Looking at the fixtures on paper I'd say Widnes but with the unpredictability of this season I can see a dramatic end that will see the following table...

12. London 14pts
13. Widnes 14pts
14. Castleford 12pts

They will have to drill another hole on the bottom shelf of their trophy cabinet, so they can stand the spoon up alongside the others

Ha ha. Quality

Mever mind drilling holes, they'll need a bowl to put em in at this rate. Quite a big bowl at that.

Much like you last season? Pot calling the kettle black, fighting for the wodden spoon. Your memories can't remember that far back?

^Yes we can actually, as well as our relief as to not finishing bottom after beating Bradford last game of the season. Now if you don't mind, we have a place in the playoffs to try and secure...

Didn't realise memories had memories!!!

And Cas fans were very sympathetic? Thats the trouble (and the magic) of rivalries like ours, sometimes you're dishing it out and sometimes you're taking it - we're just enjoying our moment in the ascendancy, so button it and take your punishment with some dignity!

Would love Cas to finish bottom for bragging rights



But SL for me would always be a poorer place without our nearest and dearest. We all have our time in the sun.

We can remember last season but, we cant remember our last wooden spoon, can you ?

i can't remember when we last finished bottom.......

Second half of the 1980's I believe when we were relegated just before Toppo took over. We were getting battered all season then finally got our first victory, I think it was 38-20 win v Widnes at home. Then a week or two later we suffered our record ever defeat (at the time) at home to Wigan when Henderson Gill and Ellery Hanley ran riot. I think they put 72 past us?

A year later we were promoted along with Fev and Oldham. Started that season new season in the top flight well by beating Warrington, Wigan and Hull in our first 3 games. And never finished bottom ever since

If there was any justice, the Bulls would finish bottom, I seem to recall Melbourne Storm having most points deducted for salary cap breaches. The bulls saga has made a joke of the game. They have blatantly broken the rules to bust the club but its a well worn thread elswhere.

I remember it well. Still didn't finish bottom of the table either, even with a 4 point deduction.

4 went down that year. We only just missed making it. We went down as third from bottom.
We have never finished bottom of the league

Ironically Cas survived with one win more than us.
More ironically, Wigan were the next one above Cas. Shows how things can be turned around.....both ways, as Leigh were top.

Apologies.....you are talking about 86-87. We were bottom then. Didn't realise that.

And yet some short-sighted berks continue to advocate that SL be reduced in number, which would be as spectacular an example of kicking away the ladder as you're ever likely to see.

Even now Tony Hannan, the editor of 40-20 magazine, is banging on about how the race for 8th spot is an exercise in rewarding mediocrity; perhaps he'd prefer it if instead of trying to make incremental improvements, clubs like ours just went out and spent millions they didn't have on buying players that would propel them instantly into the top 4 - I wonder what would happen to a club that did that?

Oh wait...

All the rubbish that keeps coming around regarding reducing the number of teams in SL.
We ought to let Leeds, Wigan, Warrington and Saints form their own "even more super, super league" with its weekly dose of super intense rugby.
Then we could "promote Fev, Leigh, Fax and Sheffield and have a decent league, everyones a winner ! and when the big 4 come and ask someone to join their elite competition we could tell them exactly what to do.

I think what he's saying is pretty accurate TBH, last season Hull finished eighth with about as many wins than losses as will we if we make it this year, that is technically rewarding mediocrity.
An argument could be made for reducing the top eight to only the top six, and in a way i would agree.
One thing it wouldn't take into account thought would be that it would make it even more difficult for clubs outside of the top six to recruit players with aspirations of success and would limit their opportunities to break into the top echelon of our sport, as more money would be generated by the "successful" clubs.
As with many things that are out of balance in our game or wrong, messing about with them only makes them wronger!!

There you go - you've successfully argued with yourself until you agreed with my way of thinking.

Good show!

From the point of view of rewarding mediocrity he's right, I didn't think you agreed with that from your post?
The repercussions of going back to six are more of a financial problem for the club than the possible on field benefits for the game for the reasons we both listed.
I don't see how I've argued with myself, maybe I just didn't understand your post?

Maybe we should make it 16 teams, then the 8th place would probably be winning as many as losing, thus no longer rewarding mediocrity?!!?

Here's an idea, lets play each other once home and away, whoever wins the most number of games in the season is the champion and if you loose the most you get demoted and give someone in a lower league who's playing really well a chance to step up a gear ..... oh, hang on, I think we've tried that before




Sorry, got an attack of the past ............ it's all the talk of the 'This Sporting Life' showing at the cinema

Well it can only be an attack on the relatively recent past, as in 1960, the year in which 'This Sporting Life' was set then the Rugby League Championship was decided by a 4 team play-off system between the Yorkshire & Lancashire Leagues! Equally, for the overwhelming majority of the 20th Century the Championship winners have been decided by a play-off system & it was only from 1973 until the early years of Super League that the league leaders were crowned champions by virtue of winning the league!

Cheers IA - as a relative new comer to the game (about 1983 ish) I was thinking it had been a 'first past the post' championship race used longer than a playoff system - we live and learn