A Great Weekend for Super League!

World Club Series Round-up

I’ll start by admitting that I was preparing myself throughout the whole of last week to sit down to try and not produce a morbidly woeful account of how both Warrington Wolves and Wigan Warriors couldn’t quite cut it against the Australians yet again.

Going into last weekend, Super League sides were facing another potential whitewash against their antipodean counterparts after four successive years of without any luck.  Melbourne, Sydney, South Sydney and North Queensland have all claimed one title each since Leeds Rhinos victory in 2012 (which came after a further three consecutive triumphs for NRL sides), and with Super League being whitewashed 3-0 for the past two years in this expanded series that’s just one English win from 12 matches since 2008.

It’s enough to make you want to give up trying!

THAT’LL TEACH ‘EM...

However, instead I can sit her with a smile on my face optimistically thinking to myself what impact this could have, not just on Super League but for English rugby league as a whole.  And what impact it will have on the other side of the world where the majority of fans tend to look down at Super League and claim it’s not as strong as their NRL competition.

Looking at the results from the last four years it’s hard to disagree with them but Warrington’s win on Saturday evening set a perfect platform for Wigan to emulate their victory the following afternoon and breathe some much needed life, and optimism, back into English rugby league.

Let’s face it, nobody gave either of them a hint of a chance.  Most people would have happily accepted two defeats as long as they kept the points difference as low as possible and make a good account of themselves.  I was inclined to agree but we’ll all be happily munching on our words and thoughts now.

Personally, my views on this expanded World Club Series before the weekend was that it was a bit of a waste of time for the two (or four) clubs that weren’t actually playing in the match for the trophy. If it had been another whitewash for Super League I would have happily seen it scrapped and put back to how it used to be – a one-off match between the champions of each competition.

The fact that some NRL clubs refused to travel for this series, which ultimately led to Hull FC being left without a game of their own, just goes to show how much they don’t actually value the competition.  It will certainly be interesting to see how many Aussie clubs put their hat in to turn out for it next year or whether they will deem it as another unnecessary pre-season burden for themselves.

DID THEY EVEN GET OFF THE PLANE?...

That leads me on to my next point about the nature of the two victories.  I was completely surprised by the way the NRL teams were outplayed and outmuscled at times in both matches.  Warrington’s fantastic start, and the debut of Kevin Brown, who I thought was outstanding, was hugely impressive.  They took the game to Brisbane, a side that in the past were considered to be the best club side in the world, with the world’s best coach, and completely outclassed them.

Kevin Brown will have done himself no harm at all with his performance in front of the watching Brisbane and England coach Wayne Bennett and surely only injury will keep him out of any English side he picks this season.  Wigan’s hat-trick hero Joe Burgess will also be a shoe-in for any side Bennett picks later in the year.  The same goes for many of the other English lads in either game who stepped up to the plate to put the Aussie’s in their place.  Of the six try scorers for both clubs only Matty Russell of Warrington is ineligible for England having been born and played for Scotland in last’s Four Nations.

I understand that the NRL sides have had to fly over for what is effectively a pre-season game but, whether it’s just me, I felt that neither of them seemed particularly bothered about winning their respective games.  They didn’t seem to have the sharpness that we have come to expect from NRL clubs of the past.

WHERE CAN THIS LEAD?

It’ far too naive of me to start thinking that these victories will pave the way for more success for English sides later in the year, as I’m sure you would all think I’m barking mad, but it does go to show that the Aussies can be beaten.  As Kevin Brown said in his post match interview “they aren’t supermen...But they bleed, they’re not robots.”

Yes, I know international rugby league is a different kettle of fish to club rugby, with its own set of international rules, but any aspiring English player must feel hope at these results and be itching to have another crack at them later in the year.

It’ll be a whole different scenario over there at the end of a long club season and in the midst of a hot Australian summer but, be honest, we weren’t expecting much from this weekend were we, so why can’t we claim an even bigger scalp on December 2^nd in Brisbane?

Just sayin’!