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The Hardest Ever

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This time last year, England were about to enter their first Ashes series against Australia for 22 years. I was awash with optimism that England were at least going to give it a really good go. That optimism was washed away by half time of test 1 in a series that saw England score just two tries across three matches. The World Cup in 2026 in Australia offers a shot at redemption but achieving that is going to be as difficult as it has ever been. There is a very real chance that England do not make it out of the group stages. For England, that would represent a terrible return and prompt questions about why we are going back in the international arena and not forward. For the wider game, it would be a success story as there are now several teams who have a genuine shot at a semi final spot. The international game has changed. In the last two World Cups, we have seen Australia, England, New Zealand, Fiji, Samoa and Tonga all reach the semi final stage and three of those teams reach a fin...
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On Grand Final Day...

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As I write this we are a little over six hours away from kick off in the most unique of Grand Finals. For the first time ever, the side who finished 3rd will play the side who finished 4th.  For the first time since the 1998 Grand Final, we are guaranteed a new name on the Super League trophy. For just the second time, the sides who finished in 1st and 2nd place have been banished before the Grand Final. For the first time in either 71 years in Warrington's case or 58 years in Wakefield's case will one of these sides be the champions by around 8pm tonight. If you have any memory of either of these clubs being the champions, you would have to be drawing your pension. This time last week, I expected Wigan to beat Wakefield to set up a repeat of the 2013, 2016 and 2018 Grand Finals. From a Warrington perspective, that would have meant a Grand Final which was as low in pressure as could be expected. Very few would have expected Warrington to win. They finished 8th last year! Only o...
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This is why we do it.

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Why do we watch sport? Strip it down to its most basic. We spend so much of our free time, either on television or in stadiums, watching men or women throw an oval-shaped ball around a field. We spend a lot of our disposable income to follow our team. Sometimes, we even plan our holidays around fixture lists and travel across Europe and the world to watch our team. Think about it. It doesn't seem logical, does it?  If you are not a Rugby League aficionado, it might not make sense. If you are, this weekend was a reminder of why we do it.  This weekend had it all. Nail-biting drama. Tales of history-making success from underdogs. Tears of sadness. Tears of joy. We started on Friday night as Leeds faced Warrington. We saw Warrington reach their first Grand Final since 2018. A contest where no more than two points separated the sides from minute 38. We had controversy in the form of the winning penalty. We saw Leeds' young players thrust into the heat of a semi final and cope admi...
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IN THE SPOTLIGHT - Leeds vs Warrington

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We saw an engaging, if not attritional, semi final last night between Leeds and Warrington. The Wire are returning to the Grand Final for the first time since 2018. Leeds are once again thinking about what might have been. Whoever Warrington play in the Grand Final next week, we saw their blueprint for how they think they can end a long wait to call themselves champions. Warrington's win last night was based on playing error-free rugby, combined with impeccable discipline.  Warrington made just seven errors and conceded just six penalties. Even players who you associate with having particularly poor discipline (such as James Bentley) pulled rank. This is quite different to Warrington sides we have seen over time. Some of those sides have been more kamikaze in nature. When things got tough, composure could drop. Not the 2026 version of Warrington though. I have seen more talented Warrington sides than this one. I have not seen one with a better attitude. There will be some questions...
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Can Wigan be stopped?

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We were all looking forward to Leeds v Wigan on Saturday night. It was rightly billed as a League Leaders' Shield decider. Wigan's 8-40 success sent a warning shot to anyone else challenging for the title - you'll have to stop us. Easier said than done. Let's look at Wigan's best results against top 6 rivals, this year. Wigan 54-0 Leigh Leeds 8-40 Wigan Wigan 40-10 Hull KR Wakefield 10-48 Wigan Wigan 30-18 Warrington I haven't included Wigan's 46-0 home win against Hull KR, here, due to the phony war nature of the contest. Wigan have done the double over Leeds, Leigh and Wakefield (beating the latter in the Challenge Cup too). With the exception of Warrington, on at least one occasion this season, Wigan have not only beaten their top 6 rivals; they have comprehensively routed each of them. Wigan have now won 14 consecutive Super League matches. It is 15 matches if you include the Challenge Cup Final. Their last loss was against Hull KR in the week before the...
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Who will take Super League seriously, if not ourselves?

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We should be seeing one of the games of the Super League season on Thursday night. Wigan will host Hull KR in a repeat of the 2024 and 2025 Grand Finals and a repeat of the 2026 Challenge Cup Final. These two sides have faced each other in six knockout matches since 2023 and have developed a burgeoning rivalry. Yet for the second league contest this year between the sides, we are going to get a no contest. And we all know that before a ball has been kicked. In the reverse fixture in May, Matt Peet chose to field a side of academy and reserve players to rest his first choice squad ahead of the Challenge Cup Final. Hull KR took the opposite approach and won 62-4 in a match with the intensity of a behind closed doors opposed training session.  It was a win that brought little joy for Hull KR, little despair for Wigan. This Thursday, Willie Peters has chosen to name a hugely weakened side instead.  To paraphrase Brian Noble, " we expected George Formby but got George Foreman" . W...
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The Final Charge

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Around 12 months ago, it looked likely that the Super League season was building towards its natural crescendo. Hull KR v Wigan in the Grand Final. And so it proved. Such was the duopoly, I had to check who finished 3rd in 2025 (it was Leigh, if you're interested). This year feels different. Barring something very unexpected, the top 6 is settled. What is not settled is the order. Each side appears fallible and the gap between 1 and 6 feels less than in recent years. Leeds have been fantastic throughout 2026. Just 5 losses in Super League so far and the most consistent side. But in recent weeks, there have been wobbles. Firstly, throwing away a lead to lose to Castleford. And lately their perfect home record falls to Leigh. Jake Connor has reached heights in the last two years that I did not know he could reach. But it is also true that the gap between his best and his worst is stark. Leeds' impressive home record means they will feel confident of an Old Trafford return, if the...
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