The Play-offs Part 6 - League 1 Play-off Final

The Play-offs Part 6 - League 1 Play-off Final

So it comes down to this one final game to decide who will join Rochdale Hornets in the Championship next season.

The traditionalists will be rooting for Barrow to return home victorious and keep Cumbria’s flag flying in the Championship, whereas the expansionists would love to see Toulouse fulfil their season long potential and add some French flair to the second tier next season.

Whoever’s side you’re on it’s going to be in for a tense game as I’m predicting a tight one.  The Raiders are clearly up for this but Toulouse will not want to lose a second Final on home soil and suffer another season in League 1, especially with the Toronto bandwagon joining the party in 2017.  Whichever side wins is probably only going to succeed by the odd couple of points and I for one cannot wait for this game.

LEAGUE 1 PLAY-OFF FINAL – TOULOUSE OLYMPIQUE vs BARROW RAIDERS

(Stade des Minimes, Saturday, 1 October – 15:00pm CET)

Toulouse Olympique

It’s hard to see Toulouse’s Semi Final against York City Knights as anything but a nothing game.  It was a sheer formality that they would be hosting this Final when it was rumoured earlier in the week that York could only travel with a bare minimum of players.

In hindsight it might have been fairer on York to give Toulouse the walkover but that would have been very defeatist and, fair play to them, they went out there and gave it a go.  Yes they score line shows they got battered but to have only 12 players in your whole squad and only lose by 52 points is a fantastic achievement.  Well done York and good luck for next season.

Back on to the French side, they will have treated last week’s game as a training exercise in order to be fully match fit and prepared for this weekend’s fixture.  They are the home side and will be clear favourites again but they were two weeks ago and look how that turned out.

Toulouse will have to play to their full potential for all 80 minutes if they are to win this one on Saturday.

SUPER 8’s RESULTS:

Round 1 – Toulouse Olympique 40-4 Keighley Cougars

Round 2 – Toulouse Olympique 46-16 York City Knights

Round 4 – Doncaster RLFC 18-38 Toulouse Olympique

Round 5 – Toulouse Olympique 46-6 Rochdale Hornets

Round 3 – London Skolars 14-58 Toulouse Olympique (postponed to August Bank Holiday weekend)

Round 6 – Hunslet Hawks 12-16 Toulouse Olympique

Round 7 – Toulouse Olympique 44-22 Barrow Raiders

Promotion Final – Toulouse Olympique 22-24 Rochdale Hornets

Play-off Semi Final – Toulouse Olympique 62-10 York City Knights

Barrow Raiders

Barrow’s fantastic Super 8’s form continued last weekend with a rousing victory over Doncaster in front of a crowd of over 1,100.  The Raiders are a very well supported side and even though there will only be a handful of Barrovians who make the trip this weekend the whole of the town will be behind them and following the game any way they can.

The Raiders will know that they can have the beating of Toulouse and will be buoyed by their efforts in France two weeks ago despite the eventual final score.  They will also be confident that if Rochdale can beat Toulouse on their own patch, so can they.

There will be added impetus to win this one as Barrow’s captain Liam Harrison will hang up his boots after this game and will be desperate to end on a high by guiding his home town club to promotion glory.

If Barrow can conquer the French side’s so-called aggressive tactics and play their own game and play to their own strengths there is no reason why the Raiders can’t pull off another Promotion/Play-off Final surprise.

SUPER 8’s RESULTS:

Round 1 – Barrow Raiders 34-12 Rochdale Hornets

Round 2 – Doncaster RLFC 12-40 Barrow Raiders

Round 3 – York City Knights 6-20 Barrow Raiders

Round 4 – Barrow Raiders 44-26 Hunslet Hawks

Round 5 – London Skolars 4-54 Barrow Raiders

Round 6 – Barrow Raiders 26-18 Keighley Cougars

Round 7 – Toulouse Olympique 44-22 Barrow Raiders

Play-off Semi Final – Barrow Raiders 40-6 Doncaster RLFC

MY PREDICTION – I’m going for it ... Barrow to win by 1+ point!

The Play-offs Part 5 - Million Pound Game/Championship Shield Final

The Play-offs Part 5 - Million Pound Game/Championship Shield Final

Later in this blog I’ll round off the Championship Shield with my thoughts on that Final but before then I’ll focus on possibly the biggest game of the 2016 rugby league season ... the Million Pound Game.

MILLION POUND GAME – HULL KINGSTON ROVERS vs SALFORD RED DEVILS

(KC Lightstream Stadium, Saturday, 1 October – 15:00pm)

Dubbed by some in the media as a bigger match than the Grand Final, I agree there’s some truth in that.  This will be the first time that two current Super League teams will compete against each other in this game for the final Super League spot of 2017.

This will be a tense game and I’ll be surprised if there hasn’t been a handful of sin-bins by full time as both sides will be desperate to hold on to their coveted Super League status.

Some fans argue that the current format of the top three divisions each splitting into two or three leagues of eight doesn’t work but I think the introduction of this game at the end of the season was ingenious and I think why was it never introduced in previous formats earlier?

The fact that this game could seriously affect players and staffs careers for the club that loses shows just how much is on the line for these two teams.  This game could easily be the highlight of the weekend.

Hull Kingston Rovers

The side from East Hull have never ceased to surprise me this season.  They had an awful start to the campaign winning just one point from their first six games which saw them sever ties with the then coach Chris Chester and go throughout the rest of the season with a temporary coach in charge in James Webster.

I was there when they lost at home to Oldham in the Challenge Cup and it was at that point that I thought there would be no way back for this side.  Lo and behold they now find themselves here in the Million Pound game fighting for their Super League lives.

They brought in Jamie Peacock as their Football Manager, which is nothing unusual, but then announced he would be sworn in as an extra player to cover injuries and give the side some oomph in the final few games to rescue their season.  To me that screams desperation but it may just pay off in the end.

I think the fact that they have already secured a coach in Tim Sheens show some level of progress for next season and beyond and I feel having the home advantage in such a big game will see them through this weekend.

THE QUALIFIERS RESULTS:

Round 1 – Hull Kingston Rovers 58-18 Batley Bulldogs

Round 2 – Leeds Rhinos 22-18 Hull Kingston Rovers

Round 3 – Salford Red Devils 12-29 Hull Kingston Rovers

Round 4 – Hull Kingston Rovers 18-25 Leigh Centurions

Round 5 – London Broncos 18-58 Hull Kingston Rovers

Round 6 – Featherstone Rovers 24-32 Hull Kingston Rovers

Round 7 – Hull Kingston Rovers 22-23 Huddersfield Giants

Salford Red Devils

Salford have been the marmite of rugby league over the last two seasons – you either love them or hate them.  It is unfortunate that they find themselves in this situation after a decent start to their 2016 campaign and if they had been able to keep the six points they had deducted half way through the season they would have just scraped into the Super 8’s on points difference and it would have been Wakefield playing in the Qualifiers.

But at the same time, they are the instigators of their own downfall.  If they hadn’t broken the rules they were accused and found guilty of breaking then they wouldn’t be playing for their Super League lives in this Million Pound game.

For me, if Salford lose this game on Saturday it would have a much bigger impact on them than their opponents going into next season and beyond.  I would expect Hull KR to regroup and mount a reasonable challenge to get their Super League place back next season but Salford could turn out to be another Bradford Bulls and maybe slip up even further.

Particularly if the close-season rumours come true and their billionaire money-man Marwan Koukash pulls his money out of the club then they really would be in trouble.

THE QUALIFIERS RESULTS:

Round 1 – Salford Red Devils 32-12 Huddersfield Giants

Round 2 – Leigh Centurions 32-26 Salford Red Devils

Round 3 – Salford Red Devils 12-29 Hull Kingston Rovers

Round 4 – Leeds Rhinos 30-8 Salford Red Devils

Round 5 – Salford Red Devils 70-16 Featherstone Rovers

Round 6 – Salford Red Devils 16-19 London Broncos

Round 7 – Batley Bulldogs 14-42 Salford Red Devils

MY PREDICTION – Hull KR to win by 6+ points

CHAMPIONSHIP SHIELD FINAL – BRADFORD BULLS vs SHEFFIELD EAGLES

(Odsal Stadium, Sunday, 2 October – 15:00pm)

The final game of the weekend sees the culmination of the Championship as Bradford and Sheffield meet in the Championship Shield Final.

This game will probably mark the end of a season to forget for both sides but will go some way of restoring a little bit of pride for whoever comes out victorious.

Bradford Bulls

I read an article this week that said if Bradford can win this game it will be their first trophy in TEN years!  That seems incredible when you think how successful the club was not that long ago in the early years of Super League.

A lot has happened since then and even though they came very close to rejoining the elite last season with a losing appearance in the inaugural Million Pound Game, this season has clearly been a disappointment for everyone at the club.

Despite letting Dewsbury add some credibility to the score line in their semi final last weekend, the Bulls were far too strong for their opponents and won through to Sunday’s Final to continue a fine run in the Championship Shield this season.

Another win would surely only mask some very large cracks within the club this year but it should give them the platform to build and push on for next year’s campaign.

CHAMPIONSHIP SHIELD RESULTS:

Round 1 – Whitehaven 18-46 Bradford Bulls

Round 2 – Bradford Bulls 44-22 Halifax RLFC

Round 3 – Bradford Bulls 83-0 Oldham Roughyeds

Round 4 – Dewsbury Rams 26-36 Bradford Bulls

Round 5 – Bradford Bulls 36-28 Swinton Lions

Round 6 – Workington Town 30-26 Bradford Bulls

Round 7 – Bradford Bulls 80-0 Sheffield Eagles

Semi Final – Bradford Bulls 36-22 Dewsbury Rams

Sheffield Eagles

I won’t lie.  I was slightly surprised that Sheffield managed to pull off a victory over Halifax in last Sunday’s other Semi Final, but fair play to the Eagles for pulling off such a win.  It was a game in which they were never behind and at one point were leading 26-0.

Saying that, like Bradford’s, this season will have also been a disappointment for Mark Aston’s side but they have the chance now to put a bit of icing on their cake and win another piece of silverware.  Having mixed it with the big boys of Super League last season, Sheffield fans would have been expecting more of the same this year, especially after going full time, but it hasn’t quite worked out for one reason or another.

Going back to Odsal will be a big task for the Eagles though, particularly after suffering such a heavy defeat on their last visit only two weeks ago, and I feel Bradford will have too much for them this time around as well.

CHAMPIONSHIP SHIELD RESULTS:

Round 1 – Halifax RLFC 28-48 Sheffield Eagles

Round 2 – Sheffield Eagles 48-16 Whitehaven

Round 3 – Sheffield Eagles 38-40 Swinton Lions

Round 4 – Oldham Roughyeds 24-54 Sheffield Eagles

Round 5 – Sheffield Eagles 62-0 Workington Town

Round 6 – Sheffield Eagles 22-38 Dewsbury Rams

Round 7 – Bradford Bulls 80-0 Sheffield Eagles

Semi Final – Halifax RLFC 32-46 Sheffield Eagles

MY PREDICTION – Bradford to win by 10+ points

The Play-offs Part 4 - Super League Semi Finals

The Play-offs Part 4 - Super League Semi Finals

So the season is almost over, we’re down to the final four teams to battle it out for the right to be crowned the 2016 Super League Champions.

Warrington Wolves, St Helens, Wigan Warriors and Challenge Cup winners Hull FC are the teams in contention in this weekend’s Play-off Semi Finals.  A coveted place at Old Trafford is the prize for the two victors but I think we could be in line for two very tight games.

Warrington and Wigan are the bookmakers’ favourites to meet in next weekend’s Grand Final.  I think they will probably be right but with the way each team’s forms are at the moment we may see one or two surprises.

SUPER LEAGUE PLAY-OFF SEMI FINAL – WARRINGTON WOLVES vs ST HELENS

(Halliwell Jones Stadium, Thursday, 29 September – 20:00pm)

Warrington Wolves

Since losing out in the Challenge Cup Final to Hull FC Tony Smith’s Wolves are on a mission to restore some pride back into the changing rooms of the Halliwell Jones Stadium and since that defeat on August Bank Holiday weekend they are half way there.

In fact after losing narrowly by two points to St Helens in Round 1 the Wire have been on a run which has seen them win five of their final six Super 8’s matches – the only disappointment being the seven points reverse at the hands of Wigan, which could prove telling if it’s those two sides that meet again at Old Trafford.

But three away victories during that time, culminating in the 23-6 drubbing of their Challenge Cup victors Hull last weekend, has seen Warrington claim top spot in the final table and the League Leaders Shield to boot.

Thursday night’s Semi Final against a resurgent Saints side will be a tough game to call but with the Wire hoping to make it third time lucky at Super League’s showpiece event at Old Trafford I wouldn’t bet against them winning this one in front of their home crowd and creating their own memories at the ‘Theatre of Dreams’.

SUPER 8’s RESULTS:

Round 1 – Warrington Wolves 18-20 St Helens

Round 2 – Wakefield Trinity Wildcats 10-38 Warrington Wolves

Round 3 – Warrington Wolves 14-11 Castleford Tigers

Round 4 – Catalans Dragons 22-26 Warrington Wolves

Round 5 – Warrington Wolves 30-12 Widnes Vikings

Round 6 – Warrington Wolves 28-35 Wigan Warriors

Round 7 – Hull FC 6-23 Warrington Wolves

St Helens

Saint Helens are one of those teams that you can never back against.  It’s been said all season that they’ll come good in the end and it seems to be true as they have hit good form at just the right time.  Six victories in their seven Super 8’s matches have seen them comfortably cement fourth spot and a place in the Play-off Semi Finals.

Even after being ‘nilled’ by Wigan in Round 3 their place in the Play-offs was never really in doubt as Keiron Cunningham’s men finished a whole nine points clear of fifth placed Castleford and level on points with cup winners Hull FC and are the form side coming into these Play-offs after four straight victories.

The Saints also have the slight advantage of knowing they have already claimed two narrow victories at the Halliwell Jones this season and will be intent on adding a third.

I think they have a real chance of upsetting their hosts on Thursday night despite finishing three places below them.  They’ve cantered along throughout this campaign keeping in touch with the top three and are now striking while the iron’s hot.  As I said above, right them off at your peril!

SUPER 8’s RESULTS:

Round 1 – Warrington Wolves 18-20 St Helens

Round 2 – St Helens 39-16 Catalans Dragons

Round 3 – Wigan Warriors 25-0 St Helens

Round 4 – St Helens 31-10 Hull FC

Round 5 – St Helens 40-16 Castleford Tigers

Round 6 – Widnes Vikings 8-21 St Helens

Round 7 – St Helens 32-12 Wakefield Trinity Wildcats

MY PREDICTION – Warrington to win by 4+ points

SUPER LEAGUE PLAY-OFF SEMI FINAL – WIGAN WARRIORS vs HULL FC

(DW Stadium, Friday, 30 September – 20:00pm)

Wigan Warriors

The Warriors have never really had it all their own way in the Old Trafford Grand Finals in the past.  Having won the first in 1998 it wasn’t for another 12 years that they managed to get their hands on the trophy for a second time.

Now going for a fourth consecutive Grand Final appearance, and ninth overall and only a fourth victory, they have to continue their good form which has seen them sneak into second place on the final weekend and win the right to host this Semi Final.

Wigan won all their matches against the other top four teams in the Super 8’s and for me are slight favourites to overcome Hull in this tie.  Shaun Wane seemed to enjoy telling everyone throughout this campaign that his side haven’t hit their top form yet and didn’t have their full strength side out.  Maybe now is the time for action.

The disappointment of losing both Sam Tomkins and Sean O’Loughlin for these Play-offs could have an impact on the dressing room but Wigan should have enough in the locker to get past an out of form Hull side.

SUPER 8’s RESULTS:

Round 1 – Wigan Warriors 60-12 Wakefield Trinity Wildcats

Round 2 – Castleford Tigers 36-22 Wigan Warriors

Round 3 – Wigan Warriors 25-0 St Helens

Round 4 – Wigan Warriors 6-8 Widnes Vikings

Round 5 – Hull FC 12-18 Wigan Warriors

Round 6 – Warrington Wolves 28-35 Wigan Warriors

Round 7 – Wigan Warriors 48-24 Catalans Dragons

Hull FC

The East Yorkshire side have impressed me this year.  They came into the Super 8’s as the top team in Super League and despite a slip up to Castleford Tigers in Round 1, they set themselves up perfectly for their Wembley appearance with two consecutive wins to nill.

Widnes Vikings and Catalans Dragons were the victims prior to that Wembley showdown with Warrington and after witnessing them win that match, and seeing what it meant to the players, back room staff and supporters, I thought that they could push on and do a Leeds by claiming the treble.

But, we saw last season how Leeds struggled with a Wembley hangover and even though Leeds overcame theirs, Hull might still be suffering from one.  Three defeats from the four remaining Super 8’s games have seen them not only lose out on claiming the League Leaders Shield, but slip down to the third and lose the opportunity of a home Semi Final.

I feel that, despite their post-Wembley prospects, this could be a game too much for Lee Radford’s team and Hull could lose out on only their second Grand Final appearance at the hands of Wigan.

SUPER 8’s RESULTS:

Round 1 – Hull FC 16-30 Castleford Tigers

Round 2 – Widnes Vikings 0-38 Hull FC

Round 3 – Hull FC 44-0 Catalans Dragons

Round 4 – St Helens 31-10 Hull FC

Round 5 – Hull FC 12-18 Wigan Warriors

Round 6 – Wakefield Trinity Wildcats 12-18 Hull FC

Round 7 – Hull FC 6-23 Warrington Wolves

MY PREDICTION – Wigan to win by 8+ points

The Play-offs Part 3 - Championship Shield Semi Finals

The Play-offs Part 3 - Championship Shield Semi Finals

In what most would probably consider to be the consolation ‘Super 8’s’, for want of a better phrase, the Championship Shield rounds culminated last weekend with Dewsbury securing fourth place with a victory over Oldham Roughyeds.  That result means they have the pleasure of travelling to Odsal on Sunday to take on Shield leaders Bradford Bulls for a place in next weekend’s Final.

The other Semi Final will be contested by runners-up Halifax and third placed Sheffield, two of the sides that played in the Qualifiers last season with outside hopes of claiming an spot in Super League for this season.

Leigh Sports Village has been chosen as the venue for next weekend’s Final where the two respective winners will face off for the chance to lift the Shield.

CHAMPIONSHIP SHEILD SEMI FINAL – HALIFAX RLFC vs SHEFFIELD EAGLES

(The Shay, Sunday, 25 September – 15:00pm)

Halifax RLFC

Halifax enter these Semi Finals on the back of an upturn in fortunes and Richard Marshall’s men will be keenly awaiting this weekend’s game knowing they have a real shot at making it to next weekend’s Championship Shield Final.

Having been rightly proud of the way they performed in last season’s Championship to finish fourth and then to end up finishing in sixth place, two points off the Million Pound game, they will have been disappointed to not find themselves in the Qualifiers again this time around, losing out to one of Batley Bulldogs, London Broncos and Featherstone Rovers.

That disappointment seeped into their early Shield campaign and they lost the first three games of the competition.  However, they’ve managed to pull themselves together for three of the remaining four fixtures (the only slip being a narrow defeat to Swinton in Round 6) to finish second and the prospect of a home Semi Final against Sheffield Eagles – a game where they will want revenge for the 20-point defeat suffered in Round 1 to the South Yorkshire side.

CHAMPIONSHIP SHIELD RESULTS:

Round 1 – Halifax RLFC 28-48 Sheffield Eagles

Round 2 – Bradford Bulls 44-22 Halifax RLFC

Round 3 – Halifax RLFC 22-24 Dewsbury Rams

Round 4 – Whitehaven 10-30 Halifax RLFC

Round 5 – Halifax RLFC 32-18 Oldham Roughyeds

Round 6 – Swinton Lions 28-26 Halifax RLFC

Round 7 – Halifax RLFC 46-26 Workington Town

Sheffield Eagles

It’s been a difficult season for Sheffield after a fantastic Championship campaign which enabled them to make the move towards becoming a full time club.  However, at the time of the split the Eagles were potentially flirting with relegation being just three points above the drop zone with seven games to go.

But a fantastic Shield series consisting of four victories, including an impressive 20 point victory over their Semi Final opponents, Halifax, and a 62-0 drubbing of Workington, helped Mark Aston’s side rise up to third in the table and a place in the Shield Play-offs.

This match could be a game too far for Sheffield and it will be a difficult task picking themselves up after two successive defeats and such a heavy defeat to Bradford Bulls in the final round of fixtures but they take heart knowing that have won at Halifax already.

CHAMPIONSHIP SHIELD RESULTS:

Round 1 – Halifax RLFC 28-48 Sheffield Eagles

Round 2 – Sheffield Eagles 48-16 Whitehaven

Round 3 – Sheffield Eagles 38-40 Swinton Lions

Round 4 – Oldham Roughyeds 24-54 Sheffield Eagles

Round 5 – Sheffield Eagles 62-0 Workington Town

Round 6 – Sheffield Eagles 22-38 Dewsbury Rams

Round 7 – Bradford Bulls 80-0 Sheffield Eagles

MY PREDICTION – Halifax to win by 6+ points

CHAMPIONSHIP SHEILD SEMI FINAL – BRADFORD BULLS vs DEWSBURY RAMS

(Odsal Stadium, Sunday, 25 September – 15:00pm)

Bradford Bulls

The Bulls were tipped to be one of the clubs fighting for a place back in the Super League again at the start of this season following defeat at the final hurdle last year in the Million Pound game to Wakefield.  So it was major shock to me and many other rugby fans that they finished fifth in the regular season Championship table and missed out on the Qualifiers by two points

It was a 20-0 defeat to Featherstone Rovers in the final round of matches that sealed their fate, and saw Featherstone claim fourth place, but a fantastic run of Shield results should have healed any remaining bruised egos.  A narrow defeat away at already relegated Workington in Round 6 meant they missed out on a 100% record from their seven Shield matches.

Victories over both Oldham and Sheffield by 80 or more points confirmed their superiority in this level of competition and Rohan Smith’s side should be more than capable of winning the final piece of silverware available to them.

CHAMPIONSHIP SHIELD RESULTS:

Round 1 – Whitehaven 18-46 Bradford Bulls

Round 2 – Bradford Bulls 44-22 Halifax RLFC

Round 3 – Bradford Bulls 83-0 Oldham Roughyeds

Round 4 – Dewsbury Rams 26-36 Bradford Bulls

Round 5 – Bradford Bulls 36-28 Swinton Lions

Round 6 – Workington Town 30-26 Bradford Bulls

Round 7 – Bradford Bulls 80-0 Sheffield Eagles

Dewsbury Rams

Dewsbury only secured their place in the Shield Semi Finals after victory in the final round of matches, a series of results which saw them claim four wins and three defeats.

Interestingly, Glenn Morrison’s side were the only team of the four semi finalists to lose both games to the two relegated Cumbrian clubs – 34-24 away to Workington in Round 2 and a hefty 56-12 home defeat by Whitehaven in Round 5.

However, they did manage to claim a narrow two point victory over Halifax in Round 3 and an impressive 16 point win at Sheffield in Round 6, which would give them plenty of hope that they could finish the job if they were to progress past Bradford this weekend.

And, despite two home defeats to Bradford throughout this season, they did manage a narrow 14-16 win at Odsal back in June.

CHAMPIONSHIP SHIELD RESULTS:

Round 1 – Dewsbury Rams 36-24 Swinton Lions

Round 2 – Workington Town 34-24 Dewsbury Rams

Round 3 – Halifax RLFC 22-24 Dewsbury Rams

Round 4 – Dewsbury Rams 26-36 Bradford Bulls

Round 5 – Dewsbury Rams 12-56 Whitehaven

Round 6 – Sheffield Eagles 22-38 Dewsbury Rams

Round 7 – Dewsbury Rams 30-12 Oldham Roughyeds

MY PREDICTION – Bradford to win by 6+ points