29 March 2018

Taking the Two - the Super League trend for penalty goals

Last week friend of SLP Mark posed a question that he just knew I couldn't resist digging deeper on. He had a feeling that sides were taking more penalty goals this year than in the recent past.
We took up the topic in Episode 174 of the show. I threw out some hastily worked together numbers, Tim threw up some follow-up questions, the outcome of it all has become this blog post!

Are teams taking the two more?
Yes.

Both in the early stages of 2018, and as a growing trend since the Super 8s era started in 2015, teams seem to be taking the two more.

Using the fairly crude and straightforward, but pretty much reliable, method of goal attempts minus tries, you get the amount of goal attempts that weren't conversions, which will be the penalty goals.
You can see that both the penalty goals per game and the percentage of goals that are made up by penalty goals is higher year-on-year.

I've also looked at all the teams in Super League and, generally speaking, the same trend is seen at each club. All sides but Leeds, Wakefield and Wigan - three of the top four sides at time of writing - have their highest percentage of penalty goals over the last four seasons in 2018. The six highest percentages in the whole table are all from this year.

So, why is this happening? Well Tim put forward a number of questions during the show that might shed some light on why.

Are kickers getting better, making teams more likely to take the two?
No, not really.

Goal kicking success across the league has been pretty steady between 2015 and now, between 74% and 75%. The only time it dips lower in the period was the opening period to 2017, at 73%, but that was the second highest time for penalty goals being taken.

Looking at individual teams, it offers a few examples to support Tim's idea that teams will take the two more if they have a better goal kicker. However, there's as many examples to contradict it as there are to support it. There's certainly no clear causal relationship there, just a very small positive relationship. Better kickers may encourage you to take the two more, but it's not why we've seen more penalties taken.

Are we getting more penalties, so kicking more penalty goals?
Maybe.

There does appear to be a reasonable, but not hugely strong, positive relationship between the amount of penalties and the amount of penalty goals. It hard to draw a stronger conclusion than that because we don't know where on the field penalties are given for each season looked at, and we don't know how close the games were at the time penalty goals were taken. It could just be that more penalties this year are in kick-able range, or the ones in kick-able range have been given more often when the scoreboard says to take the two.

Although, the highest penalties per game figure in the top table above was early in 2016. That was the third lowest penalty goals taken figure in the table. So, we can't say conclusively that more penalties is the main cause of why we're seeing more penalty goals.

Is it the weather?
Very hard to say, but I think unlikely.

The bad weather to start the 2018 season has been fairly unprecedented. So maybe it has had an impact that would be hard to compare with other years in the Summer era. Regardless, it will still have been at it's coldest in the opening rounds of 2015 and 2016, when teams were less likely to take the two than later in those years.

Is it closer defences?
This was Tim's first question, and it's the most likely explanation.

It's clear from the top table above that as penalty goals per game are going up, tries per game are going down. There's a fairly strong negative relationship between the two figures.

And I'd like to think that's because defences are getting better, rather than it being attacks are getting worse, at least that's a more positive way to spin it!

Obviously, if you and your opponents are less likely to score four-pointers, the two points from a penalty goal are in theory more valuable in helping you win the game than if defences are leaky and tries are easy to score.

As always, thanks for reading and I hope you've found this interesting. If you've enjoyed the read, don't forget to get yourself involved with the weekly podcast for some lively and hopefully well informed Rugby League chat.

Mark
SLP

27 March 2018

Streaming Womens Super League - An Idea

I'm all for the Women's Super League. It's going to be a great way to improve participation and interest in the greatest game.

After BBC Sport online recently had Jodie Cunningham as co-commentator for the Challenge Cup, then on the 5live RL podcast, and then had Faye Gaskin & Gemma Walsh do the 5th round draw, it got me thinking...

The Women's competition is surely ripe for extending the BBC Sport's online live-stream coverage after the Challenge Cup goes on to TV in the later rounds. They could show a game once every three weeks or so. Please make it happen Dave Woods and the BBC!

Then, the RFL need to back that up by providing coverage through the Our League app of other games/rounds from the competition. It can serve a double whammy of promoting the app and testing out their own live-stream capabilities. They might not want to limit things to the app and Our League website though, I'd suggest having a Women's RL YouTube channel too.

Both measures will also mean some great exposure for the women's game and the clubs that are running women's sides. One extra benefit for the clubs might be that they can attract extra sponsorship revenue from getting new sponsors involved on the women's kit, meaning more money can go back into the fledgling teams and competition.

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Whilst I'm touching on Our League and streaming, it is time that the RFL did more with this platform. My suggestion would be having different options available for fans. 

For example, you can have the free membership as it is now, with news and match stats, plus the man of the match voting etc. 

Then you can have Our League Plus, which for a small monthly fee, say £5 a month, you get extra content, like coach press conferences and highlights packages from all the competitions.

Then, for a slightly larger fee, say £10-£15 a month, you could have Our League Premium. Subscribers would get delayed replays of all the Super League games in full (e.g. on the Tuesday following the game, like I know Wigan are able to do through Wigan TV), extended highlights of games from all levels and live-stream access to exclusive events (e.g. Man of Steel awards, women's internationals etc.). 

Some concessions to satisfy broadcasters could be made if needed, like not running highlights packages until after BBC's Super League show and Sky Sport's Full Time have aired on Monday nights, or not having the Sky live games available on the full replays.

Until then, the functionality to share the news stories on to social media direct from the app, or a fix to the glitch where some of the key parts of the news copy doesn't show on the app, would be great. I offered this feedback on the app within days of it being launched. Hopefully fixes and continued improvements will be made.

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Thanks for reading. Feel free to share your views on how the greatest game can be better promoted and covered, be it the women's game or any level of action. And don't forget to listen to SLP every week to get your unfiltered rugby league fix! Listen here (Apple) or here (non-Apple).

Mark
SLP

SLP Episode 174 - A Whole Lot of Fun

The new episode of Super League Pod is up! You can listen to it HERE, or HERE if your an Apple Podcasts person, and you can also get it on the League Cast Android app or on YouTube.

This week Mark is joined by Hull KR fan Tim and we start with an extended feedback section where we pick up some of your views on the video ref system and focus on the main talking point this week, as the NRL attempt to prevent the Denver test.

Not much in the way of big stories this week, but we cover what news there is, including a personal and finally... from Tim, from 39:30. SLP news is sponsored by Little Warden.
If you have a website, then visit LittleWarden.com and see what they can do to help you. They can help you with domain expiration checks, redirects and all sorts of other important background web stuff that they’ll make simple for you. Little Warden – monitoring the tedious!

We recap the big game action in depth along with your fan views and all the important stats in our Super League match reviews from 51:30. Super League Match Reviews are sponsored by Rob's Toy Shop on eBay.
Find a wide range of toys, gifts, rugby league birthday cards and more at Rob’s Toy Shop on eBay. Visit stores.ebay.co.uk/robstoyshop and on any orders over £5 you can earn 5% cashback, and also 1% of your order value will go into the SLP coffers, by putting 'SLPDiscount' at checkout – and if you want to give your 5% to SLP too you can by messaging Rob’s Toy Shop when you make your order. 

We also cover all the other results from the Challenge Cup, Championship, League 1 and the NRL from 124:00. Other Results are sponsored by Master of Shaves.
Master of Shaves is a small family run business that sells high quality traditional wet shaving products and specialises in Straight Razors. Visit their website masterofshaves.com and Super League Pod listeners can get 10% off their order by using the voucher code ‘SLP’ at checkout.

We then look to the future with our predictions for a bumper Easter weekend, as well as our Championship and League 1 games of the week, from 139:30. Predictions are sponsored by Payroll Central UK Limited.
Payroll Central is a family run business based in Derbyshire, offering an outsourced payroll service for businesses across the UK. Unlike many accountants who offer payroll as a side service, they are fully qualified payroll specialists who provide payroll services for businesses in every sector. Visit payroll-central.co.uk and if you mention Super League Pod when you contact them you can get one month’s free payroll service and a 10% discount on their normal prices.

Finally, we finish with a derby day quiz this week and truly British food and drink recommendations. So get listening to your favourite Rugby League podcast!

Please feel free to make a donation to support SLP: paypal.me/superleaguepod
All donations are hugely appreciated, large or small.

21 March 2018

Lakers or Losers? Koukash's Cumbrian Ambition

Former Salford owner Dr Marwan Koukash has recently been talking up his plans to form a new Rugby League team for all of Cumbria to get behind. Details are a little thin on the ground, but that hasn't stopped Koukash talking the idea up on recent Rugby League Back Chat and BBC Radio Manchester appearances.

We know Cumbria loves Rugby League, as I've been told it forever and I don't doubt the sport's popularity up there. They have three semi-pro teams - Championship Barrow and League 1's Workington and Whitehaven. They have three sides in the National Conference League Premier Division, the top amateur competition, as well as a number of other teams lower down the pyramid, including the oldest amateur Rugby League side in the world, Millom. They've also been able to play a number of times as a county, either as pre-tournament warm-up games for home nations or against touring sides from around the world.

So let's have a look at the idea and maybe some of the potential issues that could get in the way of what we all want - success for Super League in Cumbria.

Crowds & Support
According to that ever reliable source Wikipedia the best crowd they ever got for one of their county games was around 8,800. More recently, Scotland have played their major tournament games in Workington, with two 2013 World Cup crowds of over 7,000, and 6,628 turning out in 2016 to see them draw with New Zealand in one of their greatest ever results.

In terms of domestic crowds, it doesn't paint a great picture for fan interest. Workington played in the debut Super League season in front of average crowds of 2,308. All three of the semi-pro teams played in League 1 in 2017. The promotion decider between Barrow and Whitehaven drew 3,128, which was the biggest English League 1 crowd of the year, but season averages were down on that - Barrow averaged 1,063, Whitehaven 687 and Workington 654.

So, the numbers don't look good. The idea though is to give fans of all those sides a top tier Cumbrian side for all to support. You would guess games wouldn't clash so the Lakers, as Koukash has put forward as a potential name, could be a Super League club for the fans of the other sides to unite behind, in the knowledge that Super League for any of the existing clubs is highly unlikely.

It's a nice theory, but lots of those potential fans already have a Super League club they support, and fans aren't so fickle as to jump to support a new team and disregard the emotional attachments they've already forged. They might attend a few games casually, but not become season ticket holders or regular merchandise buyers. Also, the Rugby League fan community in Cumbria who do fall for the new side might not be able to afford two games in a weekend, and choose their local town loyalty to the regional team to spend their money on.

Population & Location
Cumbria is the 3rd largest county by area out of the 48 English counties, but the 41st largest by population, leading to it having the 47th best population density.

To make things more difficult, the two largest population centres are at opposite ends of the county - Carlisle in the north and Barrow-in-Furness 65 miles away in the south.

When a Cumbrian merger was mooted at the dawn of Super League it was planned to be based out of Workington. Recently Cumbrian James Donaldson has been suggesting Penrith. I know other Cumbrians who think around the Ulverston area would be best. Koukash has spoken about what he's seen as potential in West Cumbria, which takes us back to Workington, or Whitehaven. But if the new club is not a merger or a takeover, you can't go where they have a team already surely.

Penrith, or Carlisle, make good sense on the transport front - they have mainline rail and M6 motorway links better than some existing Super League locations. But they sit a little distance away from the core Cumbrian rugby league hotbeds. Any sensible sporting business needs to rely on it's home audiences first, so whilst they might be great for away fans to get to, that's not what success is built on.

Location, as the London Broncos have found, is one of the toughest choices any new Cumbrian operation will need to make. I hope they get it right, although even if they do the population of Cumbria isn't huge, so there's still going to be a challenge filling the stands wherever the side lands.

Players
Another of the ambitions stated by Koukash is to have a side pretty much full of home grown Cumbrian players.


It's a noble but unrealistic ambition, and I don't think he meant it to be an absolute. I think he more likely meant that his mistake at Salford of focusing on signing loads of players whilst binning off the academy was a mistake he doesn't want to repeat.

Whilst it's unrealistic to have full Cumbrian squad, that doesn't mean a Cumbrian core isn't possible. With the amateur sides all with age group teams and the local semi-pro sides, there would be a clear pathway and proving ground for local talent to rise up.

And the is talent there, just look at today's Super League squads and from a quick look through you see:
Will Maher at Castleford
Shaun Lunt, James Donaldson and Ryan Shaw at Hull KR
Brad Singleton at Leeds
Lee Mossop at Salford
Kyle Amor and Morgan Knowles at St Helens
Jordan Johnstone and Brad Walker at Widnes

I'm probably missing some, but already they've got the makings of a good forward pack production line. These players are making it without the clear local pathway. That is a good sign, but obviously a Super League club with ambitions of a Cumbrian core will need to produce a lot more.

I really do think there are issues, and Koukash's involvement doesn't fill me with confidence after the unfulfilled promises out of his Salford time. BUT I'm one of so many that wants to see something fixed in Cumbria, and to me this seems more feasible than past talk of mergers.

I hope it's attacked with realism that crowds will be slow to build, reach will need to be county-wide and it's the young end of the potential fan base that needs to be focused on as part of a long-term strategy for Cumbria and for Rugby League. Good luck to those involved.

Let us know what you think, and make sure to listen and be involved in our shows, where we try to cover all aspects of the greatest game!

Mark
SLP

SLP Episode 173 - Original BFTE

The new episode of Super League Pod is up! You can listen to it HERE, or HERE if your an Apple Podcasts person, and you can also get it on the League Cast Android app or on YouTube.

This week Mark is joined by Hull KR fan Tim and we start with an extended feedback section to make up for a shortened slate of games this weekend.

We cover the big news stories, including your views on Liam Watts' move home to Cas and Kevin Brown's England retirement, from 34:00. SLP news is sponsored by Little Warden.
If you have a website, then visit LittleWarden.com and see what they can do to help you. They can help you with domain expiration checks, redirects and all sorts of other important background web stuff that they’ll make simple for you. Little Warden – monitoring the tedious!

We recap the big game action in depth along with your fan views and all the important stats in our Super League match reviews from 66:30. Super League Match Reviews are sponsored by Rob's Toy Shop on eBay.
Find a wide range of toys, gifts, rugby league birthday cards and more at Rob’s Toy Shop on eBay. Visit stores.ebay.co.uk/robstoyshop and on any orders over £5 you can earn 5% cashback, and also 1% of your order value will go into the SLP coffers, by putting 'SLPDiscount' at checkout – and if you want to give your 5% to SLP too you can by messaging Rob’s Toy Shop when you make your order. 

We also cover all the other results from the Challenge Cup and round 2 of NRL action 124:00. Other Results are sponsored by Master of Shaves.
Master of Shaves is a small family run business that sells high quality traditional wet shaving products and specialises in Straight Razors. Visit their website masterofshaves.com and Super League Pod listeners can get 10% off their order by using the voucher code ‘SLP’ at checkout.

We then look to the future with our predictions for round 7 of Super League, as well as our Championship and League 1 games of the week, from 140:00. Predictions are sponsored by Payroll Central UK Limited.
Payroll Central is a family run business based in Derbyshire, offering an outsourced payroll service for businesses across the UK. Unlike many accountants who offer payroll as a side service, they are fully qualified payroll specialists who provide payroll services for businesses in every sector. Visit payroll-central.co.uk and if you mention Super League Pod when you contact them you can get one month’s free payroll service and a 10% discount on their normal prices.

Finally, we finish with a double quiz this week and a music recommendation that you can get straight on with. So get listening to your favourite Rugby League podcast!

Please feel free to make a donation to support SLP: paypal.me/superleaguepod
All donations are hugely appreciated, large or small.

18 March 2018

England Knights Squad Broken Down

The Knights are back for the first time since 2013. We had a bit of a chat about the make-up and purpose of the squad in Episode 172 of SLP, and I thought it might be worth having a deeper look at that Knights Performance squad.

The squad has an average age of 22 and a half. By my reckoning there's one man with England caps (Joe Burgess), three guys who played for the Knights when they existed between 2011 and 2013 (Josh Bowden, Jack Hughes and Sam Powell), and no fewer than nine players who've already won a Challenge Cup or Grand Final in their careers. We also have a former Student World Cup player in there (Chris Atkin). Then there's also several players with less than 50 Super League games in their careers, including all the most likely halves in the squad.

We've been told that the Knights, which in the past had an 'under-25' selection criteria, has been brought back to help produce and develop more players for England's senior side ahead of the 2021 and 2025 World Cups. I do think we need something else, something beyond the senior squad, that helps test and prepare our players for the rep. game, so it's great that we have something again.

This squad doesn't have an 'under-25' selection criteria. In fact, it's not really clear what the selection criteria was, aside from having at least one player from each English Super League side. Pleasingly, they appear to have taken the stance to leave out any player with international experience for the other home nations - the Knights' most likely competition when games for this group do get announced. They've also left out anyone with significant England senior experience who didn't make the EPS, making it clear that this isn't meant to be just an England reserves side.

Age
We've got seven players who are 25 and older. Chris Atkin, Reece Lyne, Dean Hadley, Sam Powell and Jamie Shaul are all 25. Josh Bowden and Jack Hughes are both 26. Realistically, of that bunch, only Jamie Shaul has a likely chance of being in the 2021 World Cup squad from what we've seen before now. None of them are really candidates for a 2025 World Cup spot.

In contrast, we've also got seven players 21 and under. Danny Walker and Jack Walker are 18, with the third teenager in the squad being 19-year-old Jake Trueman. Tom Davies, Danny Richardson, Oliver Gildart and Masi Matongo are all 21. Other than Oliver Gildart, who has over 50 top level games and is in his fourth Super League season, this bunch are all very green at the top grade but all have shown undoubted flashes of talent that suggests they're destined for the very top. These are all players I could see still being in the selection conversation for 2025.

Experience
Moving from age to experience, Reece Lyne made his Super League debut way back in 2010 and is one of ten players in the squad with over 100 professional games under their belt. I make it out that Sam Powell, Liam Sutcliffe, Jamie Shaul, Josh Bowden, Niall Evalds, Luke Thompson and Joe Burgess are also all in triple figures, and Jack Hughes has over 150.

Chris Atkin too has over 100 games, although he's one of the least experienced at Super League level with only 5 games so far in his debut season at that level - only Jake Trueman, with 4, has fewer top grade games. These players are two of the ten with less than 50 Super League games in the squad. Greg Minikin, James Cunningham and Tom Gilmore, like Atkin, have a bit of lower level experience too. Tom Davies, Jack Walker, Danny Richardson and Danny Walker are only in their second professional seasons. Masi Matongo played once in 2015, but really only started to get regular game time in 2017 too.

Positions
The final area to consider is positions, and a hypothetical line-up, for if and when some fixtures are announced for the group!

For the most part the older, more experienced players come in the pack. There's a good mix of experience and potential in the numerous outside backs. The halves will come from a group with very little Super League experience. That's also where the squad isn't as deep in terms of numbers. I make it having:
Four props - Bowden, Matongo, Thompson and Sutton.
Three back rowers - Hadley, Hughes and Whitley
Four hookers - Leeming, Danny Walker, Cunningham and Powell
Four halves - Trueman, Atkin, Richardson and Gilmore
Four centres - Connor, Lyne, Gildart and Sutcliffe
Three wingers - Minikin, Burgess and Davies
Three full backs - Shaul, Jack Walker and Evalds
Of course, there's players in there like Powell, Connor, Sutcliffe and Evalds that are multi-position men, but only Sutcliffe could potentially move into the pack.

Having an experienced pack is a good thing when you're trying to develop a group of talented play makers, so I do think the squad make up has it right in that sense, I just see a lack of depth in that forward pack still. But from that squad, here's a likely 1 to 13 that could compete against the minor RL nations:
1. Jamie Shaul
2. Tom Davies
3. Jake Connor
4. Oliver Gildart
5. Joe Burgess
6. Liam Sutcliffe
7. Danny Richardson
8. Josh Bowden
9. Kruise Leeming
10. Luke Thompson
11. Dean Hadley
12. Matt Whitley
13. Jack Hughes

Who missed out
I'll avoid those older players with England senior pedigree like Sam Tomkins, Liam Farrell and Lee Mossop, and look more at those players aged 23 and under who're currently in Super League squads and may have benefited from inclusion.

Alex Mellor (23) is a back row forward who can also play in the centre at a push. He's a talented kid who I've rated since I first saw him as a junior with Bradford.
Dec Patton (22) is a half back with a big boot, good communication skills and Grand Final experience under his belt.
Jordan Abdull (22) is a multi-talented player who can play in the halves but, more importantly, can become a really useful ball playing forward that could be the type of player that sets a team apart at the top level.
Liam Marshall (21) is as good a finisher as Super League has right now.
Ashton Golding (21) has fine positional instincts in defence and can be an elusive runner.
James Batchelor (19) has one of the players threatening to breakthrough for a while at Wakefield and is undoubtedly a talented back rower.
Sammy Kibula (18) hasn't played Super League yet, but he's one of the most promising props I've seen coming through.

Thanks for reading. And let us know how you would like up the Knights and who you would like to see join the KPS in the future.

Mark
SLP

Dear George Williams...

Hi George

You don't know me and, for the 10,000 minutes of the week I'm not watching you on the pitch, I don't know you either. But I wanted to reach out to make sure you see what a great opportunity you have right now.

I want you to know from the off that I'm a fan of England, of Wigan and of you as a player. You're just about as talented a kid as I've seen come through since I've been watching Wigan. You've already achieved things in your 23 years that I can only have dreamt of in my 33 years.

You're skillful. You're exciting. You're also regularly frustrating. But don't take that the wrong way. I mean, I love my wife absolutely, but boy can she frustrate me at times, so I hope you get what I'm saying.

I read people saying you've gone off the boil since you signed the marquee deal. I don't agree with that, but I'm sure you'll admit your form since the start of last year's Super 8s hasn't hit the peaks it so often did earlier last year. And there are things in your game that need development.

And now is the time to get it all straightened out. Why now? Cracking the international stage is why now. Brown's retired, Widdop's seen as full back, Gale's pushing 30. Crack your organisation and decision making skills now and you'll be the main man for England for the next two World Cups.

I know you play to a structure at Wigan, but I also know you're capable of breaking that structure, such is your skill and talent. Win games and even Shaun Wane and Wayne Bennett can't get mad at you for breaking structures.

What I want you to do is use some of that marquee money (unless you can get Mr Lenagan to front up some of his own / the club's) and get one of the greats over for some one-on-one coaching. Let them show you how they read the game, how they communicated, how they took charge.

Work hard on what you don't have already and you'll be close to unstoppable. Do it now and you'll elevate yourself in the England set up at the perfect time.

Yours,
From a fan as long as you're in cherry and white,
Mark
SLP

13 March 2018

SLP Episode 172 - Squad Goals and Squad Cars

The new episode of Super League Pod is up! You can listen to it HERE, or HERE if your an Apple Podcasts person, and you can also get it on the League Cast Android app or on YouTube.

This week Mark is joined by Hull FC fan Sarah and there's a big get well soon shout out for one of our listeners in the SLP family.

We cover the big news stories, including your reactions to the England squads and the crazy Scott Moore news, from 11:00. SLP news is sponsored by Little Warden.
If you have a website, then visit LittleWarden.com and see what they can do to help you. They can help you with domain expiration checks, redirects and all sorts of other important background web stuff that they’ll make simple for you. Little Warden – monitoring the tedious!

We cover the big game action in depth along with your fan views and all the important stats in our Super League match reviews from 48:00. Super League Match Reviews are sponsored by Rob's Toy Shop on eBay.
Find a wide range of toys, gifts, rugby league birthday cards and more at Rob’s Toy Shop on eBay. Visit stores.ebay.co.uk/robstoyshop and on any orders over £5 you can earn 5% cashback, and also 1% of your order value will go into the SLP coffers, by putting 'SLPDiscount' at checkout – and if you want to give your 5% to SLP too you can by messaging Rob’s Toy Shop when you make your order. 

We also cover all the other results from the Championship games, League 1 and round 1 of NRL action 110:30. Other Results are sponsored by Master of Shaves.
Master of Shaves is a small family run business that sells high quality traditional wet shaving products and specialises in Straight Razors. Visit their website masterofshaves.com and Super League Pod listeners can get 10% off their order by using the voucher code ‘SLP’ at checkout.

We then look to the future with our predictions for round 6 of Super League, as well as our Challenge Cup game of the week, from 123:00. Predictions are sponsored by Payroll Central UK Limited.
Payroll Central is a family run business based in Derbyshire, offering an outsourced payroll service for businesses across the UK. Unlike many accountants who offer payroll as a side service, they are fully qualified payroll specialists who provide payroll services for businesses in every sector. Visit payroll-central.co.uk and if you mention Super League Pod when you contact them you can get one month’s free payroll service and a 10% discount on their normal prices.

Finally, we finish with a little quiz and recommendations for party games and crocheted gifts. We've got it all covered as SLP returns to your ears!

Please feel free to make a donation to support SLP: paypal.me/superleaguepod
All donations are hugely appreciated, large or small.

6 March 2018

SLP Episode 171 - Watts The Story

The new episode of Super League Pod is up! You can listen to it HERE, or HERE if your an Apple Podcasts person, and you can also get it on the League Cast Android app or on YouTube.

We cover the big news stories, along with your views on England's fixture in Denver against New Zealand, from 12:30. SLP news is sponsored by Little Warden.
If you have a website, then visit LittleWarden.com and see what they can do to help you. They can help you with domain expiration checks, redirects and all sorts of other important background web stuff that they’ll make simple for you. Little Warden – monitoring the tedious!

Only 4 games to ciaver, but we cover them in depth along with your fan views and all the important stats in our Super League match reviews from 54:30. Super League Match Reviews are sponsored by Rob's Toy Shop on eBay.
Find a wide range of toys, gifts, rugby league birthday cards and more at Rob’s Toy Shop on eBay. Visit stores.ebay.co.uk/robstoyshop and on any orders over £5 you can earn 5% cashback, and also 1% of your order value will go into the SLP coffers, by putting 'SLPDiscount' at checkout – and if you want to give your 5% to SLP too you can by messaging Rob’s Toy Shop when you make your order. 

We also cover all the other results from the Championship games that survived the weather, from 106:45. Other Results are sponsored by Master of Shaves.
Master of Shaves is a small family run business that sells high quality traditional wet shaving products and specialises in Straight Razors. Visit their website masterofshaves.com and Super League Pod listeners can get 10% off their order by using the voucher code ‘SLP’ at checkout.

We then look to the future with our predictions for round 5 of Super League, as well as our Championship and League 1 games of the week, from 112:00. Predictions are sponsored by Payroll Central UK Limited.
Payroll Central is a family run business based in Derbyshire, offering an outsourced payroll service for businesses across the UK. Unlike many accountants who offer payroll as a side service, they are fully qualified payroll specialists who provide payroll services for businesses in every sector. Visit payroll-central.co.uk and if you mention Super League Pod when you contact them you can get one month’s free payroll service and a 10% discount on their normal prices.

Finally, we finish with a little quiz and recommendations for rugby league viewing and Fylde beer drinking. We've got it all covered as SLP returns to your ears!

Please feel free to make a donation to support SLP: paypal.me/superleaguepod
All donations are hugely appreciated, large or small.