Another factor to consider is the change of mind set to different club players. Saints and Wigan are competing for the LLS and will be playing with a lot more effort to achieve that, the others can take their foot of the gas for the remaining fixtures knowing an extended play off is on the cards. This gives Saints and Wigan a handicap in my opinion.
Does anyone know what constitutes a completed season from Sky’s POV? If it’s a certain number of televised games then surely we are there already? Does it have to include a play off series of some description?
Agree with the person who said they’ve done well in the circumstances. We are a small sport and to get games on every week must’ve been a logistical nightmare with minimal resources for testing etc
The problem is bringing this to light affects how we approach tonight's game v Salford.
If we put out a weak team and lose tonight we will have won 12 out of 16 that gives us 75% so we would still be above Wigan,
But if Friday's game v Wigan is going to be the last game of the shortened season then that game would determine who finishes top.
If we put out a strong team tonight and win that would clinch the top spot under this new proposal.
Laughable really changing the format in the last month. Only RL could consider this!
Part of me says its the Leeds influence again trying to sneak into the play offs after being sh*** all year!
Also, if the fixture list is not expected to be completed why do we not get our 2 points for beating Toronto?
I would go with top 5 or at a push top 6 which rewards the top 2.
If they stop the season now it would give Saints a big advantage in that they still have to play four of the top 6 in their remaining fixtures. You can see why Leeds are in favour as they have by far the easiest run in?
Ffs
Learned comment from The Don
Why not shake things up even more, for every win you get docked two points for every loss you are given two points for every time you win by more than 30 points you are docked two points and every time you concede 30 points you are given two points . A grand final with Wakey and HKR .
Christ on a bike is someone at Red Hall related to the captain of the Titanic.
On the Back foot looking for the front one.
I'm not so sure it's that much of an advantage tbh both Wigan and Warrington would get out of playing Catalan and Saints, a couple of losses there could mean Wigan or more likely Wire slip out of the four... Anyway I'm in favour of the play offs starting all these games seem pointless, shoehorning as many games in as you can with no real fixture structure.
I think really now when Toronto dropped out Catalan should have (still with sky money) as they seem to be the ones cocking it up. Not their fault but foreign travel shouldn't even be considered in RL at the moment.
*Sorry I meant to reply to Rogues on this*
Just on a note PAULO has signed for Toulouse for next season thought it might cheer some of us up lol
If there was going to be an asterisk next to this season,i'm struggling to think what they would need to put there if they bring this in.
It does seem strange that some clubs ie Saints , i was going to include Wigan but they tried to beat Saints with a very weekend team . I do agree with the posters who talk about the SKY influence and Leeds but i know all the problems with Covid but it is the same for all clubs and yet some are playing them i would just say if this goes ahead when they say be sure that vthe team that as finished top is given the League Leeders Shield and it looks like being Saints .
I agree, but to make that work the RFL need to ensure that the top 5 or 6 teams have played each other twice and if that means the teams outside the top 5 or 6 missing out(whichever they chose) then so be it. If the likes of Wakey, HKR, Cas etc can't make the top 5 or 6 then let their season finish now and sort the other fixtures out.
They’re obsessed with play offs. Finish the remaining 5 fixtures, who ever finishes top gets both trophies.
Wrap this season up ASAP and come back in February with a better plan.
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Yep. His quote in the Mirror....
We’ve been having talks internally and think a good way to look at the competition now would perhaps be looking at starting the play-offs earlier with more teams in it. We’re in a position where if we can navigate our way through to the play-offs it will leave us in a fair old state at the end of it. The whole win percentage stuff is getting called into question.
This is most definitely emanating from Leeds. Remember it was Hetherington who spearheaded the change from Top 6 to Top 8 when we went to a 14 team SL, which left his own side as champions twice despite finishing 5th, because the system allowed the team in 5th to build momentum with a home game against an awful 8th placed team whilst the Top 4 were all killing each other on the same opening weekend of the play offs. Those three years of utterly pointless regular season games under that Top 8 format was an all time low in my interest in the sport to be honest.
Didn’t the league decide that 15 games was the threshold? Catalans can still squeeze 15 games in. If they can’t, they’re out. If they can, they are the rules that were set out. If you can play 15 and have one of the best 4 win percentages you’re in. Clubs like Saints have taken the pursuit of a Top 4 place seriously, whilst others haven’t. Others have almost given up on it and will now be given another chance because the almighty Leeds aren’t happy. They’re happy enough when they decide to bother and beat Wigan in a cup semi or beat Salford to win the Final. But when they can’t be bothered they lobby for rules to be changed so that their mediocrity is rewarded.
Agar and Leeds may argue that the system isn’t fair because Catalans may sneak in on 15 games. It isn’t fair, but nothing we’ve done in the last 20 years in RL has been fair. It hasn’t been fair that they’ve won 2 titles after being awful for an entire season. It isn’t fair that the team that wins the most points only gets a hubcap and a 50/50 chance if they make the Grand Final. It isn’t fair that well run clubs that achieve consistent success get handcuffed by a salary cap just so badly run clubs can artificially compete, etc, etc. The whole structure is artificially engineered to promote mediocrity over success, and it’s been that way for decades. But for the first time it’s not benefitting Leeds we get complaints.
I've merged the two relevant threads as we're talking about the same thing in both of them now.
My suspicious mind with the RFL tells me that they will announce the play offs on the Saturday. They will wait until Saints have played 3 games in a week, whilst Leeds are due to complete 3 games in a week by Sunday, something tells me Leeds will not play that 3rd game on the Sunday. Some teams will get an easy ride like Catalan, Warrington and Leeds.
Yes, they need to announce if this is happening before the weekend round of games. Fairness is obviously the motive for Leeds, so it's only fair to let us and Wigan know where we stand before we kick seven bells out of each other with top spot maybe on the line, not after it. I know people are rightfully saying that everything is a mess and that this is a completely abnormal season, but there are ways of minimising annoyance which the RL top dogs always seem to ignore.