Warrington and Salford) who racked up more points in the regular season. Hastings was the second highest metre maker last year behind Saints Tommy Makinson. That running threat from the halves, particularly if twinned with that of French, will provide a different problem for defences coming up against the Wigan attack this year.
A faster start than last season is an obvious presence on the pre-season wish list of most Warriors fans. Opening night brings a visit from Warrington in what will be an early test of both sides’ credentials. Round 2 sees Lam’s men travel to Castleford before their first ever league meeting with Toronto Wolfpack on February 13. Hull FC are at the DW Stadium in Round 4 before March opens with a trip to Huddersfield Giants. If Wigan can get a good start and establish themselves as contenders early, they may be able to launch a more credible bid for the League Leaders Shield and an easier path to Old Trafford.
Wigan look a stronger outfit in 2020 than they did a year ago and anything less than a top two spot and a place in the Grand Final will be viewed as a disappointment.
Super League 2020 Preview - Warrington Wolves
What constitutes a successful season? There are only three trophies to play for at the start of any year, two if you’ve joined the growing band of philistines who don’t value the League Leaders Shield. If you win one of them then surely your season should be considered a successful one. It’s a debate that has raged among Warrington fans after they shocked Saints at Wembley to win the Challenge Cup but then frittered away their early season promise in the league. After qualifying for the semi-finals at the end of May Wire won only five of their remaining 13 Super league games before meekly succumbing to Castleford Tigers at the first playoff hurdle.
The 2019 Grand Final was the first major final that Warrington missed under Steve Price since his appointment ahead of the 2018 season. Whereas Wembley defeat to Catalans Dragons that year was followed by a push towards Old Trafford, the 2019 Wolves fell in a heap after winning at the national stadium. An injury to star man Blake Austin didn’t help, but Warrington looked like a team that had exhaled so much in relief at winning one of the biggies that they lost focus on what still remained.
Will they stay the course this year? Their plans have already been dealt a blow with the news that marquee signing Gareth Widdop will miss the first month of the season. The England and Great Britain international signed on a three-year deal from St George-Illawarra Dragons but has been laid low with an ankle problem. With Kevin Brown now in Salford it will likely fall upon Declan Patton to partner Austin in the halves when the season kicks off at Wigan on January 30. Stefan Ratchford is another option there but he has played most of his rugby at fullback in recent years. Riley Dean is a youngster with seemingly great potential but may have to bide his time.
In the good news-bad news files two centres ha e made their way out of the exit at Warrington during the off-season. Ryan Atkins returns to Wakefield from whence he came 10 years ago. That shouldn’t worry Wolves too much given the decline in his form over the last couple of seasons but the loss of Bryson Goodwin is an altogether different problem. Goodwin has moved to South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NRL after a two-year spell at Wire which brought 26 tries and 43 goals in 61 appearances. Hoping to fill the void is rugby league eccentric, man of the people and former Wigan centre Anthony Gelling. In the days leading up to the clash between the Wolves and the Warriors in Round 1 there has been a fair amount of bickering about whether or not Wigan attempted to re-sign their old boy, to the extent that a joint press conference scheduled to promote the game has been shelved. The two are not on friendly terms on the face of it, though that in itself could be a cunning ruse to ramp up interest in the fixture. Gelling will be a central figure in that, as will former Wigan winger Josh Charley who scored 17 tries for the Wolves last term.
A handful of changes have been made in the pack though Price will again lean on the formidable front three of Chris Hill, Mike Cooper and Daryl Clark, while in the back row the pairing of Ben Currie and Jack Hughes are as good as anyone in the competition. Lama Tasi is unsurprisingly deemed expendable in a team with title aspirations, while Ben Westwood has retired. Twenty-year-old prop Sammy Kabula arrives from Wigan after loan spells at Swinton, London and Dewsbury and there was a late addition to the forward ranks when former Penrith Panthers prop Leilani Latu arrived from from Justin Holbrook’s new club Gold Coast Titans. Latu has made over 50 NRL appearances but after managing just nine last term he will be keen to get his career back on track. Impact will come from the powerful Ben Murdoch-Masila while Jason Clark brings great experience after making 172 appearances across a 10-year stint at the Rabbitohs.
Warrington has the second best defensive record in Super League in 2019 in terms of points conceded. Only Saints could better that. At the attacking end of the field Wire scored more points than all but Saints and Salford. Only Leeds Rhinos came up with more offloads so Price looks to have found a good balance between a strong defence and an enterprising, potent attack. Widdop and Gelling in particular are signings who should enjoy playing in a team with those characteristics.
After the Round 1 trip to the DW Stadium Warrington host Saints in Round 2. It’s some start for Price’s side. No real time to ease themselves into the competition but optimists might suggest it offers an opportunity to put down a marker against two sides expected to be challenging for the title this year. Round 3 is a trip to Wakefield before new boys Toronto Wolfpack rock up to the Halliwell Jones Stadium in Round 4 on February 21. The first full month of the season ends with a visit to what should be a much improved Leeds Rhinos outfit in Round 5.
Widdop aside the recruitment has been fairly modest at Warrington in the winter. This might suggest that Price feels his side weren’t that far away from having a title winning squad last year. The key will be to stay the course. Make every effort to defend the Challenge Cup of course, but he’ll know that if they are fortunate enough to do so they cannot let it derail their quest for a first Super League title. The fans will self-deprecatingly sing ‘it’s always our year’ and sooner or later it really will be. I’m just not quite convinced that it will be 2020.
The 2019 Grand Final was the first major final that Warrington missed under Steve Price since his appointment ahead of the 2018 season. Whereas Wembley defeat to Catalans Dragons that year was followed by a push towards Old Trafford, the 2019 Wolves fell in a heap after winning at the national stadium. An injury to star man Blake Austin didn’t help, but Warrington looked like a team that had exhaled so much in relief at winning one of the biggies that they lost focus on what still remained.
Will they stay the course this year? Their plans have already been dealt a blow with the news that marquee signing Gareth Widdop will miss the first month of the season. The England and Great Britain international signed on a three-year deal from St George-Illawarra Dragons but has been laid low with an ankle problem. With Kevin Brown now in Salford it will likely fall upon Declan Patton to partner Austin in the halves when the season kicks off at Wigan on January 30. Stefan Ratchford is another option there but he has played most of his rugby at fullback in recent years. Riley Dean is a youngster with seemingly great potential but may have to bide his time.
In the good news-bad news files two centres ha e made their way out of the exit at Warrington during the off-season. Ryan Atkins returns to Wakefield from whence he came 10 years ago. That shouldn’t worry Wolves too much given the decline in his form over the last couple of seasons but the loss of Bryson Goodwin is an altogether different problem. Goodwin has moved to South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NRL after a two-year spell at Wire which brought 26 tries and 43 goals in 61 appearances. Hoping to fill the void is rugby league eccentric, man of the people and former Wigan centre Anthony Gelling. In the days leading up to the clash between the Wolves and the Warriors in Round 1 there has been a fair amount of bickering about whether or not Wigan attempted to re-sign their old boy, to the extent that a joint press conference scheduled to promote the game has been shelved. The two are not on friendly terms on the face of it, though that in itself could be a cunning ruse to ramp up interest in the fixture. Gelling will be a central figure in that, as will former Wigan winger Josh Charley who scored 17 tries for the Wolves last term.
A handful of changes have been made in the pack though Price will again lean on the formidable front three of Chris Hill, Mike Cooper and Daryl Clark, while in the back row the pairing of Ben Currie and Jack Hughes are as good as anyone in the competition. Lama Tasi is unsurprisingly deemed expendable in a team with title aspirations, while Ben Westwood has retired. Twenty-year-old prop Sammy Kabula arrives from Wigan after loan spells at Swinton, London and Dewsbury and there was a late addition to the forward ranks when former Penrith Panthers prop Leilani Latu arrived from from Justin Holbrook’s new club Gold Coast Titans. Latu has made over 50 NRL appearances but after managing just nine last term he will be keen to get his career back on track. Impact will come from the powerful Ben Murdoch-Masila while Jason Clark brings great experience after making 172 appearances across a 10-year stint at the Rabbitohs.
Warrington has the second best defensive record in Super League in 2019 in terms of points conceded. Only Saints could better that. At the attacking end of the field Wire scored more points than all but Saints and Salford. Only Leeds Rhinos came up with more offloads so Price looks to have found a good balance between a strong defence and an enterprising, potent attack. Widdop and Gelling in particular are signings who should enjoy playing in a team with those characteristics.
After the Round 1 trip to the DW Stadium Warrington host Saints in Round 2. It’s some start for Price’s side. No real time to ease themselves into the competition but optimists might suggest it offers an opportunity to put down a marker against two sides expected to be challenging for the title this year. Round 3 is a trip to Wakefield before new boys Toronto Wolfpack rock up to the Halliwell Jones Stadium in Round 4 on February 21. The first full month of the season ends with a visit to what should be a much improved Leeds Rhinos outfit in Round 5.
Widdop aside the recruitment has been fairly modest at Warrington in the winter. This might suggest that Price feels his side weren’t that far away from having a title winning squad last year. The key will be to stay the course. Make every effort to defend the Challenge Cup of course, but he’ll know that if they are fortunate enough to do so they cannot let it derail their quest for a first Super League title. The fans will self-deprecatingly sing ‘it’s always our year’ and sooner or later it really will be. I’m just not quite convinced that it will be 2020.
Super League 2020 Preview - Wakefield Trinity
Wakefield Trinity had to wait until the final day of the season and a 19-10 victory over London Broncos to preserve their Super League status. It was more than just a brush with relegation and it came at the end of a year when Chris Chester’s side were supposed to have been genuine top five contenders.
Few things were as unreliable as Wakefield in 2019. They started the season with a heavy defeat to the Broncos at Ealing, picking up their first win of the season in Round 3 when they saw off Catalans Dragons 22-12. An abject 10-6 defeat at home to Hull KR in Round 5 came on the back of another tonking at Leeds, and though they won four of their next five including wins over Wigan, Hull and Salford, it didn’t get any better than win-one-lose-one from there on in. A second loss of the season at London started a run of five straight defeats. They arrested that slide with a win over Huddersfield but then embarked on another losing run of five games before seeing off Hull KR in mid-August. Two more losses followed before that final day over London rescued Trinity from the drop to the second level.
Wakefield’s struggles were almost a self-fulfilling prophecy. Coach Chris Chester was murmuring about the ‘R’ word long before the end of the season. Injuries had played their part with star turns Tom Johnstone and Bill Tupou having long-term fitness problems, but it was the inconsistency of a still talented group of players allied with Chester’s premature negativity which combined to leave Trinity on the brink.
In a bid to make 2020 a more successful year Chester has made several moves in the transfer market. Out have gone forwards Pauli Pauli, Tyler Randell, Chris Annakin, Anthony England and Keegan Hirst, replaced by Chris Green and Joe Westerman from Hull FC, Jay Pitts from London Broncos and the on-loan Adam Tangata from Halifax. It will be a very different looking pack which turns out for Trinity in 2020, but it isn’t looking like one that will be any more reliable. Of the old guard that remain Matty Ashurst is the standout in the second row along with the seemingly ageless pair of Danny Kirmond and Craig Kopczak while Tinirau Arona has quality if he can stay fit following a prolonged spell on the side-lines along with former Warrington man George King.
In the backs Ryan Atkins returns after 10 years spent entertaining everyone at Warrington. Atkins was one of the better centres in the competition for a brief period around five years ago, and has crossed for over 200 tries in his Super League career. But at 34 it is doubtful whether he still carries that kind of threat. It seems far more likely that he will be entertaining us with gaffes like his premature dive for the try-line, or the numerous occasions in which he has claimed tries after having entered into the same time zone as the try-line. Alex Walker is a much better prospect long-term. He caught the eye at fullback for the Broncos in 2019 and at 24 his best years should be ahead of him.
If we are looking for positives the return to fitness of both Johnstone and Tupou will be vital, while the three-quarter line also boasts a man who has pushed his way into the thoughts of England and Great Britain coach Wayne Bennett in Reece Lyne. Ben Jones-Bishop is another potent weapon in the Wakefield backline but he will miss the first few months of the season through an unspecified medical condition. The halfback combination of Danny Brough and Jacob Miller has plenty of experience and will also be crucial in deciding how Wakefield go this term. Ryan Hampshire may also see some time in that area with the arrival of Walker seemingly having locked up the fullback spot.
Statistically almost everything Wakefield did in 2019 was average. They were eighth in the league in tries scored (102), metres made (34,319), runs from dummy half (366) and seventh in missed tackles (1011) and offloads (287). They struggled at marker defence where only Hull FC managed fewer than their 1,346 tackles and only the relegated Broncos got less bang for their buck with ball in hand, making an average of 6.41 metres per carry compared with Wakefield’s fairly dismal 6.84 metres per carry.
Wakefield have one of the more gentle season openers that Super League can provide as they go to Hull KR on January 31 in Round 1. If they can negotiate that they have a pair of home games to look forward to against Catalans Dragons and Warrington. Round 4 brings a trip to Castleford for what is always a tense West Yorkshire derby, and then Trinity begin March with a trip to 2019 Grand Finalists Salford Red Devils. Three of last year’s top five in the first five rounds looks a tricky start then, but these are the kind of games that Trinity need to be competitive in and even winning if they are going to avoid of last year’s disappointing campaign.
Wakefield have the talent and the quality to do almost anything, but they have to find a level of consistency. You can’t help feeling that it won’t happen for them in 2020 and they could find themselves closer to the bottom of the table than the top this time around.
Few things were as unreliable as Wakefield in 2019. They started the season with a heavy defeat to the Broncos at Ealing, picking up their first win of the season in Round 3 when they saw off Catalans Dragons 22-12. An abject 10-6 defeat at home to Hull KR in Round 5 came on the back of another tonking at Leeds, and though they won four of their next five including wins over Wigan, Hull and Salford, it didn’t get any better than win-one-lose-one from there on in. A second loss of the season at London started a run of five straight defeats. They arrested that slide with a win over Huddersfield but then embarked on another losing run of five games before seeing off Hull KR in mid-August. Two more losses followed before that final day over London rescued Trinity from the drop to the second level.
Wakefield’s struggles were almost a self-fulfilling prophecy. Coach Chris Chester was murmuring about the ‘R’ word long before the end of the season. Injuries had played their part with star turns Tom Johnstone and Bill Tupou having long-term fitness problems, but it was the inconsistency of a still talented group of players allied with Chester’s premature negativity which combined to leave Trinity on the brink.
In a bid to make 2020 a more successful year Chester has made several moves in the transfer market. Out have gone forwards Pauli Pauli, Tyler Randell, Chris Annakin, Anthony England and Keegan Hirst, replaced by Chris Green and Joe Westerman from Hull FC, Jay Pitts from London Broncos and the on-loan Adam Tangata from Halifax. It will be a very different looking pack which turns out for Trinity in 2020, but it isn’t looking like one that will be any more reliable. Of the old guard that remain Matty Ashurst is the standout in the second row along with the seemingly ageless pair of Danny Kirmond and Craig Kopczak while Tinirau Arona has quality if he can stay fit following a prolonged spell on the side-lines along with former Warrington man George King.
In the backs Ryan Atkins returns after 10 years spent entertaining everyone at Warrington. Atkins was one of the better centres in the competition for a brief period around five years ago, and has crossed for over 200 tries in his Super League career. But at 34 it is doubtful whether he still carries that kind of threat. It seems far more likely that he will be entertaining us with gaffes like his premature dive for the try-line, or the numerous occasions in which he has claimed tries after having entered into the same time zone as the try-line. Alex Walker is a much better prospect long-term. He caught the eye at fullback for the Broncos in 2019 and at 24 his best years should be ahead of him.
If we are looking for positives the return to fitness of both Johnstone and Tupou will be vital, while the three-quarter line also boasts a man who has pushed his way into the thoughts of England and Great Britain coach Wayne Bennett in Reece Lyne. Ben Jones-Bishop is another potent weapon in the Wakefield backline but he will miss the first few months of the season through an unspecified medical condition. The halfback combination of Danny Brough and Jacob Miller has plenty of experience and will also be crucial in deciding how Wakefield go this term. Ryan Hampshire may also see some time in that area with the arrival of Walker seemingly having locked up the fullback spot.
Statistically almost everything Wakefield did in 2019 was average. They were eighth in the league in tries scored (102), metres made (34,319), runs from dummy half (366) and seventh in missed tackles (1011) and offloads (287). They struggled at marker defence where only Hull FC managed fewer than their 1,346 tackles and only the relegated Broncos got less bang for their buck with ball in hand, making an average of 6.41 metres per carry compared with Wakefield’s fairly dismal 6.84 metres per carry.
Wakefield have one of the more gentle season openers that Super League can provide as they go to Hull KR on January 31 in Round 1. If they can negotiate that they have a pair of home games to look forward to against Catalans Dragons and Warrington. Round 4 brings a trip to Castleford for what is always a tense West Yorkshire derby, and then Trinity begin March with a trip to 2019 Grand Finalists Salford Red Devils. Three of last year’s top five in the first five rounds looks a tricky start then, but these are the kind of games that Trinity need to be competitive in and even winning if they are going to avoid of last year’s disappointing campaign.
Wakefield have the talent and the quality to do almost anything, but they have to find a level of consistency. You can’t help feeling that it won’t happen for them in 2020 and they could find themselves closer to the bottom of the table than the top this time around.
Super League 2020 Preview - Toronto Wolfpack
Three years on from their first competitive game Marmite’s Toronto Wolfpack have made it into Super League. There are two clearly defined camps on the matter of the Canadian side’s arrival in the top division. There are those who think it will be great for the game, bringing in more fans, more sponsors, more media interest and therefore more money. Then there are those who scoff at these claims, who believe that the presence of the Wolfpack is a gimmick which will not popularise the game in Canada. All these people can see is the slow erosion of the domestic game in the UK as the likes of New York, Boston and Ottawa watch on, hatching their own plans to get in on the act. The inclusion of the Wolfpack is a divisive issue. It’s the Brexit of rugby league.
What we can say is that, however it has been received and from wherever their funding has materialised, the Wolfpack are here on sporting merit. The calls to exclude them would have grown louder had they not dominated last season’s Championship. A 24-6 Grand Final defeat of Featherstone Rovers capped a year in which Brian McDermott’s side lost only one game. That came at an early stage of the season in Toulouse, but was followed by a run of 23 straight wins including three whacking great dollops of revenge on the French side along the way.
Of course, McDermott knows that life is going to be somewhat more difficult in Super League. That’s why he has spent the days leading up to his side’s big league debut arguing for special dispensation from the salary cap. The Wolfpack have spent a reported £3million on bringing in dual-code superstar Sonny Bill Williams but it is clear that McDermott wants to be able to spend even more to enable his side to really compete at the top. That this is still being considered just four days before the season opener doesn’t just border on farcical, it crosses the border straight into Farcical and continues rolling into Absolute Debacle.
Aside from Williams there hasn’t been a huge amount of investment in the squad since that Championship Grand Final success. Brad Singleton wasn’t at his best in Leeds’ struggling side in 2019 but he may be inspired by the chance to link up again with his former Rhinos coach. James Cunningham is the only other addition. He was a key performer at scrum half or hooker in London’s ultimately doomed bid to avoid relegation from Super League. These aren’t signings that are likely to turn a largely Championship quality squad into a Super League title contender. It is easy to see why McDermott is looking for ways to use more of his club’s financial power.
Such meagre recruitment does leave room for additions should the salary cap issue be resolved in Toronto’s favour. The new faces have just replaced the few players that have left. Bob Beswick has joined Newcastle Thunder, Nick Rawsthorne has gone to Hull KR and former Warrington prop Ashton Sims has retired. A squad comprising only 23 players looks threadbare, another issue that has had McDermott grumbling in pre-season.
As well as Williams there is NRL quality in the shape of centre Ricky Leutele and his likely partner in that position Chase Stanley. The pair have over 230 appearances between them in the Australian competition. Gareth O’Brien and Matty Russell we’re briefly team-mates at Warrington with the latter having played in a Challenge Cup final and a Super League Grand Final for the Wolves, while scrum-half Joe Mellor has Super League experience with Wigan, Harlequins (remember them?) and Widnes.
Williams can play in a number of positions but spent many of his several hundred previous spells in rugby league in the back row. He will sprinkle some stardust on a pack that, Singleton and his former Leeds colleague Anthony Mullally aside, has little experience at the top end of Super League. Jon Wilkin spent 16 years at Saints, many of them as captain and many more as the fans’ favourite scapegoat when things didn’t go well. He may be past his best but Wilkin’s experience will be vital for McDermott as he attempts to guide his side through their first campaign at the highest level. That experience will be even more crucial when you consider that in the likes of Adam Sidlow, Bodene Thompson, Tom Olbison and former Saint Andrew Dixon there is more than a smattering of players in the forward group who might reasonably be described as Championship quality.
One of the many bugbears of the Toronto naysayers is the club’s inability to play at their home venue early in the season. The harsh weather conditions in Canada in the early part of the year mean that Toronto will not host any side at their own Lamport Stadium until Hull FC arrive in Round 11 on April 18. Until then Leeds, York and Saracens RU (maybe) are all set to host Wolfpack home games. Unsurprisingly this has persuaded the fixture compilers to fit in away trips to Salford, Wigan, Warrington, Leeds, Huddersfield and Catalans before that Hull date. It’s a testing run of games for a newly promoted outfit. For all the talk of spreading the game and having a strong Toronto side in the competition this may be a season of consolidation. A top eight place and avoiding having Williams switch back to union before Easter would represent success in 2020.
What we can say is that, however it has been received and from wherever their funding has materialised, the Wolfpack are here on sporting merit. The calls to exclude them would have grown louder had they not dominated last season’s Championship. A 24-6 Grand Final defeat of Featherstone Rovers capped a year in which Brian McDermott’s side lost only one game. That came at an early stage of the season in Toulouse, but was followed by a run of 23 straight wins including three whacking great dollops of revenge on the French side along the way.
Of course, McDermott knows that life is going to be somewhat more difficult in Super League. That’s why he has spent the days leading up to his side’s big league debut arguing for special dispensation from the salary cap. The Wolfpack have spent a reported £3million on bringing in dual-code superstar Sonny Bill Williams but it is clear that McDermott wants to be able to spend even more to enable his side to really compete at the top. That this is still being considered just four days before the season opener doesn’t just border on farcical, it crosses the border straight into Farcical and continues rolling into Absolute Debacle.
Aside from Williams there hasn’t been a huge amount of investment in the squad since that Championship Grand Final success. Brad Singleton wasn’t at his best in Leeds’ struggling side in 2019 but he may be inspired by the chance to link up again with his former Rhinos coach. James Cunningham is the only other addition. He was a key performer at scrum half or hooker in London’s ultimately doomed bid to avoid relegation from Super League. These aren’t signings that are likely to turn a largely Championship quality squad into a Super League title contender. It is easy to see why McDermott is looking for ways to use more of his club’s financial power.
Such meagre recruitment does leave room for additions should the salary cap issue be resolved in Toronto’s favour. The new faces have just replaced the few players that have left. Bob Beswick has joined Newcastle Thunder, Nick Rawsthorne has gone to Hull KR and former Warrington prop Ashton Sims has retired. A squad comprising only 23 players looks threadbare, another issue that has had McDermott grumbling in pre-season.
As well as Williams there is NRL quality in the shape of centre Ricky Leutele and his likely partner in that position Chase Stanley. The pair have over 230 appearances between them in the Australian competition. Gareth O’Brien and Matty Russell we’re briefly team-mates at Warrington with the latter having played in a Challenge Cup final and a Super League Grand Final for the Wolves, while scrum-half Joe Mellor has Super League experience with Wigan, Harlequins (remember them?) and Widnes.
Williams can play in a number of positions but spent many of his several hundred previous spells in rugby league in the back row. He will sprinkle some stardust on a pack that, Singleton and his former Leeds colleague Anthony Mullally aside, has little experience at the top end of Super League. Jon Wilkin spent 16 years at Saints, many of them as captain and many more as the fans’ favourite scapegoat when things didn’t go well. He may be past his best but Wilkin’s experience will be vital for McDermott as he attempts to guide his side through their first campaign at the highest level. That experience will be even more crucial when you consider that in the likes of Adam Sidlow, Bodene Thompson, Tom Olbison and former Saint Andrew Dixon there is more than a smattering of players in the forward group who might reasonably be described as Championship quality.
One of the many bugbears of the Toronto naysayers is the club’s inability to play at their home venue early in the season. The harsh weather conditions in Canada in the early part of the year mean that Toronto will not host any side at their own Lamport Stadium until Hull FC arrive in Round 11 on April 18. Until then Leeds, York and Saracens RU (maybe) are all set to host Wolfpack home games. Unsurprisingly this has persuaded the fixture compilers to fit in away trips to Salford, Wigan, Warrington, Leeds, Huddersfield and Catalans before that Hull date. It’s a testing run of games for a newly promoted outfit. For all the talk of spreading the game and having a strong Toronto side in the competition this may be a season of consolidation. A top eight place and avoiding having Williams switch back to union before Easter would represent success in 2020.
Super League 2020 Preview - St Helens
The 2019 Super League season could not have gone much better for Saints. Having cantered to the League Leaders Shield in 2018 only to lose in the playoffs to Warrington there was no mistake this time around. Saints reached and subsequently won the Grand Final convincingly, beating upstart qualifiers Salford Red Devils 23-6 at Old Trafford to end a five-year title drought and cap a glorious campaign. The only disappointment was the loss to Warrington in the Challenge Cup final at Wembley in August. That was one of only four defeats suffered by Justin Holbrook’s side throughout the year.
With one or two exceptions the same squad will bid to defend their title. The biggest change has come at the top where Holbrook exits after two memorable seasons. The Australian has taken up a head coaching role at Gold Coast Titans in the NRL and is replaced by Tonga national team coach Kristian Woolf. Less than a week before the opening fixture, a Grand Final repeat as Salford come to town on January 31, Woolf has decided not to add to his squad. Of the regular first teamers from last year only Danny Richardson and Adam Swift have departed. Richardson has joined Castleford to attempt to fill the void left by Luke Gale while Swift moves to Hull FC after two frustrating years trying to oust Regan Grace or Tommy Makinson from the starting line-up.
There are conflicting views on whether the decision not to bolster the squad is the right one. Saints have a group of players that was 16 points better than anybody else’s group of players in Super League last year. Exactly how do you strengthen within the constraints of the salary cap? There are players coming off contract at the end of 2020 which might prompt some movement and allow Woolf to shape his own team, but for now there’s a sense of if it ain’t broke…..
On the other hand if you take a look at all the greatest sporting teams in living memory, the vast majority of them always chose to freshen up their squads at the height of their success. Some argue that if you stand still you go backwards, and with Richardson and Swift off the wage bill there may have been some room under the cap to bring in some new blood. There is now no experienced back-up for Theo Fages and Jonny Lomax in the halves although hopes are high that Lewis Dodd can break through to the first team after a couple of seasons impressing in the under-19s. Jack Welsby also has first team experience at stand-off and Lachlan Coote can adapt also if necessary. The lack of recruitment does not seem like a problem without solutions.
As well as a couple of League Leaders Shields and the Super League Grand Final victory, Holbrook brought back the swagger that Saints fans are used to seeing from their side. After a few years of safety first drudgery under Nathan Brown and Keiron Cunningham going to the match had become a pleasure again. First with the arrival of the brilliant but flawed Ben Barba in 2018 but then in a more considered, less flashy but no less effective way when Coote replaced Barba. Kevin Naiqama also had a sensational first season in Saints colours to improve the side still further, while having Alex Walmsley fit for the whole season after he had missed much of 2018 with a bad neck injury was an obvious boost also. It all came together to see Saints score 163 tries in their 29 league outings last term, 26 more than their closest rivals in that category, the Red Devils.
Even when you thought you had stopped the Saints juggernaut you hadn’t really. Not when they were busting out of a league-leading 1269 tackles and making 327 offloads. Saints had lagged behind most of their competitors in the offload category in the years before Holbrook, but in 2019 only Leeds, Warrington and Castleford pushed the pass more often. That led to Saints making more errors than any other team (361) but that was down to the sheer weight of possession that they were able to command against opponents who frankly struggled to live with them throughout the season. Saints were the only side to go over 4000 metres gained for the year, and did so despite the fact that Leeds and Warrington had higher average gains per carry. Saints 262 clean breaks is over 50 better than the next best tally of 211 achieved by Leeds Rhinos.
Defensively Saints had a bend-don’t-break mentality which meant that they conceded only 395 points. That is over 100 fewer than any other side in Super League. When you consider that Saints missed over 1000 tackles, more than all of Wigan, Warrington, Salford, Huddersfield, Castleford and Wakefield it shows you the desire they had to make sure that their try-line was not breached even if the defensive line was. There doesn’t seem to be too much need for Woolf to tamper with the structures they have in place defensively. This is a team which is starting to show signs of taking responsibility for their own game in the way that the great sides of the late 90’s and early 2000s managed to do. Woolf’s job should be easy on the face of it. All he needs to do is give them a reminder every now and again. On the other hand there is an argument that he is on a hiding to nothing. There isn’t much room for improvement on last season so he will be expected to match those standards without too much fuss. Should Saints fall short of that people may start looking in his direction.
All of which would be slightly unfair. Other clubs have strengthened significantly. Jackson Hastings gives Wigan a new dimension while James Maloney, Sonny Bill Williams and Aiden Sezer are all knocking about the competition in 2020 with a brief of improving their respective sides. The high expectation on Woolf brings its own pressure and he will want to put his own stamp on the side, tweaking things here and there so that nobody can say that all of his achievements belong to Holbrook only.
After the visit of Salford on opening night Saints visit Warrington in Round 2. For much of last season the Wolves were the only sides challenging Saints at the top of the table but after their Challenge Cup final victory Steve Price’s side slumped badly. They limped into the playoffs and were quietly despatched by Castleford in the first game. They will be among the contenders once more so it is far from an easy opening for the champions. Round 3 brings a visit to Hull FC where Saints have a patchy record in recent years before the Round 5 clash with Super League debutants Toronto Wolfpack which may or may not take place at the home of Saracens.
The observant among you will have spotted the big gaping hole where Round 4 should be. That’s because that week Saints host Sydney Roosters in the World Club Challenge, set for February 22. Saints have not been crowned World Champions since 2007 and their last attempt to do so ended in an ignominious 39-0 defeat to South Sydney Rabbitohs. Their last meeting with the Roosters saw them go down 38-12. There are only seven survivors from the 17 players on duty that night. It’s an altogether more rounded and potent Saints outfit that awaits Trent Robinson’s side. How Saints approach this latest tilt at the world title might influence the selections made by Woolf for the three league games which precede it. Though it is a much derided competition in some circles the World Club Challenge is a much coveted honour by others. In this age where you can’t log on to social media or pick up an article about the sport without someone walloping on about the brand, becoming world champions could open economic doors as much as it will inspire pride and bragging rights.
But the bread and butter for Saints remains the Super Leauge competition. It will be nice to go one better in the Challenge Cup this year after the stunning disappointment of Wembley but if we are sat here in a year’s time reflecting on another Grand Final success then there won’t be too much to grumble about.
With one or two exceptions the same squad will bid to defend their title. The biggest change has come at the top where Holbrook exits after two memorable seasons. The Australian has taken up a head coaching role at Gold Coast Titans in the NRL and is replaced by Tonga national team coach Kristian Woolf. Less than a week before the opening fixture, a Grand Final repeat as Salford come to town on January 31, Woolf has decided not to add to his squad. Of the regular first teamers from last year only Danny Richardson and Adam Swift have departed. Richardson has joined Castleford to attempt to fill the void left by Luke Gale while Swift moves to Hull FC after two frustrating years trying to oust Regan Grace or Tommy Makinson from the starting line-up.
There are conflicting views on whether the decision not to bolster the squad is the right one. Saints have a group of players that was 16 points better than anybody else’s group of players in Super League last year. Exactly how do you strengthen within the constraints of the salary cap? There are players coming off contract at the end of 2020 which might prompt some movement and allow Woolf to shape his own team, but for now there’s a sense of if it ain’t broke…..
On the other hand if you take a look at all the greatest sporting teams in living memory, the vast majority of them always chose to freshen up their squads at the height of their success. Some argue that if you stand still you go backwards, and with Richardson and Swift off the wage bill there may have been some room under the cap to bring in some new blood. There is now no experienced back-up for Theo Fages and Jonny Lomax in the halves although hopes are high that Lewis Dodd can break through to the first team after a couple of seasons impressing in the under-19s. Jack Welsby also has first team experience at stand-off and Lachlan Coote can adapt also if necessary. The lack of recruitment does not seem like a problem without solutions.
As well as a couple of League Leaders Shields and the Super League Grand Final victory, Holbrook brought back the swagger that Saints fans are used to seeing from their side. After a few years of safety first drudgery under Nathan Brown and Keiron Cunningham going to the match had become a pleasure again. First with the arrival of the brilliant but flawed Ben Barba in 2018 but then in a more considered, less flashy but no less effective way when Coote replaced Barba. Kevin Naiqama also had a sensational first season in Saints colours to improve the side still further, while having Alex Walmsley fit for the whole season after he had missed much of 2018 with a bad neck injury was an obvious boost also. It all came together to see Saints score 163 tries in their 29 league outings last term, 26 more than their closest rivals in that category, the Red Devils.
Even when you thought you had stopped the Saints juggernaut you hadn’t really. Not when they were busting out of a league-leading 1269 tackles and making 327 offloads. Saints had lagged behind most of their competitors in the offload category in the years before Holbrook, but in 2019 only Leeds, Warrington and Castleford pushed the pass more often. That led to Saints making more errors than any other team (361) but that was down to the sheer weight of possession that they were able to command against opponents who frankly struggled to live with them throughout the season. Saints were the only side to go over 4000 metres gained for the year, and did so despite the fact that Leeds and Warrington had higher average gains per carry. Saints 262 clean breaks is over 50 better than the next best tally of 211 achieved by Leeds Rhinos.
Defensively Saints had a bend-don’t-break mentality which meant that they conceded only 395 points. That is over 100 fewer than any other side in Super League. When you consider that Saints missed over 1000 tackles, more than all of Wigan, Warrington, Salford, Huddersfield, Castleford and Wakefield it shows you the desire they had to make sure that their try-line was not breached even if the defensive line was. There doesn’t seem to be too much need for Woolf to tamper with the structures they have in place defensively. This is a team which is starting to show signs of taking responsibility for their own game in the way that the great sides of the late 90’s and early 2000s managed to do. Woolf’s job should be easy on the face of it. All he needs to do is give them a reminder every now and again. On the other hand there is an argument that he is on a hiding to nothing. There isn’t much room for improvement on last season so he will be expected to match those standards without too much fuss. Should Saints fall short of that people may start looking in his direction.
All of which would be slightly unfair. Other clubs have strengthened significantly. Jackson Hastings gives Wigan a new dimension while James Maloney, Sonny Bill Williams and Aiden Sezer are all knocking about the competition in 2020 with a brief of improving their respective sides. The high expectation on Woolf brings its own pressure and he will want to put his own stamp on the side, tweaking things here and there so that nobody can say that all of his achievements belong to Holbrook only.
After the visit of Salford on opening night Saints visit Warrington in Round 2. For much of last season the Wolves were the only sides challenging Saints at the top of the table but after their Challenge Cup final victory Steve Price’s side slumped badly. They limped into the playoffs and were quietly despatched by Castleford in the first game. They will be among the contenders once more so it is far from an easy opening for the champions. Round 3 brings a visit to Hull FC where Saints have a patchy record in recent years before the Round 5 clash with Super League debutants Toronto Wolfpack which may or may not take place at the home of Saracens.
The observant among you will have spotted the big gaping hole where Round 4 should be. That’s because that week Saints host Sydney Roosters in the World Club Challenge, set for February 22. Saints have not been crowned World Champions since 2007 and their last attempt to do so ended in an ignominious 39-0 defeat to South Sydney Rabbitohs. Their last meeting with the Roosters saw them go down 38-12. There are only seven survivors from the 17 players on duty that night. It’s an altogether more rounded and potent Saints outfit that awaits Trent Robinson’s side. How Saints approach this latest tilt at the world title might influence the selections made by Woolf for the three league games which precede it. Though it is a much derided competition in some circles the World Club Challenge is a much coveted honour by others. In this age where you can’t log on to social media or pick up an article about the sport without someone walloping on about the brand, becoming world champions could open economic doors as much as it will inspire pride and bragging rights.
But the bread and butter for Saints remains the Super Leauge competition. It will be nice to go one better in the Challenge Cup this year after the stunning disappointment of Wembley but if we are sat here in a year’s time reflecting on another Grand Final success then there won’t be too much to grumble about.
Super League 2020 Preview - Salford Red Devils
There is only one possible outcome that would make 2020 a better season for Salford Red Devils than they had in 2019. Out of nowhere and against all the odds Ian Watson guided his side all the way to the Grand Final last year before they ran into the Saints juggernaut and the fairy tale ended.
It was a remarkable achievement, but there must be a slight worry that it has catapulted expectation at the club into the stratosphere. They started 2019 having to fend off the doomsaying from mugs like your writer who had them pegged for a relegation battle. This year they will have to deal with a different kind of pressure. The kind that wants to know whether or not, having done it once, you can do it again or even go one better.
In many ways Salford have been a victim of their own success. Players largely unheralded before last season’s campaign suddenly became sought after commodities. That has led to some pretty high profile departures, chief among which is that of Jackson Hastings. Amid suggestions that he didn’t really fancy it, talismanic scrum-half Hastings has finally pitched up at Wigan and leaves a gaping hole in the creativity department. Watson will hope that can be filled by the acquisition of Kevin Brown from Warrington, but at his age and with his injury record there have to be doubts about whether he is the answer to the Hastings problem.
Josh Jones’ form was good enough to see him break into the Great Britain squad at the end of the year, a fact which didn’t escape the notice of Hull FC who picked the former Saint up on a two-year deal. Winger Jake Bibby followed Hastings to Wigan to fill a gap there left by Tom Davies’ departure to Catalans Dragons, although balancing that ledger somewhat is the arrival of centre Dan Sarginson from the Warriors. George Griffin was another consistent performer catching the eye of other suitors, joining Castleford Tigers. Derrell Olpherts goes with him while Daniel Murray is one of several thousand new recruits at Hull KR.
Watson has the task of moulding together almost as many new recruits as they have down at KCom Craven Park. Along with Brown and Sarginson the Red Devils have brought in Chris Atkin, Ryan Lannon and James Greenwood from Rovers, three players from relegated London Broncos in Elliot Kear, Rhys Williams and Luke Yates, and two eye-catching props in Sebastine Ikahihifo from Huddersfield Giants and the mountainous Pauli-Pauli from Wakefield Trinity. Connor Jones and Jack Ormondroyd have also jumped on board from Featherstone Rovers to bolster the squad.
With so many new faces to fit in Watson will need to lean heavily on the mainstays of the 2019 squad who remain. Niall Evalds was one of the better fullbacks in Super League last year and seems to be getting better each year, while Kris Welham and Krisnan Inu are still good options at centre to give Sarginson competition for his spot. Tui Lolohea went from fish up a tree to one-half of one of the most potent halfback combinations in the game after his flit from Leeds Rhinos during last season and he will hope to strike up a similar rapport with Brown that he had with Hastings. The pack will look to veterans Lee Mossop and Gil Dudson once more, with Joey Lussick impressive at nine also. The likes of Greg Burke, Tyrone McCarthy, Adam Walker and Mark Flanagan might not be the most dynamic but they have a wealth of experience and, perhaps crucially, experience of going deep into a playoff series, making and in some cases winning a Grand Final.
With so many changes to the squad it seems almost spurious to analyse the statistical strengths and weaknesses from the last campaign. Yet the one which jumps out and hits you in the face is the fact that only Saints scored more tries than the Red Devils last year. To have an attack more potent than any of Warrington, Wigan, Leeds, Hull FC, Castleford and the rest is quite something for a club that have had more than their fair share of lean years. How much of that was down to the attacking structures put in place by Watson and how much was due to the individual brilliance of Hastings is something we will be able to analyse further as the season goes on, but you can’t deny that it is an impressive point at which to start 2020.
Perhaps with Hastings in the side it is no surprise that the Red Devils put in more attacking kicks than everyone else except Castleford Tigers, and made more metres than all but Saints, Castleford and those doyens of inconsistency Leeds Rhinos. Strangely, Salford ranked only eighth in clean breaks which may give Watson something to work on. If they could break the line more often they could score even more tries, particularly when you consider that they made fewer handling errors than any other side last term.
Defensively they were solid enough in the tackle with only Warrington and Wigan missing fewer, but they could improve at marker defence where only Warrington, Wakefield and Hull FC completed fewer tackles. Overall they had the fifth best defence in the league in terms of points conceded. There is perhaps scope for improvement there in the context of missing so few one on one tackles. They still found a way to concede more points than all of Saints, Wigan, Warrington and Castleford so there are still strides to be made, targets for Watson to take aim at.
Salford open their campaign with a Grand Final repeat at St Helens on January 31. As starts go it is not the easiest but it is a measure of how successful they were last year that TV schedulers and fixture compilers suddenly bracket Salford among the big boys suitable for a high-profile opening weekend extravaganza. Another high profile clash awaits in round 2 when Salford welcome Super League new boys Toronto Wolfpack to the AJ Bell, before Huddersfield Giants visit in round 3 on February 14. A third home game in succession sees Leeds Rhinos pitch up in round 4 on February 22 and yet a fourth when Wakefield arrive for round 5 on March 1. Seven of Saford’s first 10 league games are at home before a road trip that takes in Huddersfield, Leeds, Saints and Hull KR between the end of April and the start of June. A good start could be vital for Salford if they are to mount a playoff challenge once more.
Nobody expects Salford to repeat last season’s heroics but at the same time they are no longer the whipping boys threatened with relegation that they have been in many previous seasons. This side, despite the changes, should be able to hold its own in Super League and won’t be too far from a playoff place when the summer ends.
It was a remarkable achievement, but there must be a slight worry that it has catapulted expectation at the club into the stratosphere. They started 2019 having to fend off the doomsaying from mugs like your writer who had them pegged for a relegation battle. This year they will have to deal with a different kind of pressure. The kind that wants to know whether or not, having done it once, you can do it again or even go one better.
In many ways Salford have been a victim of their own success. Players largely unheralded before last season’s campaign suddenly became sought after commodities. That has led to some pretty high profile departures, chief among which is that of Jackson Hastings. Amid suggestions that he didn’t really fancy it, talismanic scrum-half Hastings has finally pitched up at Wigan and leaves a gaping hole in the creativity department. Watson will hope that can be filled by the acquisition of Kevin Brown from Warrington, but at his age and with his injury record there have to be doubts about whether he is the answer to the Hastings problem.
Josh Jones’ form was good enough to see him break into the Great Britain squad at the end of the year, a fact which didn’t escape the notice of Hull FC who picked the former Saint up on a two-year deal. Winger Jake Bibby followed Hastings to Wigan to fill a gap there left by Tom Davies’ departure to Catalans Dragons, although balancing that ledger somewhat is the arrival of centre Dan Sarginson from the Warriors. George Griffin was another consistent performer catching the eye of other suitors, joining Castleford Tigers. Derrell Olpherts goes with him while Daniel Murray is one of several thousand new recruits at Hull KR.
Watson has the task of moulding together almost as many new recruits as they have down at KCom Craven Park. Along with Brown and Sarginson the Red Devils have brought in Chris Atkin, Ryan Lannon and James Greenwood from Rovers, three players from relegated London Broncos in Elliot Kear, Rhys Williams and Luke Yates, and two eye-catching props in Sebastine Ikahihifo from Huddersfield Giants and the mountainous Pauli-Pauli from Wakefield Trinity. Connor Jones and Jack Ormondroyd have also jumped on board from Featherstone Rovers to bolster the squad.
With so many new faces to fit in Watson will need to lean heavily on the mainstays of the 2019 squad who remain. Niall Evalds was one of the better fullbacks in Super League last year and seems to be getting better each year, while Kris Welham and Krisnan Inu are still good options at centre to give Sarginson competition for his spot. Tui Lolohea went from fish up a tree to one-half of one of the most potent halfback combinations in the game after his flit from Leeds Rhinos during last season and he will hope to strike up a similar rapport with Brown that he had with Hastings. The pack will look to veterans Lee Mossop and Gil Dudson once more, with Joey Lussick impressive at nine also. The likes of Greg Burke, Tyrone McCarthy, Adam Walker and Mark Flanagan might not be the most dynamic but they have a wealth of experience and, perhaps crucially, experience of going deep into a playoff series, making and in some cases winning a Grand Final.
With so many changes to the squad it seems almost spurious to analyse the statistical strengths and weaknesses from the last campaign. Yet the one which jumps out and hits you in the face is the fact that only Saints scored more tries than the Red Devils last year. To have an attack more potent than any of Warrington, Wigan, Leeds, Hull FC, Castleford and the rest is quite something for a club that have had more than their fair share of lean years. How much of that was down to the attacking structures put in place by Watson and how much was due to the individual brilliance of Hastings is something we will be able to analyse further as the season goes on, but you can’t deny that it is an impressive point at which to start 2020.
Perhaps with Hastings in the side it is no surprise that the Red Devils put in more attacking kicks than everyone else except Castleford Tigers, and made more metres than all but Saints, Castleford and those doyens of inconsistency Leeds Rhinos. Strangely, Salford ranked only eighth in clean breaks which may give Watson something to work on. If they could break the line more often they could score even more tries, particularly when you consider that they made fewer handling errors than any other side last term.
Defensively they were solid enough in the tackle with only Warrington and Wigan missing fewer, but they could improve at marker defence where only Warrington, Wakefield and Hull FC completed fewer tackles. Overall they had the fifth best defence in the league in terms of points conceded. There is perhaps scope for improvement there in the context of missing so few one on one tackles. They still found a way to concede more points than all of Saints, Wigan, Warrington and Castleford so there are still strides to be made, targets for Watson to take aim at.
Salford open their campaign with a Grand Final repeat at St Helens on January 31. As starts go it is not the easiest but it is a measure of how successful they were last year that TV schedulers and fixture compilers suddenly bracket Salford among the big boys suitable for a high-profile opening weekend extravaganza. Another high profile clash awaits in round 2 when Salford welcome Super League new boys Toronto Wolfpack to the AJ Bell, before Huddersfield Giants visit in round 3 on February 14. A third home game in succession sees Leeds Rhinos pitch up in round 4 on February 22 and yet a fourth when Wakefield arrive for round 5 on March 1. Seven of Saford’s first 10 league games are at home before a road trip that takes in Huddersfield, Leeds, Saints and Hull KR between the end of April and the start of June. A good start could be vital for Salford if they are to mount a playoff challenge once more.
Nobody expects Salford to repeat last season’s heroics but at the same time they are no longer the whipping boys threatened with relegation that they have been in many previous seasons. This side, despite the changes, should be able to hold its own in Super League and won’t be too far from a playoff place when the summer ends.
Super League 2020 Preview - Leeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos enter the 2020 season on the back of a disappointing 2019. It was hard to believe that the team that took to the field for much of last year was just two years on from winning its eighth Super League Grand Final. If Castleford can be accused of being in decline since the two met in the 2017 Old Trafford showpiece, the Rhinos have fallen off the edge of a cliff.
All of which is nothing new to them. Who can forget the 2015 treble winners’ abject attempts at defending their crown in 2016? That campaign culminated in an embarrassing flirtation with relegation in the old middle eights system . The ‘R’ word was on the lips of many observers throughout 2019 also, but a late season revival ensured that the Headingley club finished in a just about respectable eighth place.
The turmoil began early. Head coach David Furner lasted just six months, a spell which took in only 14 league games. Furner had overseen victories in only four of those, a run that had left the Rhinos languishing in 10th place by the start of May. Richard Agar came into fill the void left by Furner, signing a 12-month rolling deal in September after a period as interim boss in which the Rhinos won seven of the 14 league games they played. That was enough to secure their Super League survival and to convince the Rhinos hierarchy to put their faith in the much maligned Agar, albeit somewhat tentatively judging by the length of the contract.
Whoever was taking the reins would have been tasked with a rebuilding job for 2020. Agar has seen more players pass through the exit than through the entrance, but has strengthened in key areas. The eye-catching arrival is that of former Tigers and England scrum half Luke Gale. He has struggled badly with his fitness over the last year or two but if he can stay healthy he is among the better halves in the competition. Joining him will be the exciting former Huddersfield Giants hooker Kruise Leeming and another former Giant in the shape of back rower Alex Mellor. Yet perhaps the most influential addition to the pack will be prop forward Matt Prior. The 32-year-old has spent the last six seasons with Cronulla Sharks in the NRL and was part of their 2016 Grand Final winning team. With Brad Singleton one of those to depart in the off season there will be a lot of responsibility on the shoulders of Prior to give Leeds the go-forward they need. He will be ably assisted by Ava Seumanufagai and offload machine Adam Cuthbertson while Rhyse Martin is that rarest of beasts, the goal-kicking forward. Yet among that group you get the feeling that it is Prior whom they will look to for consistency. After many years blighted by injury, newly appointed captain Stevie Ward will hope to stay fit enough for long enough to have a real influence there also.
Leeming will take the place of Matt Parcell who joins Hull KR, though the former Giant will perhaps share playing time with the explosive Brad Dwyer. That means no room in the squad for Shaun Lunt who makes the move down to the Championship with Batley Bulldogs. Gale gives Agar options in the halves with Robert Lui, Liam Sutcliffe and Richie Myler still at the club. Mellor will beef up the pack after Agar released Nathaniel Peteru, lost Jamie Jones-Buchanan and Carl Ablett to retirement and saw Singleton head to Toronto Wolfpack to play under former Rhinos coach Brian McDermott. Brett Ferress is another old stager of the Rhinos forward pack to depart as he moves on to Featherstone Rovers. Youngster Owen Trout has gone to Ferres’ old stomping ground at Huddersfield while the Giants have also picked up fullback Ashton Golding.
Golding’s loss should not be felt too keenly with Jack Walker getting better with each passing year. He sits behind a three-quarter line featuring the tried and tested talents of Tom Briscoe, Konrad Hurrell and Ash Handley, with the promising Harry Newman likely to see a lot of game time at centre.
Breaking down the stats on 2019 shows clearly where improvement is required. Only Saints and Castleford made more metres than the Rhinos in 2019, only Saints made more clean breaks and nobody had a better average gain per carry than the Rhinos’ 7.48 metres, or made more than their 387 offloads. They also led the way in runs from dummy half with Dwyer mostly responsible for their 603 occasions on which they darted out from the play-the-ball. Yet none of that translated to quite as much in the way of try-scoring as you might imagine. Four clubs bettered the Rhinos’ tally of 114 tries but of the seven teams above them in the league table only Hull FC and Catalans Dragons conceded more points. Leeds’ points difference of +6 says something about their inconsistent nature. They were as likely to concede as to score a try at any time.
If the Headingley club are going to be a genuine contender in 2020 then a better start to the season would be helpful. No more going four from their first 14. Hull FC are the visitors to Headingley in round 1 on February 2 before the trip to Huddersfield Giants a week later. Round 3 brings down-on-their-luck relegation favourites Hull KR to West Yorkshire on Valentine’s Night before a February 22 clash with 2019 Grand Finalists Salford Red Devils at the AJ Bell Stadium on February 22. That game could be a significant pointer to whether this Leeds side can mix it with the other playoff hopefuls. Round 5 brings a home clash with Warrington Wolves on February 28 which should also tell us plenty about Leeds’ prospects this term.
At the risk of looking very silly come the end of the season I am going to suggest that 2020 will be a much better season for Leeds. Their recruitment looks smart without being overly showy, and Agar is a shrewd coach who will be determined to prove himself as a real high quality leader of an elite Super League club rather than someone who provokes groans from his home fans as news of his appointment breaks. It probably will not end with a trip to Old Trafford, although that would be the kind of turnaround in form from one year to the next that we have seen before from Leeds. Yet I expect the Rhinos to be well in the hunt for a playoff place and maybe just about sneak into that top five come the end of the regular season.
All of which is nothing new to them. Who can forget the 2015 treble winners’ abject attempts at defending their crown in 2016? That campaign culminated in an embarrassing flirtation with relegation in the old middle eights system . The ‘R’ word was on the lips of many observers throughout 2019 also, but a late season revival ensured that the Headingley club finished in a just about respectable eighth place.
The turmoil began early. Head coach David Furner lasted just six months, a spell which took in only 14 league games. Furner had overseen victories in only four of those, a run that had left the Rhinos languishing in 10th place by the start of May. Richard Agar came into fill the void left by Furner, signing a 12-month rolling deal in September after a period as interim boss in which the Rhinos won seven of the 14 league games they played. That was enough to secure their Super League survival and to convince the Rhinos hierarchy to put their faith in the much maligned Agar, albeit somewhat tentatively judging by the length of the contract.
Whoever was taking the reins would have been tasked with a rebuilding job for 2020. Agar has seen more players pass through the exit than through the entrance, but has strengthened in key areas. The eye-catching arrival is that of former Tigers and England scrum half Luke Gale. He has struggled badly with his fitness over the last year or two but if he can stay healthy he is among the better halves in the competition. Joining him will be the exciting former Huddersfield Giants hooker Kruise Leeming and another former Giant in the shape of back rower Alex Mellor. Yet perhaps the most influential addition to the pack will be prop forward Matt Prior. The 32-year-old has spent the last six seasons with Cronulla Sharks in the NRL and was part of their 2016 Grand Final winning team. With Brad Singleton one of those to depart in the off season there will be a lot of responsibility on the shoulders of Prior to give Leeds the go-forward they need. He will be ably assisted by Ava Seumanufagai and offload machine Adam Cuthbertson while Rhyse Martin is that rarest of beasts, the goal-kicking forward. Yet among that group you get the feeling that it is Prior whom they will look to for consistency. After many years blighted by injury, newly appointed captain Stevie Ward will hope to stay fit enough for long enough to have a real influence there also.
Leeming will take the place of Matt Parcell who joins Hull KR, though the former Giant will perhaps share playing time with the explosive Brad Dwyer. That means no room in the squad for Shaun Lunt who makes the move down to the Championship with Batley Bulldogs. Gale gives Agar options in the halves with Robert Lui, Liam Sutcliffe and Richie Myler still at the club. Mellor will beef up the pack after Agar released Nathaniel Peteru, lost Jamie Jones-Buchanan and Carl Ablett to retirement and saw Singleton head to Toronto Wolfpack to play under former Rhinos coach Brian McDermott. Brett Ferress is another old stager of the Rhinos forward pack to depart as he moves on to Featherstone Rovers. Youngster Owen Trout has gone to Ferres’ old stomping ground at Huddersfield while the Giants have also picked up fullback Ashton Golding.
Golding’s loss should not be felt too keenly with Jack Walker getting better with each passing year. He sits behind a three-quarter line featuring the tried and tested talents of Tom Briscoe, Konrad Hurrell and Ash Handley, with the promising Harry Newman likely to see a lot of game time at centre.
Breaking down the stats on 2019 shows clearly where improvement is required. Only Saints and Castleford made more metres than the Rhinos in 2019, only Saints made more clean breaks and nobody had a better average gain per carry than the Rhinos’ 7.48 metres, or made more than their 387 offloads. They also led the way in runs from dummy half with Dwyer mostly responsible for their 603 occasions on which they darted out from the play-the-ball. Yet none of that translated to quite as much in the way of try-scoring as you might imagine. Four clubs bettered the Rhinos’ tally of 114 tries but of the seven teams above them in the league table only Hull FC and Catalans Dragons conceded more points. Leeds’ points difference of +6 says something about their inconsistent nature. They were as likely to concede as to score a try at any time.
If the Headingley club are going to be a genuine contender in 2020 then a better start to the season would be helpful. No more going four from their first 14. Hull FC are the visitors to Headingley in round 1 on February 2 before the trip to Huddersfield Giants a week later. Round 3 brings down-on-their-luck relegation favourites Hull KR to West Yorkshire on Valentine’s Night before a February 22 clash with 2019 Grand Finalists Salford Red Devils at the AJ Bell Stadium on February 22. That game could be a significant pointer to whether this Leeds side can mix it with the other playoff hopefuls. Round 5 brings a home clash with Warrington Wolves on February 28 which should also tell us plenty about Leeds’ prospects this term.
At the risk of looking very silly come the end of the season I am going to suggest that 2020 will be a much better season for Leeds. Their recruitment looks smart without being overly showy, and Agar is a shrewd coach who will be determined to prove himself as a real high quality leader of an elite Super League club rather than someone who provokes groans from his home fans as news of his appointment breaks. It probably will not end with a trip to Old Trafford, although that would be the kind of turnaround in form from one year to the next that we have seen before from Leeds. Yet I expect the Rhinos to be well in the hunt for a playoff place and maybe just about sneak into that top five come the end of the regular season.
Super League 2020 Preview - Hull FC
If there was an award for under-achievement in Super League in 2019 Hull FC would have been right up there with the main contenders. Perhaps only Leeds Rhinos could rival the black and whites in the field of failing to get the best out of the available resources. Yet unlike Leeds, who were dreadful from tape to tape in last year’s race, Lee Radford’s side taunted their fans with occasional promises of what might have been before limping to a rather apologetic sixth-placed finish. In the end only points difference denied the Airlie Birds a place in the end of season playoffs, but in all honesty that near miss only served to highlight the sense of a wasted opportunity that must have been felt by everyone connected with the club.
So is it going to be different in 2020? Their recruitment looks solid, especially the return of Mahe Fonua after two seasons in the NRL with Wests Tigers. Fonua was an integral part of FC’s back-to-back Challenge Cup successes of 2016 and 2017. He scored 31 tries in 58 appearances during his first spell on Humberside and looks set to add many more this time around. He joins a back-line brimming with talent in the shape of Bureta Fairamo, Carlos Tuimavave, Josh Griffin and the find of 2019, Fijian-born military man Ratu Naulago. It almost makes you feel sorry for Adam Swift who, tired of spending the last two years waiting for an opportunity at Saints since the emergence of Regan Grace, now finds himself in quite the queue for a shirt.
It isn’t just the backs where Radford has bolstered his ranks. Tongan international Manu M’au was a much sought after commodity when he left Parramatta Eels after six seasons and is expected to make a big impact in Super League. Tevita Satae is another Tongan forward making the journey to Hull from the NRL, though his experience with New Zealand Warriors is limited to just 15 appearances. Samoan utility forward Ligi Sao is another whom Radford hopes will add more steel and power to his pack. And if you want consistency - and let’s be honest Hull are desperate for it - how about Josh Jones? The former Saint is unspectacular but he was one of the most consistent performers in Salford’s epic run to the Grand Final in 2019. That experience and the fact that Jones was a Grand Final winner with his hometown club in 2014 could prove vital in transforming what had become a rather flaky culture over the last two seasons.
The pack has been in need of a bit of a facelift following a clutch of retirements after the 2019 season. The excellent Sika Manu has been joined in the boot-hanging department by Mark Minichiello and Mickey Paea. Chris Green was released while Levy Nzongzou, Joe Westerman and Danny Washbrook have all moved on. Centre Jack Logan has joined Doncaster in the other main piece of business as Radford sets about reshaping both the personnel and the personality of his team.
Despite these seemingly progressive recruitment moves Radford will still need to rely on the bulk of the squad who made such a dog’s dinner of the 2019 campaign. The destructive running of Albert Kelly will again be a key, as will the organisational and kicking skills of Marc Sneyd. Jake Connor is just about as talented a utility player as there is in Super League right now so maybe he can help take a load off the other two. The problem with Connor has always been that he can get you in to trouble as easily as he can get you out of it. Can a playoff contender really rely on a player who seems to stand or fall according to what mood he finds himself in on any particular morning?
Jamie Shaul has pace to burn at fullback but his propensity for an error is sometimes worth six points start to opponents. Danny Houghton will no doubt continue to do superhuman things at hooker (a league-leading 1259 tackles and only 70 misses while racking up the 6th highest total of runs from dummy half) and Scott Taylor can mix it with most Super League props along with Josh Bowden if the latter can steer clear of injury. But how many games are left in the 38-year-old legs of Gareth Ellis? He has already retired once and if the pack recruits don’t fire and Radford finds himself relying on Ellis too often we could once again see the KCom Stadium side fall short.
Hull must improve defensively if they are to fulfil their obvious potential. Only Hull KR, Catalans Dragons and London Broncos missed more tackles in the last campaign, while nobody managed fewer than FC’s 1414 marker tackles. Space at marker is ruthlessly exploited at Super League level and that translated last season into the concession of well over 750 points by Hull in their 29 games. Only two sides conceded more, one of whom was relegated and the other survived only on the last day of the season.
A faster start than last year would go some way to helping Hull out of their slumber. A narrow defeat in the opening night derby in 2019 was followed by a 26-18 reverse to Castleford. A quick glance at the final standings will show that loss proved ultimately fatal to their playoff hopes. It wasn’t until round three and Super League’s first ever golden point game in which FC edged out Wigan 23-22 that Radford’s side registered their first points on the table. In 2020 the black and whites will have to get out of the blocks much more rapidly. They open at Leeds before a round two derby date with Hull KR. In round three they welcome champions St Helens so it is imperative that they have points on the board before then. After Saints it’s a trip to Wigan before they host Catalans Dragons in round five. By then we should have some early indications of whether this team has managed to shake off the bad habits of 2019.
Those two cup wins in 2016 and 2017 are credit in the bank for Radford. Without them he could have come under considerable pressure at certain times last year. The Magic Weekend debacle, when FC went down 55-2 to Huddersfield Giants at Anfield is one, as was the 62-16 shellacking by Saints they had already taken three weeks before on Easter Monday. There’ll be no Easter double header to worry about this year but another campaign like the last one, with results and performances veering from the sublime to the ridiculous, could be the catalyst for the first coaching change at the KCom since 2013.
It’s a very big year for the black and whites. Time for everyone involved, coaches and players, to fulfil their promise.
So is it going to be different in 2020? Their recruitment looks solid, especially the return of Mahe Fonua after two seasons in the NRL with Wests Tigers. Fonua was an integral part of FC’s back-to-back Challenge Cup successes of 2016 and 2017. He scored 31 tries in 58 appearances during his first spell on Humberside and looks set to add many more this time around. He joins a back-line brimming with talent in the shape of Bureta Fairamo, Carlos Tuimavave, Josh Griffin and the find of 2019, Fijian-born military man Ratu Naulago. It almost makes you feel sorry for Adam Swift who, tired of spending the last two years waiting for an opportunity at Saints since the emergence of Regan Grace, now finds himself in quite the queue for a shirt.
It isn’t just the backs where Radford has bolstered his ranks. Tongan international Manu M’au was a much sought after commodity when he left Parramatta Eels after six seasons and is expected to make a big impact in Super League. Tevita Satae is another Tongan forward making the journey to Hull from the NRL, though his experience with New Zealand Warriors is limited to just 15 appearances. Samoan utility forward Ligi Sao is another whom Radford hopes will add more steel and power to his pack. And if you want consistency - and let’s be honest Hull are desperate for it - how about Josh Jones? The former Saint is unspectacular but he was one of the most consistent performers in Salford’s epic run to the Grand Final in 2019. That experience and the fact that Jones was a Grand Final winner with his hometown club in 2014 could prove vital in transforming what had become a rather flaky culture over the last two seasons.
The pack has been in need of a bit of a facelift following a clutch of retirements after the 2019 season. The excellent Sika Manu has been joined in the boot-hanging department by Mark Minichiello and Mickey Paea. Chris Green was released while Levy Nzongzou, Joe Westerman and Danny Washbrook have all moved on. Centre Jack Logan has joined Doncaster in the other main piece of business as Radford sets about reshaping both the personnel and the personality of his team.
Despite these seemingly progressive recruitment moves Radford will still need to rely on the bulk of the squad who made such a dog’s dinner of the 2019 campaign. The destructive running of Albert Kelly will again be a key, as will the organisational and kicking skills of Marc Sneyd. Jake Connor is just about as talented a utility player as there is in Super League right now so maybe he can help take a load off the other two. The problem with Connor has always been that he can get you in to trouble as easily as he can get you out of it. Can a playoff contender really rely on a player who seems to stand or fall according to what mood he finds himself in on any particular morning?
Jamie Shaul has pace to burn at fullback but his propensity for an error is sometimes worth six points start to opponents. Danny Houghton will no doubt continue to do superhuman things at hooker (a league-leading 1259 tackles and only 70 misses while racking up the 6th highest total of runs from dummy half) and Scott Taylor can mix it with most Super League props along with Josh Bowden if the latter can steer clear of injury. But how many games are left in the 38-year-old legs of Gareth Ellis? He has already retired once and if the pack recruits don’t fire and Radford finds himself relying on Ellis too often we could once again see the KCom Stadium side fall short.
Hull must improve defensively if they are to fulfil their obvious potential. Only Hull KR, Catalans Dragons and London Broncos missed more tackles in the last campaign, while nobody managed fewer than FC’s 1414 marker tackles. Space at marker is ruthlessly exploited at Super League level and that translated last season into the concession of well over 750 points by Hull in their 29 games. Only two sides conceded more, one of whom was relegated and the other survived only on the last day of the season.
A faster start than last year would go some way to helping Hull out of their slumber. A narrow defeat in the opening night derby in 2019 was followed by a 26-18 reverse to Castleford. A quick glance at the final standings will show that loss proved ultimately fatal to their playoff hopes. It wasn’t until round three and Super League’s first ever golden point game in which FC edged out Wigan 23-22 that Radford’s side registered their first points on the table. In 2020 the black and whites will have to get out of the blocks much more rapidly. They open at Leeds before a round two derby date with Hull KR. In round three they welcome champions St Helens so it is imperative that they have points on the board before then. After Saints it’s a trip to Wigan before they host Catalans Dragons in round five. By then we should have some early indications of whether this team has managed to shake off the bad habits of 2019.
Those two cup wins in 2016 and 2017 are credit in the bank for Radford. Without them he could have come under considerable pressure at certain times last year. The Magic Weekend debacle, when FC went down 55-2 to Huddersfield Giants at Anfield is one, as was the 62-16 shellacking by Saints they had already taken three weeks before on Easter Monday. There’ll be no Easter double header to worry about this year but another campaign like the last one, with results and performances veering from the sublime to the ridiculous, could be the catalyst for the first coaching change at the KCom since 2013.
It’s a very big year for the black and whites. Time for everyone involved, coaches and players, to fulfil their promise.
Super League 2020 Preview - Hull KR
Few doors revolve as frequently as the one in and out of Hull KR. It has been another winter of change for the Robins. The 2019 campaign was another one of struggle as head coach Tim Sheens made way for Tony Smith in June and Rovers escaped relegation by what another Smith, Sky cricket commentator Ian, might refer to as the 'barest of margins'. Rovers finished above London Broncos only on points difference and even then only because Danny Ward's side failed to beat Wakefield Trinity in their final game. Had they done so Smith (Tony that is) would be looking at a three-year contract starting in the Championship and perhaps poring over the small print to find that all important get-out clause.
As it is he has reshaped his side significantly. The biggest name through the entrance is that of Shaun Kenny-Dowall. The former Roosters centre has played 21 times for New Zealand and was a Grand Final winner with the NRL outfit in 2013. In 2017 he was charged with a drugs offence and although he was later cleared it paved the way for a move to Newcastle Knights before his arrival on Humberside. At 32 years old he is not one for the future, but if he can produce his very best form then Rovers' fans might have something special to look forward to in the short term.
Matt Parcell is another Grand Final winner to join the Smith revolution after he was deemed surplus to requirements by Leeds Rhinos, while Greg Minikin was part of the Castleford Tigers squad which stormed the League Leaders Shield in 2017 by a 10-point margin before going down at Old Trafford to Parcell's Rhinos. The Broncos relegation has persuaded back rower Matty Gee and playmaker Jordan Abdull to head north and with other eye-catching recruits such as Daniel Murray from Salford Red Devils and Harvey Livett from Warrington Wolves it is hoped that fortunes can be improved. Livett has extended his loan period from the Wolves and could be one of the keys in 2020. He is a year older with experience in both the back row and at stand-off whose versatility could prove very useful.
Making room for all this recruitment are some fairly well known names. Danny McGuire has finally retired after just two seasons at KCom Craven Park while Josh Drinkwater beats an even hastier retreat, returning to Catalans Dragons after just one year. Joining him in France will be Joel Tomkins while Salford have snapped up all of Ryan Lannon, Chris Atkin and James Greenwood as they look to do their own rebuild. Danny Addy has dropped down to the Championship with Leigh Centurions.
Perhaps the biggest issue for Rovers going into the season however does not concern any of these comings and goings but a player who has been with the team since 2017. Mose Masoe suffered a terrible spinal injury in a pre-season friendly against Wakefield on January 12 and sadly Smith has confirmed today that the injury is a career ending one. His basic health is the most pressing concern at the moment and any thoughts of getting him back on to a rugby league field always seemed distant and completely secondary. A Grand Final winner with Saints in 2014, Masoe is certainly in the thoughts of all Saints fans and we wish him all the best as he bids to get back to health. So too I'm sure will everybody at Rovers and throughout the sport. A traumatic situation can sometimes galvanise a squad of players, the emotion dragging them along to produce their very best. Or it can become too much for them, making the results of rugby league games seem trivial by comparison. It is a testing time for everyone at Hull KR whichever way you look at it.
Back on the field it is vital that Kenny-Dowall and company improve the Robins' attacking output. Only the Broncos scored fewer than Hull KR's 90 tries last term while nobody made fewer tackle busts. Only the men from the capital and the Huddersfield Giants made fewer clean breaks and defensively Smith's side have a lot of improvement to make. They managed to butcher 1202 tackles throughout 2019, the only Super League side to miss more than 1200 in the season. This translated to the concession of 768 points from their 29 league outings, which again was only bettered for its ineptitude by those Broncos and Giants. In a small note of consolation, 768 is also the number of points shipped in by Rovers' Jeckyll and Hyde city rivals Hull FC. Defence was something of a foreign country in Hull in 2019, but at least the black and whites posted enough points (645) to keep their heads way above water even if they eventually missed out on the playoffs. Rovers managed only 548 points at an average of less than 19 per game, with Ken Sio leading the way with 13.
The opening game at home to Wakefield on January 31 looks huge even at that embryonic stage of the season. Rovers come out of that and fall straight into the frying pan that is the Hull derby in round 2 on February 7. After that they go to Leeds, host Huddersfield and end the first five rounds of the season with a visit from Castleford Tigers. All of these games, including what will probably be a rejuvenated Leeds side, have to be seen as winnable for Rovers if they are going to compete nearer to the top end of the table than the bottom. Smith will believe they are winnable too. The former Warrington and Leeds coach is not short of a bit of confidence and if he can get his players to believe in themselves as much as he does good things could happen. Equally, they could enter a hideous stretch in March which includes trips to Wigan and St Helens and a home clash with the Wolves with confidence hanging by a thread if early season results don't go their way.
Rovers have to be viewed as one of the realistic relegation candidates. Their fans will be pleased to note that I have been wrong before, but the squad that Smith has assembled still doesn't convince many that it has the look of a playoff contender. A place somewhere around the top eight without having to concern themselves with relegation issues on the last weekend of the season woudl probably be considered an improvement by most Rovers fans, and set them up for more incremental growth under a multi-Grand Final winning and former international coach who has seen and done most things in the game.
As it is he has reshaped his side significantly. The biggest name through the entrance is that of Shaun Kenny-Dowall. The former Roosters centre has played 21 times for New Zealand and was a Grand Final winner with the NRL outfit in 2013. In 2017 he was charged with a drugs offence and although he was later cleared it paved the way for a move to Newcastle Knights before his arrival on Humberside. At 32 years old he is not one for the future, but if he can produce his very best form then Rovers' fans might have something special to look forward to in the short term.
Matt Parcell is another Grand Final winner to join the Smith revolution after he was deemed surplus to requirements by Leeds Rhinos, while Greg Minikin was part of the Castleford Tigers squad which stormed the League Leaders Shield in 2017 by a 10-point margin before going down at Old Trafford to Parcell's Rhinos. The Broncos relegation has persuaded back rower Matty Gee and playmaker Jordan Abdull to head north and with other eye-catching recruits such as Daniel Murray from Salford Red Devils and Harvey Livett from Warrington Wolves it is hoped that fortunes can be improved. Livett has extended his loan period from the Wolves and could be one of the keys in 2020. He is a year older with experience in both the back row and at stand-off whose versatility could prove very useful.
Making room for all this recruitment are some fairly well known names. Danny McGuire has finally retired after just two seasons at KCom Craven Park while Josh Drinkwater beats an even hastier retreat, returning to Catalans Dragons after just one year. Joining him in France will be Joel Tomkins while Salford have snapped up all of Ryan Lannon, Chris Atkin and James Greenwood as they look to do their own rebuild. Danny Addy has dropped down to the Championship with Leigh Centurions.
Perhaps the biggest issue for Rovers going into the season however does not concern any of these comings and goings but a player who has been with the team since 2017. Mose Masoe suffered a terrible spinal injury in a pre-season friendly against Wakefield on January 12 and sadly Smith has confirmed today that the injury is a career ending one. His basic health is the most pressing concern at the moment and any thoughts of getting him back on to a rugby league field always seemed distant and completely secondary. A Grand Final winner with Saints in 2014, Masoe is certainly in the thoughts of all Saints fans and we wish him all the best as he bids to get back to health. So too I'm sure will everybody at Rovers and throughout the sport. A traumatic situation can sometimes galvanise a squad of players, the emotion dragging them along to produce their very best. Or it can become too much for them, making the results of rugby league games seem trivial by comparison. It is a testing time for everyone at Hull KR whichever way you look at it.
Back on the field it is vital that Kenny-Dowall and company improve the Robins' attacking output. Only the Broncos scored fewer than Hull KR's 90 tries last term while nobody made fewer tackle busts. Only the men from the capital and the Huddersfield Giants made fewer clean breaks and defensively Smith's side have a lot of improvement to make. They managed to butcher 1202 tackles throughout 2019, the only Super League side to miss more than 1200 in the season. This translated to the concession of 768 points from their 29 league outings, which again was only bettered for its ineptitude by those Broncos and Giants. In a small note of consolation, 768 is also the number of points shipped in by Rovers' Jeckyll and Hyde city rivals Hull FC. Defence was something of a foreign country in Hull in 2019, but at least the black and whites posted enough points (645) to keep their heads way above water even if they eventually missed out on the playoffs. Rovers managed only 548 points at an average of less than 19 per game, with Ken Sio leading the way with 13.
The opening game at home to Wakefield on January 31 looks huge even at that embryonic stage of the season. Rovers come out of that and fall straight into the frying pan that is the Hull derby in round 2 on February 7. After that they go to Leeds, host Huddersfield and end the first five rounds of the season with a visit from Castleford Tigers. All of these games, including what will probably be a rejuvenated Leeds side, have to be seen as winnable for Rovers if they are going to compete nearer to the top end of the table than the bottom. Smith will believe they are winnable too. The former Warrington and Leeds coach is not short of a bit of confidence and if he can get his players to believe in themselves as much as he does good things could happen. Equally, they could enter a hideous stretch in March which includes trips to Wigan and St Helens and a home clash with the Wolves with confidence hanging by a thread if early season results don't go their way.
Rovers have to be viewed as one of the realistic relegation candidates. Their fans will be pleased to note that I have been wrong before, but the squad that Smith has assembled still doesn't convince many that it has the look of a playoff contender. A place somewhere around the top eight without having to concern themselves with relegation issues on the last weekend of the season woudl probably be considered an improvement by most Rovers fans, and set them up for more incremental growth under a multi-Grand Final winning and former international coach who has seen and done most things in the game.
Super League 2020 Preview - Huddersfield Giants
Huddersfield Giants were one of three clubs who needed to wait until the very last day of the regular season to finally avoid relegation to the Championship. The narrowest of wins, 24-22 against a Catalans Dragons side sleepwalking towards its fifth straight league defeat, was enough to haul Simon Woolford’s side out of the mire. After a fifth-placed finish in 2018 Woolford’s full season in charge was a chastening experience.
Woolford has a massive task ahead of him if he is to stop the Giants from continuing their downward slide towards the second tier. He has put much of this faith in Aidan Sezer, the 28-year-old halfback who has been guiding Canberra Raiders around the park in the NRL for the last four seasons. Danny Brough left a massive hole in the Giants team when he moved across West Yorkshire to Wakefield at the start of 2019 and there is no doubt that at this stage of the careers of both Brough and Sezer that the Australian is a significant upgrade. Yet if the problem previously was that there was too much responsibility on Brough’s shoulders then it might be that the problem has just shifted on to those of Sezer.
The other big NRL import is prop forward James Gavet who arrives from Newcastle Knights. Gavet made 18 appearances for the Knights last term and has over 70 NRL appearances to his name having also had spells with Canterbury Bulldogs, Wests Tigers, Brisbane Broncos and New Zealand Warriors. At 30 he is just about still in his prime and could offer the Giants some much needed go-forward particularly following the loan departure of Sebastine Ikahihifo to Salford Red Devils. The pack is further bolstered by former Catalans Dragons pantomime villain Kenny Edwards who joins the Giants on a three year deal from the French club. Edwards can be a useful impact player but Giants fans sitting down to read all about his struggles with alcohol in the rugby league press this week might feel a touch nervous, even if he has conquered his demons for now.
The rest of the recruitment is more modest, with one-time promising Leeds Rhinos fullback Ashton Golding moving from Headingley after losing his place to Jack Walker, and Joe Wardle rubber stamping his permanent move from Castleford Tigers after a loan spell last season. Chester Butler and Owen Trout have mostly Championship experience and are perhaps not expected to go straight into the first team at this stage.
On the other side of the ledger perhaps the key loss is hooker Kruise Leeming. The 24-year-old has signed a two-year deal with Leeds Rhinos after a season in which he was one of the brighter lights in a fairly dismal campaign. Joining him in Leeds will be the highly rated Alex Mellor while Jordan Rankin’s loan move to Castleford is now permanent. Ikahihifo’s move to Salford looks a curious decision by Woolford given that aside from Gavet the cupboard looks a little bare. Suaia Matagi did not uproot many trees in his first season in England but is a solid enough performer while Matty English is still at a developmental stage of his career. Oliver Wilson and old stagers Ukuma Ta’ai and Paul Clough will need to contribute again but at 33 and 32 years old respectively they are not players at the peak of their powers. Leeming’s hooking role is likely to go to Adam O’Brien who is a very good player in his own right but lacks that creative spark that Leeming can provide.
Huddersfield take on Catalans again in their first outing of 2020 with all of Golding, Sezer, Gavet and Edwards in contention for a debut. Golding will have to fight off competition from the excellent Darnell McIntosh at fullback but has also played for the Rhinos at hooker. McIntosh has featured on the wing in the past but that looks like a waste of his considerable talents. The Giants need their best players on the ball as much as possible so to isolate McIntosh to accommodate Golding makes little sense. NRL veteran Akuila Uate and England’s 2017 World Cup star Jermaine McGillvary are standouts on the wings while the back division also features former Saints and Canberra Raiders utility Jordan Turner. He has Grand Final winning experience that could still prove invaluable even at 31 years of age. Leroy Cudjoe is another veteran centre who has been beset by injuries in recent times but could still have plenty to offer if he can regain his fitness.
Sezer’s halfback partner looks like being another former Saint in Lee Gaskell although Tom Holmes and Oliver Russell will hope to gain more game time at the highest level after promising starts to their careers. Gavet and Matagi look the best options at prop backed up by Ta’ai and Clough and possibly Wilson or Adam Walne. In the back row Michael Lawrence and Wardle will have it all on to keep Edwards and Oliver Roberts out of the team while Aaron Murphy could also feature as well as a number of other positions.
When the Giants return from their opening round clash in France they then host Leeds Rhinos in round two, visit Salford in round 3 before going to Hull KR in round four. Their fifth fixture is a home clash with what should be a rejuvenated Wigan Warriors side before they then travel to face champions St Helens in round 6 on March 6. You get the feeling that three wins from those opening six games would be a solid start with anything more than that a bonus. They won only one of their first six league games last time out and it set the tone for a season of out and out struggle.
The Giants need to control the ball better. Although seven teams made more errors than they did in 2019 only Wigan were forced into making more tackles. Only Salford, Warrington and Wigan missed fewer tackles but the problem was that invariably once the Giants line was broken they conceded points. Only London Broncos conceded more points suggesting that one of the things Woolford should drill into his players is the need to hustle back into position to make the next tackle after the initial break is made. Defences that bend but don’t break usually belong to successful sides. When there are nine sides with a more potent attack than yours it is imperative that you defend well.
In the final analysis I am just not sure that Huddersfield can do it often enough to avoid another battle against the drop. The unknown quantity of Toronto, the schizophrenic fortunes of Wakefield and the continual struggles of Hull KR offer hope that there might be at least one team worse than Huddersfield to preserve their top flight status for another year but like last year it could come down to the wire and a visit to Castleford Tigers in round 29 on September 11. That’s not a fixture you would want if your place in the competition is on the line.
Woolford has a massive task ahead of him if he is to stop the Giants from continuing their downward slide towards the second tier. He has put much of this faith in Aidan Sezer, the 28-year-old halfback who has been guiding Canberra Raiders around the park in the NRL for the last four seasons. Danny Brough left a massive hole in the Giants team when he moved across West Yorkshire to Wakefield at the start of 2019 and there is no doubt that at this stage of the careers of both Brough and Sezer that the Australian is a significant upgrade. Yet if the problem previously was that there was too much responsibility on Brough’s shoulders then it might be that the problem has just shifted on to those of Sezer.
The other big NRL import is prop forward James Gavet who arrives from Newcastle Knights. Gavet made 18 appearances for the Knights last term and has over 70 NRL appearances to his name having also had spells with Canterbury Bulldogs, Wests Tigers, Brisbane Broncos and New Zealand Warriors. At 30 he is just about still in his prime and could offer the Giants some much needed go-forward particularly following the loan departure of Sebastine Ikahihifo to Salford Red Devils. The pack is further bolstered by former Catalans Dragons pantomime villain Kenny Edwards who joins the Giants on a three year deal from the French club. Edwards can be a useful impact player but Giants fans sitting down to read all about his struggles with alcohol in the rugby league press this week might feel a touch nervous, even if he has conquered his demons for now.
The rest of the recruitment is more modest, with one-time promising Leeds Rhinos fullback Ashton Golding moving from Headingley after losing his place to Jack Walker, and Joe Wardle rubber stamping his permanent move from Castleford Tigers after a loan spell last season. Chester Butler and Owen Trout have mostly Championship experience and are perhaps not expected to go straight into the first team at this stage.
On the other side of the ledger perhaps the key loss is hooker Kruise Leeming. The 24-year-old has signed a two-year deal with Leeds Rhinos after a season in which he was one of the brighter lights in a fairly dismal campaign. Joining him in Leeds will be the highly rated Alex Mellor while Jordan Rankin’s loan move to Castleford is now permanent. Ikahihifo’s move to Salford looks a curious decision by Woolford given that aside from Gavet the cupboard looks a little bare. Suaia Matagi did not uproot many trees in his first season in England but is a solid enough performer while Matty English is still at a developmental stage of his career. Oliver Wilson and old stagers Ukuma Ta’ai and Paul Clough will need to contribute again but at 33 and 32 years old respectively they are not players at the peak of their powers. Leeming’s hooking role is likely to go to Adam O’Brien who is a very good player in his own right but lacks that creative spark that Leeming can provide.
Huddersfield take on Catalans again in their first outing of 2020 with all of Golding, Sezer, Gavet and Edwards in contention for a debut. Golding will have to fight off competition from the excellent Darnell McIntosh at fullback but has also played for the Rhinos at hooker. McIntosh has featured on the wing in the past but that looks like a waste of his considerable talents. The Giants need their best players on the ball as much as possible so to isolate McIntosh to accommodate Golding makes little sense. NRL veteran Akuila Uate and England’s 2017 World Cup star Jermaine McGillvary are standouts on the wings while the back division also features former Saints and Canberra Raiders utility Jordan Turner. He has Grand Final winning experience that could still prove invaluable even at 31 years of age. Leroy Cudjoe is another veteran centre who has been beset by injuries in recent times but could still have plenty to offer if he can regain his fitness.
Sezer’s halfback partner looks like being another former Saint in Lee Gaskell although Tom Holmes and Oliver Russell will hope to gain more game time at the highest level after promising starts to their careers. Gavet and Matagi look the best options at prop backed up by Ta’ai and Clough and possibly Wilson or Adam Walne. In the back row Michael Lawrence and Wardle will have it all on to keep Edwards and Oliver Roberts out of the team while Aaron Murphy could also feature as well as a number of other positions.
When the Giants return from their opening round clash in France they then host Leeds Rhinos in round two, visit Salford in round 3 before going to Hull KR in round four. Their fifth fixture is a home clash with what should be a rejuvenated Wigan Warriors side before they then travel to face champions St Helens in round 6 on March 6. You get the feeling that three wins from those opening six games would be a solid start with anything more than that a bonus. They won only one of their first six league games last time out and it set the tone for a season of out and out struggle.
The Giants need to control the ball better. Although seven teams made more errors than they did in 2019 only Wigan were forced into making more tackles. Only Salford, Warrington and Wigan missed fewer tackles but the problem was that invariably once the Giants line was broken they conceded points. Only London Broncos conceded more points suggesting that one of the things Woolford should drill into his players is the need to hustle back into position to make the next tackle after the initial break is made. Defences that bend but don’t break usually belong to successful sides. When there are nine sides with a more potent attack than yours it is imperative that you defend well.
In the final analysis I am just not sure that Huddersfield can do it often enough to avoid another battle against the drop. The unknown quantity of Toronto, the schizophrenic fortunes of Wakefield and the continual struggles of Hull KR offer hope that there might be at least one team worse than Huddersfield to preserve their top flight status for another year but like last year it could come down to the wire and a visit to Castleford Tigers in round 29 on September 11. That’s not a fixture you would want if your place in the competition is on the line.
Super League 2020 Preview - Castleford Tigers
Some things get progressively worse. British politics for example. Game Of Thrones. My kidneys. Castleford Tigers.
It is only just over two years since the Tigers were celebrating at their ludicrously named Mend-A-Hose Jungle home having destroyed the Super League competition and finished 10 points clear of the rest. A repeat of that the following year always seemed unlikely so a third-placed finish in 2018 hardly represented a crisis. Yet when they slipped to fifth last year and crashed out of the playoffs after being mercilessly nilled by an upstart Salford side there had to have been alarm bells ringing in the ears of not just the fans but of coach Daryl Powell.
In many ways 2020 represents a new era for Castleford. The transfer of Luke Gale to Leeds Rhinos might be seen as a blow, but it does mean that they can finally stop relying on a player who is almost permanently injured. The shadow of Gale hung over Castleford for what seemed like years as he sat out the whole of last season. Now Tigers fans can look forward to the development of a fresh and exciting new halfback partnership as Jake Trueman looks set to link up with former Saints starlet and 2018 Dream Team member Danny Richardson. The Widnesian scrum half is one of five new faces at the club, with 2019 Grand Finalist George Griffin, former Toulouse forward Tyler Hepi, ex-Cronulla winger Sosaia Feki and another former Salford man Derrell Olpherts all pulling on the Tigers shirt in 2020.
Although only five new faces have arrived there are a host of players heading out of the door as Powell sets about the task of trying to reverse the Tigers’ gradual decline. Greg Minikin, Will Maher and Jamie Ellis have all moved to Hull KR to take part in their annual staff overhaul while young half Cory Aston joins utility back Tuoyo Egodo at London Broncos in the Championship. That two players who featured quite regularly for the Tigers in 2019 are now deemed only good enough for the Championship might say something about the injury crisis that Powell was so keen to let everyone know about throughout the last campaign. They often found themselves having to rely on the back-ups who perhaps did not quite possess the quality of the regulars. Prop forward Mitch Clark might be a more damaging loss as he joins Wigan and Joe Wardle has made his loan move to Huddersfield Giants permanent.
How might the Tigers might look when they run out on to the field for their opening Super League fixture at Headingley against Toronto Wolfpack (yes, you read that right and don’t ask)? Jordan Rankin had a successful spell on loan from Huddersfield Giants last year and makes that move a permanent one. His main competition appears to come from Peter Mata’utia, a man whose propensity for brilliance is rivalled only by his potential for absolute and complete disaster. Feki should come in on one wing with one-time Super League try-scoring machine Greg Eden on the other. Like Mata’utia, it seems that when Eden is not scoring bucketloads of tries as he did in 2017 he is making the kind of epic mistakes which persuade Powell to enter the field of play, chunnering under his breath and copping a £5,000 fine for his troubles. Yet if he gets the service Eden will be a constant nuisance to any scoreboard operators hoping to have a quiet nap during the ‘arm wrestle’. Feki is no stranger to a try-line himself having crossed for 67 meat pies in 148 games for the Sharks in a seven season spell which included an appearance in the 2016 NRL Grand Final success over Melbourne Storm. That title-winning experience could prove vital to a Castleford side which currently only contains a group of talented nearly men.
With Minikin gone Cheyse Blair and Michael Shenton look the likely centre pairing. These eyes suggest that Blair is not a huge upgrade on Minikin but in Shenton the Tigers have one of the most reliable and effective players around. He was one of those so sorely missed through injury last year and if he can have a healthier season this time around then the Tigers performance should improve dramatically.
If the young halfback duo are going to prosper they are going to need a formidable pack to play behind. Liam Watts is a good place to start if you are building a forward-line for an assault on the Super League title, but the rest are not quite at his level. Matt Cook might be the standout among them although the entertaining Grant Millington and Junior Moors will also look to make waves. Nathan Massey rarely lets the side down but there has to be a question mark over whether this group is an elite one at this level and whether it can offer the security that will enable the talents of Trueman and Richardson to blossom. There is no problem at nine for the Tigers. Paul McShane is one of the best hookers in the competition and perhaps the best never to have been called up by England. His chances of changing that unfortunate blot on his copybook aren’t likely to change with Josh Hodgson, Daryl Clark, James Roby and probably even Danny Houghton ahead of him in the pecking order but he remains one of Powell’s most important assets.
Griffin should add plenty to the back row where Jesse Sene-Lefao is still an exciting if flawed presence. Injuries mean we did not see the best of Mike McMeeken in 2019 but if he can get back to the form that saw him break into the England squad in the Tigers’ League Leaders Shield winning year then there is reason for optimism. Alex Foster, Oliver Holmes and Moors offer more options there while at loose forward Adam Milner or Massey are very dependable. The squad has reasonable depth with Foster, Olpherts, Daniel Smith, Hepi and James Clare also pushing for playing time.
A lesson from last season is to be less reliant on the kicking game. Nobody made more than the Tigers’ 371 attacking kicks in 2019, a stat which might suggest that there is a lack of cutting edge. Only Saints made more metres than Castleford last season and only Leeds and Warrington liked an offload more often. So why then did Castleford only rank sixth in try-scoring with 111 tries at 3.82 per game? Perhaps the creative skills of Trueman and Richardson allied to the try-scoring prowess that we know Feki and Eden possess will put that right in 2020.
Once Toronto are out of the way on the opening weekend the next assignment is the visit of Clark and the Warriors before a round 3 trip to Perpignan on February 15. A West Yorkshire derby at home to Wakefield in round 4 is followed by a Thursday night trip to Hull KR in the glare of the Sky TV cameras. After that it is last season’s top three with Warrington away on March 6, Saints at home on March 15 and a visit to Salford on March 20. By the end of all that we should know a lot more about whether Castleford are going to bounce back from their recent decline to become a major force, or whether they have the potential to miss the playoff series for the first time since 2016. I just have a nagging doubt that it could be the latter. Leeds are an improving force, Salford coach Ian Watson has proved that he can work relative miracles and Hull FC have recruited well in their bid to rid themselves of the inconsistency that plagued their 2019 campaign too. All of these are a threat as well as the traditional heavyweights of Saints, Wigan and Warrington. With only five places up for grabs it is not beyond the realms of possibility that the Tigers downward trend over the last couple of seasons will continue.
It is only just over two years since the Tigers were celebrating at their ludicrously named Mend-A-Hose Jungle home having destroyed the Super League competition and finished 10 points clear of the rest. A repeat of that the following year always seemed unlikely so a third-placed finish in 2018 hardly represented a crisis. Yet when they slipped to fifth last year and crashed out of the playoffs after being mercilessly nilled by an upstart Salford side there had to have been alarm bells ringing in the ears of not just the fans but of coach Daryl Powell.
In many ways 2020 represents a new era for Castleford. The transfer of Luke Gale to Leeds Rhinos might be seen as a blow, but it does mean that they can finally stop relying on a player who is almost permanently injured. The shadow of Gale hung over Castleford for what seemed like years as he sat out the whole of last season. Now Tigers fans can look forward to the development of a fresh and exciting new halfback partnership as Jake Trueman looks set to link up with former Saints starlet and 2018 Dream Team member Danny Richardson. The Widnesian scrum half is one of five new faces at the club, with 2019 Grand Finalist George Griffin, former Toulouse forward Tyler Hepi, ex-Cronulla winger Sosaia Feki and another former Salford man Derrell Olpherts all pulling on the Tigers shirt in 2020.
Although only five new faces have arrived there are a host of players heading out of the door as Powell sets about the task of trying to reverse the Tigers’ gradual decline. Greg Minikin, Will Maher and Jamie Ellis have all moved to Hull KR to take part in their annual staff overhaul while young half Cory Aston joins utility back Tuoyo Egodo at London Broncos in the Championship. That two players who featured quite regularly for the Tigers in 2019 are now deemed only good enough for the Championship might say something about the injury crisis that Powell was so keen to let everyone know about throughout the last campaign. They often found themselves having to rely on the back-ups who perhaps did not quite possess the quality of the regulars. Prop forward Mitch Clark might be a more damaging loss as he joins Wigan and Joe Wardle has made his loan move to Huddersfield Giants permanent.
How might the Tigers might look when they run out on to the field for their opening Super League fixture at Headingley against Toronto Wolfpack (yes, you read that right and don’t ask)? Jordan Rankin had a successful spell on loan from Huddersfield Giants last year and makes that move a permanent one. His main competition appears to come from Peter Mata’utia, a man whose propensity for brilliance is rivalled only by his potential for absolute and complete disaster. Feki should come in on one wing with one-time Super League try-scoring machine Greg Eden on the other. Like Mata’utia, it seems that when Eden is not scoring bucketloads of tries as he did in 2017 he is making the kind of epic mistakes which persuade Powell to enter the field of play, chunnering under his breath and copping a £5,000 fine for his troubles. Yet if he gets the service Eden will be a constant nuisance to any scoreboard operators hoping to have a quiet nap during the ‘arm wrestle’. Feki is no stranger to a try-line himself having crossed for 67 meat pies in 148 games for the Sharks in a seven season spell which included an appearance in the 2016 NRL Grand Final success over Melbourne Storm. That title-winning experience could prove vital to a Castleford side which currently only contains a group of talented nearly men.
With Minikin gone Cheyse Blair and Michael Shenton look the likely centre pairing. These eyes suggest that Blair is not a huge upgrade on Minikin but in Shenton the Tigers have one of the most reliable and effective players around. He was one of those so sorely missed through injury last year and if he can have a healthier season this time around then the Tigers performance should improve dramatically.
If the young halfback duo are going to prosper they are going to need a formidable pack to play behind. Liam Watts is a good place to start if you are building a forward-line for an assault on the Super League title, but the rest are not quite at his level. Matt Cook might be the standout among them although the entertaining Grant Millington and Junior Moors will also look to make waves. Nathan Massey rarely lets the side down but there has to be a question mark over whether this group is an elite one at this level and whether it can offer the security that will enable the talents of Trueman and Richardson to blossom. There is no problem at nine for the Tigers. Paul McShane is one of the best hookers in the competition and perhaps the best never to have been called up by England. His chances of changing that unfortunate blot on his copybook aren’t likely to change with Josh Hodgson, Daryl Clark, James Roby and probably even Danny Houghton ahead of him in the pecking order but he remains one of Powell’s most important assets.
Griffin should add plenty to the back row where Jesse Sene-Lefao is still an exciting if flawed presence. Injuries mean we did not see the best of Mike McMeeken in 2019 but if he can get back to the form that saw him break into the England squad in the Tigers’ League Leaders Shield winning year then there is reason for optimism. Alex Foster, Oliver Holmes and Moors offer more options there while at loose forward Adam Milner or Massey are very dependable. The squad has reasonable depth with Foster, Olpherts, Daniel Smith, Hepi and James Clare also pushing for playing time.
A lesson from last season is to be less reliant on the kicking game. Nobody made more than the Tigers’ 371 attacking kicks in 2019, a stat which might suggest that there is a lack of cutting edge. Only Saints made more metres than Castleford last season and only Leeds and Warrington liked an offload more often. So why then did Castleford only rank sixth in try-scoring with 111 tries at 3.82 per game? Perhaps the creative skills of Trueman and Richardson allied to the try-scoring prowess that we know Feki and Eden possess will put that right in 2020.
Once Toronto are out of the way on the opening weekend the next assignment is the visit of Clark and the Warriors before a round 3 trip to Perpignan on February 15. A West Yorkshire derby at home to Wakefield in round 4 is followed by a Thursday night trip to Hull KR in the glare of the Sky TV cameras. After that it is last season’s top three with Warrington away on March 6, Saints at home on March 15 and a visit to Salford on March 20. By the end of all that we should know a lot more about whether Castleford are going to bounce back from their recent decline to become a major force, or whether they have the potential to miss the playoff series for the first time since 2016. I just have a nagging doubt that it could be the latter. Leeds are an improving force, Salford coach Ian Watson has proved that he can work relative miracles and Hull FC have recruited well in their bid to rid themselves of the inconsistency that plagued their 2019 campaign too. All of these are a threat as well as the traditional heavyweights of Saints, Wigan and Warrington. With only five places up for grabs it is not beyond the realms of possibility that the Tigers downward trend over the last couple of seasons will continue.
Super League 2020 Preview - Catalans Dragons
Catalans Dragons finished 2019 with five defeats in a row. That is not a startling statistic in itself. Since they entered the competition in 2006 the French side have been the dictionary definition of inconsistency. Traditionally strong at home but comically bad on their travels, so the story goes. Yet if they had won just three of those five games at the end of last year, and in among them were very winnable fixtures with Huddersfield, Hull KR, London and Leeds, they would have qualified for the playoffs.
Despite the surprisingly narrow margin between success and failure the Dragons’ 2019 season will be remembered as one of mediocrity. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. The Dragons’ 2018 Challenge Cup Final win over Warrington was meant to be the start of something big. That first piece of silverware was set to be the catalyst for Steve McNamara’s side to push on and become regular challengers not just in the cup but also for the Super League title. Will that promise finally come to fruition in 2020?
Don’t hold your breath. McNamara has added former Australian international halfback James Maloney to the ranks but aside from that there hasn’t been massive surgery on a squad which underachieved in 2019. Maloney has a lot of responsibility on his shoulders not just for his own game but also in helping to bring out the best in his often wayward new team-mates. At 33 years old he has a wealth of experience, playing close to 250 NRL games in spells with Melbourne, New Zealand Warriors, Sydney Roosters, Cronulla Sharks and Penrith Panthers. Yet at his age Maloney is clearly not a signing for the long term. His impact needs to be immediate.
It could be an all new halfback partnership in Perpignan with Josh Drinkwater returning from an underwhelming year at Hull KR to replace Widnes-bound Matty Smith. Drinkwater was pivotal to that Challenge Cup success in 2018 and McNamara will hope that alongside Maloney he can reignite the spark that was missing all too often last term. Tony Gigot was a talented if frustrating presence but his departure places more responsibility on Drinkwater, Maloney and Sam Tomkins to create attacking opportunities. Lucas Albert may face another frustrating year waiting for an opportunity after making just 14 appearances last year.
Strike centre Brayden Williame has also left which is a major blow, though there is try-scoring potential in Tom Davies who takes the most well-trodden path in rugby league from Wigan to the south of France. They must do some fabulous pies in Perpignan. Davies suffered a terrible double fracture of his leg in Wigan’s Good Friday loss to Saints so it will be interesting to see if he can return to the form which made him a regular in a Wigan side overloaded with talented wingmen. The rest of the backline looks a little flaky in truth. David Mead is proven quality at either centre or fullback but Lewis Tierney has never really convinced since arriving from Wigan. Fouad Yaha is a powerful unit and a capable finisher but doesn’t quite have the kind of jet-heeled pace to trouble the very best edge defenders. Samisoni Langi is versatile but is another whose consistency has to be called into question.
Another year, another Tomkins as Joel arrives to play alongside brother Sam once more. Sadly Joel has been more notable for his behaviour in Wigan bars than for anything he has done on a rugby league field in the last few years. It would be a major surprise if we were to see anything like the Joel Tomkins of his first spell at Wigan. He will fight it out for a back row spot alongside the dependable Matt Whitley and the established old guard of Benjamin Garcia, Jason Baitieiri, Alrix Da Costa. Kenny Edwards has departed for Huddersfield amid some very public proclamations about his struggles with alcohol. Up front Sam Kasiano is the big-hitter alongside the excellent veteran Remi Casty, Mickael Simon, Julian Bousquet and Antoni Maria, while another ex-Wigan man Mickey McIlorum pulls the strings at hooker.
A good start could be vital to build up some momentum and there is an opportunity for that thanks to the fixture computer. Huddersfield Giants, a side who have flirted with relegation regularly over the last few years, provide the opposition at the Stade Gilbert Brutus on the opening weekend before a trip to a Wakefield side who only avoided the drop themselves on the final day of last season. Castleford Tigers visit in round three but the Dragons’ first really daunting assignment isn’t until March 1 when they go to the equally schizophrenic Hull FC in round 5. The round 4 visit to St Helens will have to wait as the champions are involved in the World Club Challenge against Sydney Roosters on February 22.
If the Dragons are to improve on their 2019 showing there are some obvious areas that should attract McNamara’s attention. Only two teams scored fewer than the Dragons’ 92 tries (3.17 per game compared with Saints’ league-leading 163 at 5.62 per game), while only Hull KR missed more tackles than the Catalans side in the last campaign. The Dragons are the least likely of any side to run out from dummy half and perhaps finding a way to get those cheap metres that other teams benefit from so much more often could be one of the keys to improving performance. Discipline must also improve as McNamara’s side were the only team to have more than one red card in the entire season.
It's almost impossible to consider the Dragons’ prospects without discussing their away form. The common conception is that they struggle on their travels and that was proven last season as they managed only five victories on the road compared with eight on home soil. They did not win away again after beating the Giants 32-28 on July 12, falling to all of Salford, Leeds, Wigan and Huddersfield again (loop fixtures, pah!). Meanwhile at home they beat four of the eventual top five. Salford Red Devils were the exception in a quite inexplicable 46-0 towelling on March 9 which came just a week after the Dragons had edged Warrington 23-22 in a thriller. It was just so..so…Catalans.
The jury has not had to deliberate for long on the question of the Dragons’ prospects for 2020. It is difficult to see them making it into the top five but equally they should produce their best rugby often enough to make relegation something that others have to worry about. Whether another finish just outside the playoff places will be enough to satisfy the board that McNamara is the right man to take the club forward is one of the big questions of 2020. His style does not endear him to fans and another season in which his troops fall short of making the end of season crap shoot could place him under unbearable pressure.
Despite the surprisingly narrow margin between success and failure the Dragons’ 2019 season will be remembered as one of mediocrity. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. The Dragons’ 2018 Challenge Cup Final win over Warrington was meant to be the start of something big. That first piece of silverware was set to be the catalyst for Steve McNamara’s side to push on and become regular challengers not just in the cup but also for the Super League title. Will that promise finally come to fruition in 2020?
Don’t hold your breath. McNamara has added former Australian international halfback James Maloney to the ranks but aside from that there hasn’t been massive surgery on a squad which underachieved in 2019. Maloney has a lot of responsibility on his shoulders not just for his own game but also in helping to bring out the best in his often wayward new team-mates. At 33 years old he has a wealth of experience, playing close to 250 NRL games in spells with Melbourne, New Zealand Warriors, Sydney Roosters, Cronulla Sharks and Penrith Panthers. Yet at his age Maloney is clearly not a signing for the long term. His impact needs to be immediate.
It could be an all new halfback partnership in Perpignan with Josh Drinkwater returning from an underwhelming year at Hull KR to replace Widnes-bound Matty Smith. Drinkwater was pivotal to that Challenge Cup success in 2018 and McNamara will hope that alongside Maloney he can reignite the spark that was missing all too often last term. Tony Gigot was a talented if frustrating presence but his departure places more responsibility on Drinkwater, Maloney and Sam Tomkins to create attacking opportunities. Lucas Albert may face another frustrating year waiting for an opportunity after making just 14 appearances last year.
Strike centre Brayden Williame has also left which is a major blow, though there is try-scoring potential in Tom Davies who takes the most well-trodden path in rugby league from Wigan to the south of France. They must do some fabulous pies in Perpignan. Davies suffered a terrible double fracture of his leg in Wigan’s Good Friday loss to Saints so it will be interesting to see if he can return to the form which made him a regular in a Wigan side overloaded with talented wingmen. The rest of the backline looks a little flaky in truth. David Mead is proven quality at either centre or fullback but Lewis Tierney has never really convinced since arriving from Wigan. Fouad Yaha is a powerful unit and a capable finisher but doesn’t quite have the kind of jet-heeled pace to trouble the very best edge defenders. Samisoni Langi is versatile but is another whose consistency has to be called into question.
Another year, another Tomkins as Joel arrives to play alongside brother Sam once more. Sadly Joel has been more notable for his behaviour in Wigan bars than for anything he has done on a rugby league field in the last few years. It would be a major surprise if we were to see anything like the Joel Tomkins of his first spell at Wigan. He will fight it out for a back row spot alongside the dependable Matt Whitley and the established old guard of Benjamin Garcia, Jason Baitieiri, Alrix Da Costa. Kenny Edwards has departed for Huddersfield amid some very public proclamations about his struggles with alcohol. Up front Sam Kasiano is the big-hitter alongside the excellent veteran Remi Casty, Mickael Simon, Julian Bousquet and Antoni Maria, while another ex-Wigan man Mickey McIlorum pulls the strings at hooker.
A good start could be vital to build up some momentum and there is an opportunity for that thanks to the fixture computer. Huddersfield Giants, a side who have flirted with relegation regularly over the last few years, provide the opposition at the Stade Gilbert Brutus on the opening weekend before a trip to a Wakefield side who only avoided the drop themselves on the final day of last season. Castleford Tigers visit in round three but the Dragons’ first really daunting assignment isn’t until March 1 when they go to the equally schizophrenic Hull FC in round 5. The round 4 visit to St Helens will have to wait as the champions are involved in the World Club Challenge against Sydney Roosters on February 22.
If the Dragons are to improve on their 2019 showing there are some obvious areas that should attract McNamara’s attention. Only two teams scored fewer than the Dragons’ 92 tries (3.17 per game compared with Saints’ league-leading 163 at 5.62 per game), while only Hull KR missed more tackles than the Catalans side in the last campaign. The Dragons are the least likely of any side to run out from dummy half and perhaps finding a way to get those cheap metres that other teams benefit from so much more often could be one of the keys to improving performance. Discipline must also improve as McNamara’s side were the only team to have more than one red card in the entire season.
It's almost impossible to consider the Dragons’ prospects without discussing their away form. The common conception is that they struggle on their travels and that was proven last season as they managed only five victories on the road compared with eight on home soil. They did not win away again after beating the Giants 32-28 on July 12, falling to all of Salford, Leeds, Wigan and Huddersfield again (loop fixtures, pah!). Meanwhile at home they beat four of the eventual top five. Salford Red Devils were the exception in a quite inexplicable 46-0 towelling on March 9 which came just a week after the Dragons had edged Warrington 23-22 in a thriller. It was just so..so…Catalans.
The jury has not had to deliberate for long on the question of the Dragons’ prospects for 2020. It is difficult to see them making it into the top five but equally they should produce their best rugby often enough to make relegation something that others have to worry about. Whether another finish just outside the playoff places will be enough to satisfy the board that McNamara is the right man to take the club forward is one of the big questions of 2020. His style does not endear him to fans and another season in which his troops fall short of making the end of season crap shoot could place him under unbearable pressure.
Flying Without Rings
I was never a huge fan of Danny Richardson. Not a fully paid-up member of his fan club anyway. The kind that religiously clings to the belief that a player's overall contribution to the game is largely irrelevant if they are good at goal-kicking (see Jamie Foster). And I certainly wasn't in that even more extreme camp that believed Richardson to be the second coming of Sean Long. The blonde hair and the ability to run reasonably quickly was enough for some observers to believe that we had finally found a halfback who could compare to and maybe even surpass Long. It was never all that likely.
So when the announcement was made towards the end of 2019 that Richardson would be on his way to Castleford to fill the Luke Gale-shaped hole in the Tigers playmaking department I wasn't on the phone to the Samaritans. Sure, it would have been nice to keep him around. He has a certain amount of potential even if his own behaviour sometimes seems like the most likely reason that he may not fulfil it. And it is not as if we have great depth in the halfback position, with Theo Fages equally unconvincing at times. Former coach Justin Holbrook left Fages out of the biggest games at the end of 2018 and then backed him to the hilt throughout most of 2019 at the expense of Richardson. There was still a debate going on about who was better suited to Saints number 7 spot right up until the time that Richardson departed.
Richardson has been busy this week driving a huge wedge between himself and his former club by publicly calling them out on their failure to provide him with a Super League winners ring at the end of last season. Richardson did not play in the Grand Final victory over Salford Red Devils, but managed to make 10 appearances throughout the campaign as Holbrook learned the lessons of 2018 and shuffled his pack more regularly. Richardson's proclamation that he remains positively ring-less has prompted some fans to turn their ire on him, pointing to the murmurs of his poor attitude while he was with the club as evidence that he is just acting like a spoiled kid. How dare he call our Sainted club out on this, right?
Well maybe not actually. Whatever you think of Richardson, whether you think he is the second coming of Sean Long, Alfie Langer, Alex Murphy and Jonathan Thurston all rolled into one or whether you think he is a preening one-trick pony soon to be found out at Super League level there is little argument against his claim for a Super League ring. Ten games is a significant contribution over a 30-game regular season. It is symptomatic of the extent to which we disregard the regular season and the League Leaders Shield that two former Super League winning players - fuck it let's call them out Richie Mathers and Keith Senior - have taken to Twitter to opine that Richardson shouldn't even want a ring given that he didn't play in the Grand Final. And their view is echoed by many fans. Almost every fan I spoke to at the time agreed that Holbrook's legacy at Saints would have been seriously diminished had we not won that one game on that one day in Manchester last October. Even Holbrook himself seemed to subscribe to that view, referencing often the pressure he felt under to deliver on Grand Final night having already agreed to move to Gold Coast Titans for 2020. Somehow we have managed to create an environment in which only one game in the year ever really matters, and have done so at the behest of our TV broadcast paymasters who continue to keep the game's head above water financially.
For their part Saints have acknowledged that Richardson is entitled to a ring, with Chief Executive Mike Rush revealing that there is one 'waiting' for Richardson. The implication here is that he can have his ring, but the club will be damned if it is going to make any effort to get it to him. While Richardson bitches away in the media about what the club have not done for him since the Grand Final, Rush is offering the equally eye-roll-worthy stance that if he wants it he should come and get it. They're like a divorced couple who have decided to live in different counties, but one partner has forgotten to take their priceless collection of vinyl with them so the other is thumbing their nose, shrugging and refusing to give any ground. The two parties need to get their heads together and come up with a resolution to the situation. Richardson doesn't want to look back on his career in 50 years time and note darkly that he still doesn't have a token of his first and maybe only major success, while the club should not want to reflect that they allowed a genuine contributor to go without because they felt like he sulked every time he was left out and then went and told on them to the rugby league media.
So when the announcement was made towards the end of 2019 that Richardson would be on his way to Castleford to fill the Luke Gale-shaped hole in the Tigers playmaking department I wasn't on the phone to the Samaritans. Sure, it would have been nice to keep him around. He has a certain amount of potential even if his own behaviour sometimes seems like the most likely reason that he may not fulfil it. And it is not as if we have great depth in the halfback position, with Theo Fages equally unconvincing at times. Former coach Justin Holbrook left Fages out of the biggest games at the end of 2018 and then backed him to the hilt throughout most of 2019 at the expense of Richardson. There was still a debate going on about who was better suited to Saints number 7 spot right up until the time that Richardson departed.
Richardson has been busy this week driving a huge wedge between himself and his former club by publicly calling them out on their failure to provide him with a Super League winners ring at the end of last season. Richardson did not play in the Grand Final victory over Salford Red Devils, but managed to make 10 appearances throughout the campaign as Holbrook learned the lessons of 2018 and shuffled his pack more regularly. Richardson's proclamation that he remains positively ring-less has prompted some fans to turn their ire on him, pointing to the murmurs of his poor attitude while he was with the club as evidence that he is just acting like a spoiled kid. How dare he call our Sainted club out on this, right?
Well maybe not actually. Whatever you think of Richardson, whether you think he is the second coming of Sean Long, Alfie Langer, Alex Murphy and Jonathan Thurston all rolled into one or whether you think he is a preening one-trick pony soon to be found out at Super League level there is little argument against his claim for a Super League ring. Ten games is a significant contribution over a 30-game regular season. It is symptomatic of the extent to which we disregard the regular season and the League Leaders Shield that two former Super League winning players - fuck it let's call them out Richie Mathers and Keith Senior - have taken to Twitter to opine that Richardson shouldn't even want a ring given that he didn't play in the Grand Final. And their view is echoed by many fans. Almost every fan I spoke to at the time agreed that Holbrook's legacy at Saints would have been seriously diminished had we not won that one game on that one day in Manchester last October. Even Holbrook himself seemed to subscribe to that view, referencing often the pressure he felt under to deliver on Grand Final night having already agreed to move to Gold Coast Titans for 2020. Somehow we have managed to create an environment in which only one game in the year ever really matters, and have done so at the behest of our TV broadcast paymasters who continue to keep the game's head above water financially.
For their part Saints have acknowledged that Richardson is entitled to a ring, with Chief Executive Mike Rush revealing that there is one 'waiting' for Richardson. The implication here is that he can have his ring, but the club will be damned if it is going to make any effort to get it to him. While Richardson bitches away in the media about what the club have not done for him since the Grand Final, Rush is offering the equally eye-roll-worthy stance that if he wants it he should come and get it. They're like a divorced couple who have decided to live in different counties, but one partner has forgotten to take their priceless collection of vinyl with them so the other is thumbing their nose, shrugging and refusing to give any ground. The two parties need to get their heads together and come up with a resolution to the situation. Richardson doesn't want to look back on his career in 50 years time and note darkly that he still doesn't have a token of his first and maybe only major success, while the club should not want to reflect that they allowed a genuine contributor to go without because they felt like he sulked every time he was left out and then went and told on them to the rugby league media.
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