Who’ll be the 12th Super League team?
The Super League will welcome a new team into the competition ahead of next season. Following the decision to reject Toronto Wolfpack’s bid to re-join the top flight, clubs have voted in favour of moving forward with a 12-team competition, meaning there’s a hole to be filled.
With this year’s Championship being cancelled after just five rounds, the process of picking a team to step up to the Super League will begin promptly.
The Mail takes a look at the candidates and who could be set to become Super League’s 12th team.
Featherstone Rovers
The Yorkshire outfit were the first to make their interest clear in a strongly worded statement from club chairman Mark Campbell, who believes a spot in the Super League is rightfully theirs after they were beaten in the 2019 Million Pound Game by Toronto.
They started well this year, too, winning all four of their games before the competition was brought to a halt by the global pandemic
Featherstone are closely associated with Leeds Rhinos and would have to make huge changes in terms of infrastructure and personnel in order to make the leap up to the Super League and they would likely have to make the switch from part-time to full-time, too.
Toulouse Olympique
Toulouse are another club to have already put themselves forward and they’ve received some support on social media already.
They were top of the Championship when the season was stopped and over the last few of years they have been edging their way towards the Super League with second and third-placed finishes.
They’ve recruited some big names for the 2021 season already, including Hull KR’S Mitch Garbutt and they’ll be confident of making the step up to the Super League successfully if they are chosen.
The infrastructure is already in place, with the club sharing a 19,500-seater stadium with their rugby union playing neighbours and it’s an opportunity for the Super League to land in a new, vibrant city which can only help the game grow in France.
Leigh Centurions
Another team to go unbeaten in the Championship before lockdown, they’ve built a strong side over the last couple of years and they’ll also be confident of stepping up and mixing it in the top flight and they were amongst the favourites for promotion this season.
The Super League has been to Leigh on a couple of occasions, it knows what it can offer and the club has a rich history in the sport.
Like Featherstone, this one is for the traditionalists with a Leigh promotion further strengthening the rugby league heartland of the M62 corridor.
London Broncos
The Broncos gave a brilliant account of themselves last season in the Super League and that will stand in their favour when it comes to choosing a suitable candidate.
They shocked the big boys, made news and ensured the battle against relegation went right down to the wire, with London not being able to do enough against Wakefield
Trinity on the final day.
Danny Ward is working with a new squad now, but a lot of the elements that made London everyone’s favourite second team in 2019 are still in place.
York City Knights
A new stadium, a new city for Super League and it’s a stone’s throw away from the heartlands, what’s not to like?
York caught the eye last season and managed to finish third in the Championship against all the odds under James Ford.
They’ve made their intentions clear but questions need to be asked about whether they’re ready to make the step up to the top flight at this stage.
The outsiders Bradford Bulls, Halifax and Widnes Vikings have been mentioned on social media, as have Newcastle Thunder, but at this stage it doesn’t appear as though they stand a chance.