Cas v wakey - traditional and very near to each other.
FC v KR - derby in one city with big fan bases
Wigan v saints - big fan bases and one of the best derbys in super league
Wire v widnes - not good enough game
Bulls V Leeds - maybe a bit biased but for me is the best derby in the competition no matter where these teams are in the table. always a good and close match guarenteed, good following, a lot of passion this is the ultimate derby.

views please

Some logical, well thought out and unbiased summaries there



Basically, the best derby is the one that your team is involved in!
Can't agree with your Leeds/Bradford point though. That derby's been pretty poor since Bradford turned crap. Leeds have dominated. Only since Leeds have slipped down the table has it come a bit more interesting again.

The same thing happened to Saints/Wigan. Wigan slipped down the table, Saints dominated. Now the reverse is happening.

The Hull derby is the most unpredictable IMO, as even if one side is doing well, there's often an upset. However the quality on show hasn't been superb.

Wire/Widnes won't be any good until Widnes aren't the whipping boys.

Cas/Wakey is also unpredictable, but is usually a poor quality game in front of a small crowd in comparison to the league.

So Catalans vs London it is

You may think i am being biased here but the Wire vs Saints and Wire vs Wigan have provided some of the best games over the last couple of years. Despite them not being at the Magic Weekend. I think that they are the best derby for on field spectacle at least

i think the bold game is usually the best game to watch out of all the other games during the season. even tho i personally i dont like warrington as they are the poor mans chelsea of superleague

. my hatred deosn't compare to what i feel like when we play saints, i sit there watching and my heart automatically goes up when the refs whistle blows for kick off, then its as if i can feel every drive, tackle, big hit and struggle to get up and play the ball quick and through out the game your willing the players to get up and put a shot on them and when the do its like your on the field congratualating them with the big back slaps. through out the whole game i can feel my heart pounding in my chest i am sure its not good for my health watching wigan and stains but no doctor could keep me from watching it.

A great unanswerable question, none the less I shall try.

Firstly it goes without saying that for the fans of the individual teams their own derby is best, to illustrate that point I would highlight the two fixtures from this weekend not on your list, Giants v Salford & London v Catalans. As a Giants fan I am most looking forward to watching Giants & salford this weekend, I am sure the same applies to Salford, London & Caralans supporters.

Admitedly those two matches are not derbies but they do show that you simply cannot judge the best derby from the perspective of the participants fans. You could even argue that say Wigan v Saints is less important to those teams fans than say Wakey v Cas is to their fans as Wigan & Saints are more likely to contest finals.

Anyway, my point is a better test of greatest Derby would be the neutral's perspective, but again not an easy answer, because it changes. For example in years gone by Wire & Widnes would be a great match (and hopefully will be again in future), but right now it looks a mis-match. So the competitiveness of the fixture is important, but where competitiveness is similar then quality comes into the equation

I think most neutrals expect Wigan to beat Saints so for me the most difficult matches to call are:

Wakey v Cas
Leeds v Bradford
Hull v KR

Wakey v Cas doesn't look a great game, I think Wakey are nearly a good side but seem to lack a bit of composure or confidence. Cas have two or three cracking players (Chase, Huby & Clark) but seem weak elsewhere. If Wakey stay composed they will win comfortably if not then Cas and particularly Rangi Chase are more likely to do something extraordinary to turn the game. An intriguing match but not currently the best Derby due to lower quality.

Leeds v Bradford, if both play to full potential then Leeds will win, but Leeds in May are just not Leeds in October. Leeds have the touches of brilliance and disaster within the ranks, which I suspect is focus issue. Having dominated the league for years (won 5 of last 8 Grand finals and 4 of last 5) they seem to require the play off adrenalin to really hit form. Bradford are now a well coached team with a big abrasive pack but lacking a bit in creativity. This one is all about how Leeds play, if they hit form they will win, but if they dip even a bit then Bradford can easily win. This could be a great match.

Hull v Hull KR Peter Gentle is in year 1 of rebuilding Hull FC and a good start he has made, the make fewer mistakes, can defend very well and are simply a far stronger team than last year. They need to work on creativity, Danny Houghton is effective at Dummy half and Sam Moa can blast holes in any defensive line but their halves are way too conservative. No doubt that will be something PG looks to improve. Hull KR have better halves and a massive pack, but they are absolutely average in the outside backs. If FC achieve parity up front in the first 50/60 minutes superior fitness and confidence will grind down KR, but if KR can achieve dominence up front they have the halves to take the game away. I expect an epic pack battle and FC to edge it late on, but a thriller in the making.

So is the current best Derby Leeds v Bradford or Hull FC V Hull KR. At the end of the day I expect a little more quality in the Leeds v Bradford match so that gets my vote, but through form fluctuations that will probably change by the next round of derbies.

"There's only 1 true derby" as the song goes.

Again this is a leading topic as everyone is going to say their teams and yes years gone by wire v widnes was a big game and hopefully will be again but I always enjoy tje hull derby and the leeds bradford, but I think most people would say wire v wigan atm would be the best game always hard to predict

There is only one true derby in the sense of the meaning, but accepting the pseudo derbies that we have in SL my honest appraisal would be

For quality of rugby: Wigan v Saints

For absolute passion: Rovers v Hull

The rest are ordinary games to me.

thing is, i know rhinos have dominated over years but still even if they do beat us then the game has still been really entertaining and at the moment its even better because you cant predict who is going to win. always a great atmosphere at either ground. 20,000 at odsal! not many derbys get that and hull fc and kr , i dont think the game is entertaining every single match like leeds and bulls. Thats why its the best derby because we have entertainment GUARANTEED every game. ;

Ah bless!!!

no derby is entertaining every game. Did anyone watch Wigan Saints in the cup t'other week? Absolute dross. Dire.

Personally, the Hull derby for me.

you need to check your figures, last few seasons you were getting 14,000 at odsal, only this season with the begging bowl out you got back over 20K+

that entertaining, sky gave you the boot for the wire v widnes match too!

Personally I prefer the Wakey V Cas derby



They are all pretty entertaining to watch though. I like them all

will be watching ours(fc v kr) and the wakey v cas derby tomorrow

Noted that the thread title specifically says 'Super League', just in order to rule out the biggest derby in the game - Batley/Dewsbury.

Anyway, it's Dragons/London. FACT!

Doesn't the fact that Sky are building up the Saints v Wigan game as the main event not tell you which is the biggest and best derby in super league?

Cheering Wakey on I hope?

when?? sky sports news had fc v kr as leading headline for millenium, followed by london and widnes!

splinters for me on this one, don't mind both teams tbh

Fair enough. Im the same with KR and FC. Dont mind either side.

Everyone will say that there derby is the biggest, but each derby is as big as eachother.
A FC or KR fan won't say that there derby is smaller than the Wigan Saints one for example. It's just geograpahy that decides this.

Saints/Wigan is the biggest derby,the two most successful clubs in British RL,just my opinion like.

Saints v Wigan is usually enjoyable as a neutral, simply down to the quality of rugby that is (usually) on display.

The Hull derby is a good experience, because it's the only real derby and there tends to be a fair bit of emotion involved from both sets of fans and players.

Cas v Wakey is enjoyable for the supporters - not sure it is for anyone else though.

Although all derby matches can be excellent.
The Hull derby is a real mouth watering fixture.
The two clubs are well supported and being from the same city the passion from the 2 sets of supporters is unequalled.
Bulls/ Leeds has lost its sparkle since the Bulls crown slipped.
Wigan and Saints can be a great spectacle and Wakey/Cas has plenty of emotion without being top drawer entertainment.
Sadly Salford /Huddersfield and London / Catalan seem to just make up the numbers and Warrington / Widnes are not well enough matched at the moment.

considering the name derby was only granted to two sporting events.

The Epsom Derby and Wigan v St.Helens I think we have our answer here folks