While only 61 days will have passed since England’s World Cup final defeat by Australia when Warrington and Leeds get the 2018 Super League season under way on Thursday there is a familiar feeling that it cannot come soon enough after another frustrating winter in rugby league.
Not for the first time the sport’s domestic calendar begins with more questions than answers but this year it should have been different. England’s first appearance in the World Cup final for 22 years left many optimistic about the future, even if the nature of that defeat by the all-conquering Kangaroos had a familiar feeling of so near yet so far about it. But off-field politics, uncertainty about the key roles in the sport and an almost embarrassing lack of clarity about the league structuring from next year onwards have cast a shadow over what should have been an encouraging period.
The season begins this Thursday but nobody has an idea what will be played for come the conclusion of it. For some, such as St Helens, Leeds and Wigan, who will be competing at the top end of the table, that is perhaps not a pressing concern.
But with no decision made yet over how many clubs will be in Super League in 2019 – it is unclear whether they will stick with 12 or expand to 14 – it creates confusion for lower-end Super League clubs and the more ambitious second-tier sides in the Championship.
Could some clubs vote differently when a proposal on that is floated during the season as opposed to before it? The answer to that question, will never be known but the mere fact that it must be asked is not a great look. The now-departed Super League commercial officer, Roger Draper, told the Guardian last March that clubs were already discussing changes for 2019. Eleven months later the landscape is no clearer.
For clubs trying to plot a path to Super League via the qualifiers it is clearly an issue. “The hardest thing is for administrators,” said the Toronto Wolfpack coach, Paul Rowley. “But we’ve got to sell a dream of playing in Super League to a current international in Australia and it’d be nice to know what’s happening in terms of the structure. Off the field, there’s no doubting it’s a problem.”
The new London Broncos coach, Danny Ward, said: “There’s no secret that it’s hard when we’re trying to sit down with players and discuss contracts and they don’t know what the structure looks like. They’re all wondering where the game is going to go and we want to give them an opportunity to play in Super League with London. It’s difficult.”
While the clubs ultimately will decide the fate of the sport’s long-term structure – with the help of Sky Sports, who themselves will have a major say as host broadcaster – the ongoing situation at the Rugby Football League has not helped matters. Draper has left, as has the governing body’s chief executive, Nigel Wood. His replacement – for now – does not see the delays as a concern. “No, I don’t think so,” the RFL’s acting CEO, Ralph Rimmer said last week. “Whether it’s a concern for the clubs is a bit of a red herring, I think.”
The winter has also been dominated by Super League clubs vying for more control and authority within the sport, with the 12 clubs now in charge of Super League’s long-term future. It has the whiff of February 1992 about it when the Premier League was formed. If reports are to be believed, the chasm may deepen too, with some top-flight clubs keen to have more of a say in how and where the TV money – a necessity for some lower-league clubs – is distributed.
But those off-field politics will at least fade into the background partially come Thursday , as they should, because there is much to be excited about on the field. How the reigning champions, Leeds, cope without their long-standing heroes Danny McGuire and Rob Burrow is just one of several intriguing subplots.
There is the challenge for Castleford to back up their run to last year’s Grand Final amid a backdrop of mesmerising attacking rugby, though they too will have to cope without a mainstay of their side as Zak Hardaker awaits a likely two-year ban for testing positive for cocaine last September.
Castleford – and Wakefield, who exceeded all expectations to finish fifth – establishing themselves at the top meant some sides faltered in 2017. How Warrington and Wigan, for instance, respond in 2018 will command interest, as will the return of Hull Kingston Rovers following promotion from the Championship, which brings with it the return of the mouthwatering derbies with Hull FC.
It is only two months since last season finished but all the boardroom brawling has made this off-season feel longer than most. Sport should be about what happens on the field, of course, and thankfully there is not long to wait for the real action to begin.
