Looking at Super League right now, the whole thing seems farcical. We're top by two points, TOP! I'd have this current team way down the list of our Super League squads, right near the bottom. Bar Walsh, it's lacking virtually all over the park (In comparison to our other SL sides). It's a jelly bellied squad with no captain, no leader, no inspirational figures. It's a team with one genuine half back in the squad (Who is now injured) no quality centres, a pack that everyone seems to rate but which gets smashed 90% of the time when it matters and one that has absolutely no hope of trophies in the next 2 years.

But then I look at the rest of Super League.

Who exactly is going to win it this year

Leeds on form look the best side, but when exactly are they on form? You wouldn't make much money backing them and they've had several puzzlingly weak performances recently. Perhaps affected by the looming CC semi, but still not a side hitting anywhere near it's potential. Wigan? Look farcically weak to me, without O'Loughlin they don't look contenders for anything. They'll be there or there abouts due to their attitude, application and heart, but you have to question the quality. Warrington seem to be a slightly better version of us, lacking real direction in the halves and coming up short at times, but with the mentality to actually win big games. Huddersfield are terrible, as are Catalans and Widnes. Cas have had a great year and look a quality 13 when they are all fit. But they have so little strength in depth that you have to question whether they will be able to back it up in consecutive weeks in the playoffs.

So rather than being the worst SL ever (Actually, I'm 100% sure it's the worst in terms of quality and ability) is this the most unpredictable SL season ever and therefore the best?

The standard has 100% dropped. Look at Wigan last year (not having a go before you pies flood the thread) they won the double with IMO the worst squad ever to win super league.

We are top of the league with a team that lacks serious quality.

We had a strong squad last year but this year we are weaker but so is the rest of SL, i believe that we will win the GF again but as squads go this is the weakest we've had for about 7-8 years

You think that squad last year was as good as previous successful Wigan squads?

I think we gone so far back it's unreal.

All the teams are weaker in quality this season, but the major factor for Superleague 14 is maintaining consistency in form for everyone.
There seems to be a massive amount of injuries this season which can effect form, in our case it was prop forwards and half backs.
Officiating of our game has impact as well as the standard of referee is probably rock bottom at the moment.
All the above contribute to an unpredictable Superleague, it might not be of a good standard but it certainly is an interesting one that looks as though it goes to the last game.

You post this after a defeat

He posts this after every defeat

I just can't believe we are top and have been for so long.

Its true though, how the hell are we top the way we've been playing? It could be argued that SL is better than ever as anyone can beat anyone, but its more a case of the better teams getting worse than the lower teams getting better

Put the Leeds or Saints sides from the mid 2000s into this league and they'd go comfortably unbeaten.

Leeds, who've been awful for months, could have gone top yesterday if they'd have hung on for 5 minutes against the worst Bradford team in history. That would have been laughable. Standards have dropped off a cliff.

That's my point, the saints, Leeds and bulls teams of 4 or 5 years ago would go the season unbeaten in this current super league.

Would any if this current squad get in our 17 of the past ?

The RFL have "dumbed down" the game over the last 5 years, intensity in games has been drastically reduced with much slower ruck plays due to wrestling and interference allowance.

The Salary Cap and overseas player allowance has reduced quality., whilst the recession has effected attendances and revenues.

Whats remarkable is that Saints have managed to build a state of the art stadium, increased attendances and still remained competitive despite experiencing one of the worst injury cycles ever .

People wanted an even competition. Now they have got it.


Whether the standard is up or down, it's certainly even.


So the standard response from the RL fan is to moan about it. We moaned when Wigan won everything, we moaned when the top 4 where clearly better than the rest, we moaned about a lack of competitive matches, we are now moaning about competitive matches.

But when you look at the international scene we are a try away from the WC final.

I'd agree the standard has dropped, but not in the same way as others. There are about 10 players who have left SL for the NRL or Union. But the drop in standard is also from those top players being more spread across the teams.

In the past you would have had say Walsh and Chase in the same team. Once upon a time we had Cunningham and Higham 2 top quality hookers. With the money now more evenly spread, teams can't keep 2 top hookers or 2 top halves as another team will come in and offer more money just to get one of them.

So there has been some dilution across the teams and some extraction from the league. But the dilution is what we all wanted years ago. If the NRL and Union did not have so much cash floating about the impact would not have been so great.

But they wouldn't. Nostalgia warms the memories.

I recently re watched saints destruction of Bradford at valley parade in 2000something. I found myself getting constantly frustrated at the tries we scored, I wouldn't expect London to concede the tries Bradford did that night, simple defensive errors that simply don't happen any more.

In the same way great teams of the 80s couldn't live with the fitness of the modern game, teams of the late 90s early 2000s couldn't live with the structures of modern Rugby League. You have to get to the saints team of 2006 before you get to a team that would cruise this league (as we were the ones to introduce that structure, especially in defence)

Impossible to compare 80s rugby to when the game went pro. It's just not possible at all as teams was basically amatuer.

However, it's easy to compare saints of 5 years a go to saints now as the game is and was fully pro.

I'd go as far as saying the game was better 5 years ago.

Do you not think that the increase to 14 teams has seen player quality diluted?
I mean, if you look through the squads of the Super League teams, there are plenty of players that would never have been anywhere near first teams back in the early to mid 2000's.

Yes I'm convinced the 14 teams has played a part in it.

I'm not so sure it was that good 5 years a go. I agree with Magic Superbeetle though. Saints and Bulls fans probably think super league was much more competitive and better 10 years a go. But that's because we were winning everything. You had the Saints/Bulls dominating and Leeda and Wigan occasionally getting to a final. The rest made up numbers.

Yes the Bulls/Saints team of early 00's were arguably better than the current table toppers. But the league itself is much closer from top to bottom (which is what the RFL wants) maybe the Saints/Bulls team of 00's would go unbeaten in 2014. But because they had all the best players. Now it's more evenly spread out.

I don't think what has helped is the NRL signing players like Graham/Burgess/Tomkins. Need to try and keep these players in SL.

Licensing killed any competitiveness at the bottom of the table. And the introduction of the top 8play-off system was one of the worst decisions ever.

Anyway if Saints were hammering everyone evru week I'm Sure Saddened would have a thread moaning how boring it is watching saints smash everyone and SL should be more like NRL.

Yet it's still the same teams wining at old Trafford and competing at old Trafford so it's not really evened it out.

Sure enough it's tight at the top but the relegation was done and dusted with 7 games to play.

Without doubt quality has dropped.

Tbf tho it's like that in any sport, so I don't think it can be used as an indicator of anything. The premier league is probably the most competitive football league yet only a select few have won it.

The main problem is that the salary cap hasn't gone up for over a decade. Buy £1 worth of bread in 2004 and £1 worth of bread now and see what you get for your money.

But they don't have a salary cap in football to even it out. Football is usually who spends most wins the league but super league we are all suppose to be on level playing field.

Whilst the winners have been restricted in the GF. You look at the CC and the league leaders and there has been a lot more variation in recent years.

Relegation team Huddersfield topping the table.

Warrington who always pretend to be good, winning back to back CC's and topping the table.

It's not as stagnant as the GF suggests.

It probably highlights that certain teams are able to cope with the big high pressure games more than others? That's a culture thing more than anything

Thats correct, clubs have looked away from real long term quality. Instead of shopping at Marks and Spencers its a short term fix at Poundland instead.