They should only be top 6/top 5 but I'm not sure auto GF isn't right to me. Make bigger financial award or a play in a second WCC match for the LLS winner, but don't put them straight in the GF. Its possibly a disadvantage as you could finish the season against weaker teams and have no hard games to prepare you for the GF against a battle hardened team. The top 6 system we had for most of SL years is my preferred option.

That doesn't necessarily follow. Picking a hypothetical example, why would Wane pick a full strength team against say London if his team then had to face Wire and Leeds. You might have shifted the emphasis from one comp to another but the capability for players to play full on with 100% intensity would be no different to what it is now.

IMO the team that finishes top tends to be the one that always gets the job done against the mid-table/lower sides. IMO To be the best, you should be able to beat the best. Look at last season, we finished top but Wire (2nd place) beat us both times we played.

Teams rested players in the old league format but it was a risk whereas tonight it is totally risk-free.

They also didn't tend to make wholesale changes but would rest one or two players again because it was risky to do so. They wanted the 2 points.

It was also against the rules to go overboard on resting players as the rules were (but are not now) that you had to play your strongest side.

The two situations of resting payers in the old league format and now are just not comparable for these reasons.

It's not. The risk is that we actually win.

The play offs are boring hence the crowds are reducing each year.
So, have a top three play off. That's 25% of the new 12 club SL anyway.
The League Leaders go straight to the Grand Final, clubs 2 and 3 then play off for the other GF place.
That way there's no easy games, no club will be able to "rest" players as they may lose a game and lose a place on the League Ladder. Being 4th or 5th at the end of the League season would not be good enough, the intensity of games in the season would increase massively.
Also the League Leaders would be rewarded with an automatic Grand Final place.
The 2nd v 3rd club would be a play off sell out.
That's something we don't get now!