WOOLF HUNGRY FOR GLORY AS STELLAR SEASON KICKS OFF
NEW rules, a new club and even a new home on TV. The 27th edition of Super League explodes into action tonight ahead of a momentous year, with a home World Cup later this year.
WILL THE SAINTS MARCH ON?
ST HELENS are bidding to become the first side to win four straight Super League titles, having beaten Catalans 12-10 last October. ‘To achieve something no one else has, it’s going to take a hell of a lot of hard work,’ admitted Saints coach Kristian Woolf. ‘But the players are up for the fight. The ability in the group is going to make us hard to beat.’ The bookies have Saints as favourites to clinch their ninth Super League crown, which would see them edge ahead of Leeds Rhinos as the most successful club in the competition’s history. Woolf’s side have lost their man of the match from last year’s Grand Final, Kevin Naiqama, as well as the influential Lachlan Coote and Theo Fages. But they have recruited well, with key signings including Will Hopoate from Canterbury Bulldogs and Konrad Hurrell from Leeds. Saints skipper James Roby will want to go out on a high in what is set to be his 19th and final season.
FRENCH REVOLUTION
SUPER LEAGUE will feature two clubs from France for the first time, with newly promoted Toulouse Olympique joining Catalans. Toulouse get their maiden campaign under way at home to Huddersfield on Saturday but have been tipped to go straight back down. Steve McNamara’s Catalans have high hopes of going one step better than last year, when they secured the League Leaders’ Shield for the first time before that narrow Grand Final defeat by Saints. They have retained England captain Sam Tomkins (right), the 2021 Man of Steel, and, despite losing James Maloney, they have replaced him with fellow Aussie Mitchell Pearce, seen by many as the best new overseas signing. Catalans and Toulouse could be helped by the French rule banning unvaccinated sports professionals from competing in their country, meaning English clubs may be forced to travel with weakened sides.
FANTASTIC FOUR
IN ANOTHER first, this year will see some live games shown on free-to-air TV. Channel 4 have secured rights for 10 games, ending Sky Sports’ exclusive hold on the competition since its inception in 1996. The first match on terrestrial TV is Leeds’ clash with Warrington at Headingley on Saturday. The vast majority of live matches are still on Sky. The BBC will continue to show weekly highlights on their Super League Show.
END OF CANCEL CULTURE
IN THE last two seasons, the Super League table was determined on a points-per-game basis because of the number of Covid cancellations. This year clubs are expected to fulfil all of their fixtures so, if they cannot raise a team, they must forfeit the match and their opponents will be awarded a 48-0 victory. Scrums — which were scrapped in 2020 to reduce the number of close contacts — will return after the threshold of 85 per cent of players being fully vaccinated was met. A new rule is the introduction of green cards, which remove a player for two minutes if they need play to be stopped for on-field medical treatment, preventing doctors from coming on to deliberately cause delays.
WORLD OF OPPORTUNITY
ENGLISH players have an extra incentive heading into this season with the carrot of a home World Cup in the autumn. The tournament, which begins at St James’ Park on October 15 and finishes with a final at Old Trafford on November 19, was pushed back 12 months after Australia and New Zealand refused to travel last year because of the pandemic.
FIRST-ROUND FIXTURES
TONIGHT: St Helens v Catalans Dragons (8pm, Sky) TOMORROW: Castleford v Salford Red Devils (8pm); Hull KR v Wigan Warriors (8pm, Sky) SATURDAY: Leeds Rhinos v Warrington Wolves (12.30pm, Ch4); Toulouse v Huddersfield (7pm, Sky) SUNDAY: Wakefield Trinity v Hull FC (3pm)