Super League season preview 2015 (part I)

As most people will know, there is a new structure to Super League in 2015.

With the relegation of Bradford Bulls and London Broncos to the Championship, 12 teams will enter Super League XX. They will play each other home and away and with an additional fixture at the Magic Weekend they will have 23 games to play before Super League and the Championship will split into the Super 8s.

The Super 8s are three groups of eight clubs based on league positions called Super League, the Qualifiers and Championship Shield.

Super League features the top eight Super League clubs; The Qualifiers comprises Super League clubs nine to 12 plus the top four Championship clubs; and the Championship Shield features Championship clubs five to 12.

The Super 8s will be played on a seven match mini-league basis, and will largely determine the make-up of Super League and the Championship the following season.

In Super League, the top eight clubs are guaranteed top flight status for the following year while the top four will contest a play-off series – first versus fourth and second versus third, with the winner going through to the title-deciding grand final.

In The Qualifiers, the top three clubs after seven matches will play in Super League the following season with the final place determined by the Million Pound Game, a play-off between the clubs finishing fourth and fifth.

The loser of the match will join the three remaining clubs from The Qualifiers and six Championship Shield clubs in the Championship the following season.

Clear so far? I think I am, but the biggest point of all is that every team will want to finish in the top eight after 23 rounds to guarantee their position in Super League the following year.

This will certainly give those eight clubs a head start with regards to recruitment as they will be able offer Super League contracts way before the other four clubs who will be competing for the remaining places.

The new set up is designed to ensure every game means something throughout the season and that the intensity of the competition is increased.

Anyway, enough of the technicalities – let’s introduce the clubs that I think will finish in the bottom four places and will contest The Qualifiers.

12th Place – Widnes Vikings
The Vikings made the play offs for the first time in 2014. They had one of the stand out performers in the competition in former Wigan and Huddersfield half back Kevin Brown. Brown scored 12 tries, had 24 assists and was very unlucky not to make the England Four Nations squad – he is a very talented and skilful playmaker and attracted interest from Cronulla Sharks in the off season.

He has been made captain after the retirement of hooker John Clarke.

The Vikings have some quality outside backs in wingers Paddy Flynn, who top scored with 16 tries last year, and Patrick Ah Van and centres Jack Owens and Stefan Marsh while Brown is likely to be partnered with the talented former Wigan youngster Joe Mellors.

Fullback Rhys Hanbury is a constant danger and can score from anywhere the field.

My main concern is with their forward power and all round recruitment. They have brought in Chris Clarkson (Leeds Rhinos), Gil Dudson (Wigan Warriors) and Manase Manuakafoe (Bradford Bulls) to bolster their pack but I’m not too sure that they will have a major impact.

Another recruit, Aaron Heremaia (Hull FC), is a very good replacement for the retired Clarke.

Coach Denis Betts has put a lot of faith in the players that earned them a play off spot last year. Hep Cahill, Danny Galea, Willie Isa and Phil Joseph all had career best years in 2014. However, I think their recruitment needed to be much stronger if they are to even maintain their position in this streamlined competition let alone challenge for a top eight place.

Star man – Kevin Brown
He has a massive impact on this team and everything goes through him. Stop Brown and you stop the Vikings, but he was so good last year he was difficult to stop.

Coach – Denis Betts
The Wigan legend has been in charge at Widnes since November 2010 and took them into Super League in 2012 and the playoffs for the first time in 2014. He has done an excellent job in improving the squad and performance of the team year on year and was rewarded with a contract extension to the end of 2017.

11th – Wakefield Trinity Wildcats
The Wildcats are most people’s tips for the wooden spoon – but I’m not too sure. They have an outstanding young coach in former Balmain, Parramatta and Hull KR halfback James Webster. Webster had a positive impact on the team when he replaced Richard Agar in June last year, including wins over Wigan Warriors, Leeds Rhinos and Warrington Wolves.

Tim Smith had a big impact on his return from his ill-fated time at Salford Red Devils and will lead the team around the park again in 2015. He will form a new halves partnership with the former Wests Tigers starlet Jacob Miller, who had his contract terminated at Hull FC.

The multi skilled Craig Hall (Hull KR) will be a great addition to the squad while Ian Kirke (Leeds Rhinos), Lopini Paea and Mickael Simon (both from Catalans Dragons) will bolster a pack hit by the loss of star forward Taulima Tautai to Wigan Warriors.

Veteran forward Ali Lautiti is going around for another year, club captain Danny Kirmond is always a strong performer while Jarrod Sammut and Pita Godinet are capable of breaking the best of defences.

I don’t see them challenging for the top eight but I think they will surprise a few people with the odd result. However, consistency will be the main problem.

Star man – Tim Smith
Smith returned after a brief spell from Salford on loan last year and regained his enthusiasm for the game immediately. Has signed on for 2015 and will be the go to man for the Wildcats and could form an explosive partnership with Jacob Miller.

Coach – James Webster
I think Webster will be a great coach. He had a caretaker spell in charge at Hull KR pre-Super League in 2005 and won nine from nine. The Wildcats greatly improved after he took over last year.

10th place – Hull FC
After finishing sixth and reaching the challenge Cup Final in 2013, their third in nine years, they replaced coach Peter Gentle with his assistant Lee Radford, a local-born former Bradford Bulls FC backrower.

Last year did not go as well as expected and they finished 11th.

Radford has been supported by club owner Adam Pearson and has set about re-vamping his squad.

They have brought in the experienced back rower Mark Minichello from Gold Coast Titans to form a second row partnership with club captain Gareth Ellis. Steve Michaels has also been brought in from the Titans to add some speed and competition to the three-quarter line, while young back Curtis Naughton has returned to the UK after one year at the Sydney Roosters.

The major changes are at halfback where they have brought in the vastly experienced former Bradford Bulls and St. Helens grand final-winner Leon Pryce (Catalans Dragons). They have paid Salford Red Devils £100,000 for the
services of Marc Sneyd. Sneyd had an outstanding 2014 on loan at Castleford Tigers where he had 30 try assists, second only to Danny Brough (Giants), and topped the goal kicking charts with 99.

They replace the retired club legend Richard Horne and the much maligned Jacob Miller, while Jordan Rankin gives them another option in the halves where he had an outstanding first year for the club in 2014.

They have some talented and exciting youngsters in Tom Lineham, Callum Lancaster, Jamie Shaul, Jordan Abdul and Jansin Turgut while Feleti Talanoa had a great year in 2014. They boast experienced forwards such as
Ellis, Joe Westerman, Danny Houghton and Mickey Paea who will play alongside Minichello.

With all this quality they should be challenging for the top six at the minimum but they always flatter to deceive. They will have good year (2013) and will follow that up with two or three poor years. I think 2015 will be another year of struggle with coach Radford struggling to get the best out of his talented squad.

Star man – Gareth Ellis
The former England international has continued the form he showed in his three years at Wests Tigers and is a highly respected forward in the competition.

Coach – Lee Radford
Radford doesn’t mind letting his players know when he is unhappy, sometimes via the media, and the team did not see to respond too well last season.

He is overhauling the club and needs time, but he has a squad capable of making the top six and needs to see major improvements this year to keep the old faithful happy.

9th place – Castleford Tigers
The Tigers were the major improvers of 2014. They reached the challenge Cup Final for the first time in 20+ years, losing to West Yorkshire rivals Leeds Rhinos. They went into the last round of the regular season needing a win at Catalans Dragons to top the league for the first time in their history having finished 12th in 2013.

They lost that game, finished fourth and went out of the playoffs with a whimper rather than a roar, losing 41-0 at St. Helens and 30-14 at home to Warrington Wolves in the Preliminary semi-finals.

Daryl Powell took out the Coach of the Year award and hooker Daryl Clark won the prestigious Man of Steel after a stellar year.

It feels like the Tigers have been culled this year. It was already known that Clark had signed for the Warrington Wolves but they also failed to negotiate a permanent deal for main playmaker Marc Sneyd who has now gone to Hull FC. They also lost pack stars Craig Huby and Jamie Ellis to Huddersfield Giants, back rower Weller Hauraki to Salford Red Devils while experienced wingman Kirk Dixon has been forced to retire through injury.

I don’t think the Tigers recruitment is anywhere near the calibre to repeat the success of 2014. The experienced Scott Moore has been brought in to replace Clark but is nowhere near the same calibre. Halfback Luke Gale has joined from relegated Bradford Bulls and they have raided Melbourne Storm for talented halfback Ben Roberts and forward Junior Moors.

They will rely heavily on the skills of Roberts and will hope that he settles and shows the form that he is capable of.

I don’t see them being anywhere near as competitive this year and see them finishing outside the eight

Star man – Ben Roberts
He is an exciting signing and has the potential to be explosive but he will need to settle quickly if the Tigers are to make the eight

Coach – Daryll Powell
He is an outstanding coach and man manager and is highly respected by his players. He will be a major factor in whether his new squad makes the eight or not – I’m just not too sure they have the right quality this year.

Tomorrow, I will take you through the teams I think will finish in positions eight to five. Finishing in these positions not just after the 23 weekly rounds pre-Super 8s, but also after the additional seven fixtures which means they will keep their Super League place for 2016 but will not compete for the right to qualify for the grand final.