St Helens’ World Club Challenge success against Penrith was the biggest win we’ve ever seen in Super League history.
This was no ordinary NRL team. The Panthers had only lost ten games in three years. And there’s questions about the difference in standards between Super League and the NRL and them being wider than ever before. If that is true then it makes that victory a week ago even more remarkable as it would mean Penrith are probably the strongest NRL champions of the last 20 years because of the sheer strength of their competition.
So, for Saints to go down there and win in the way they did was just absolutely incredible. That should stay with those boys for the rest of their lives as a seminal moment in their careers and a real shot in the arm for the sport over here in England.
The way they won, with some great tries, but built on great kick-chase and brilliant defence, with desire and guts as well as skill under pressure, was everything you need to win monumentally big games. I stood screaming and shouting from my own sofa for them!
But now it’s for IMG to execute a plan to build on this - and make sure our biggest stars want to stay here in Super League. We’re seeing some go to the NRL and obviously, on the back of what Saints did, there’s going to be plenty of talk about young English players like Saints' own Jack Welsby and Lewis Dodd maybe doing the same.
But IMG need to create an environment and a league where people don’t want to head to Australia or don't feel the need to. We’ve seen such a great start to this Super League season with big crowds, great pre-match environment, plenty of fans watching and a real spectacle on the pitch, too.
There’s been strides forward but now we need to keep pushing to get the most out of it and to ensure Super League gets stronger and stronger. It’s an important time for IMG to deliver.
BETFRED - PASSIONATE ABOUT SUPER LEAGUE
