Super League Round 2 Recap

Round 2 was a game short of a full round with Wigan down under losing to the Roosters in the World Club Challenge, but there were still a number of top match ups.

More on the Thursday night's game below, but the two biggest match ups came on the Friday, with four 2013 play off sides meeting each other.

Sky's live game was Leeds v Warrington. We saw an improvement from the Wire on their first round effort. There is still a question over the kicking game and they had a lot of ball in the 2nd half in good attacking territory so the creativity in the team without Briers may still be a concern. On the flip side, Leeds goal defence was outstanding and Zak Hardaker had a very impressive game in attack and defence. Leeds were the better side and deserved the win.

The other big game was an emotional affair as Steve Prescott was remembered when his two former teams St Helens and Hull FC met. A tight first half and a point a minute second half gave Saints a +12 in the race for the inaugural Steve Prescott Cup the sides will play for each year to remember the  inspirational fundraising hero that wore both club's colours with distinction. Saints fan and friend of the podcast (not an oxymoron) Andy Smith was there for the game - here his thought on the night's emotion on this week's show. Not for the first time in Langtree Park history, James Roby was a star man - leading his team in tackles, carries and tries, the second of went a long way towards sealing the win.

Round 2 results and tweets

Home			Away			Attendance
Wakefield	10	(4)	Bradford	23	(10)	4049
Leeds	18	(12)	Warrington	12	(6)	16164
St Helens	34	(6)	Hull FC	22	(10)	13448
London	18	(6)	Salford	44	(26)	1246
Huddersfield	24	(24)	Hull KR	24	(6)	7180
Castleford	32	(12)	Catalan	6	(6)	5104
					Average attendance	7865

Wakefield v Bradford
Dean Williams, Wakefield fan (@deanofthenorth): Bulls better defence earn win in scrappy match riddled with errors. Inconsistency from players and officials. #forgettablerl
Alan Cale, Bradford fan (@shoddynmungo): scrappy but Bulls fought hard, Disko and Gale played better behind a good pack performance. Adjusted well to losing Gaskell

Leeds v Warrington

Steve, Warrington fan (@wildywotsits): better performance this week. Second half particularly. Great effort from the new boys and the half back combo much better.
Martin Ramshaw, Warrington fan (@martinramshaw): Was always a tough one for Wire. Encouraging signs but fear it may be too late by the time we get our season up and running

Huddersfield v Hull KR

Marie Wright, Huddersfield fan (Wychwoodlady): Poor 2nd half from Giants, plenty of opportunity that we didn't turn into points.
Joseph Ward (@johjohn114859): Giants far too casual HKR never say die spirit  deserved their draw great kick by Burns  under pressure . Respect opposition

Observations and star performers

Its appropriate this week to start this section with two outstanding defensive efforts. Jamie Peacock, 36 years old, completed 54 successful tackles on Friday night against Warrington - his inspirational efforts are still setting standards despite his senior status. Tommy Lee went even better, with 57 tackles for Salford at old club London in an 80 minute display than he isn't necessarily renowned for. A count of 57 tackles was only bettered three times in the entire 2013 regular season, that should signal just what a special effort Lee, and Peacock, put in. The other defensive effort we want to applaud was young Danny Bridge - 36 tackles, no misses. 

Justin Carney deserves special praise as the only man to get a try hat trick this week. He also totted up a massive 197m on 22 carries. However he was outperformed in the metres gained by Jake Mullaney of Salford, who got 198m on 17 carries as he constantly knifed through the London defence. 2 tries and 1 try assist, 8 table busts and 147m as well, means Zak Hardaker had a noteworthy Friday night in front of the Sky cameras. 14m per carry for both Tom Briscoe and Kris Welham led the week for this particular figure.

All those singled out for attack above are exciting backs, but a special mention is deserved for a forward too - Alex Walmsley led the way for tackle busts with 10 in his 168m. Ben Westwood led forwards in metres gained with 184m in his try scoring exertion at Leeds. Gareth Hock deserves a mention too as week 2 leading offloader with 6.

Not everyone had a round to remember off course. Danny Kirmond had a rare poor day with 8 missed tackles against Bradford and to be frank he didn't look fully up to speed on Thursday night. Scott Moore of London and Ben Pomeroy of Catalan joined him on this figure, showing missing tackles in such numbers is likely to mean a loss for your team. Lots of players had 3 errors but Ryan Atkins had the distinction of leading this category with 4.

Unfortunately after pondering last week if this could become the year of the 40-20, there was only one in round 2, kicked by Tony Gigot in a losing effort down at the hive.

Last week we talked about the incidence of dirty play and all the calls from the TV commentators for cards to be shown. This week, we've started to see the cards coming. 

Many won't be surprised that Gareth Hock was the first to see a card, seeing yellow and a 10 minute cool down just after half time at London. We talk more about it in the show, but basically he felt wronged by an apparently accidental poke in the eye and decided to take retribution at his next chance. Sin bin sufficient for us but needless action by Hock who never seems to learn. The yellow cards flowed at Huddersfield and Castleford too as first fights were the order of the day. It was 11 v 12 at one point at John Smith's Stadium.

As well as cards, we've seen some bans handed out again, Catalan being the major recipient with Julien Bousquet being the second Dragon to get a 4 match ban for dangerous contract already this season after Oliver Elima got the same from round 1. Eddy Pettybourne and Dean Collis took 1 match early guilty pleas and Justin Poore got a 1 match ban for his part in the Huddersfield brawl.

Feature game - Wakefield v Bradford

Tom had a great trip to Wakefield, one of those rare good days to be a Bulls fan in recent times. 

As for the trip as a whole, we enjoyed it. Neither of us had been to Wakefield for a good few years, not that the place has changed much. We arrived about three quarters of an hour before the kick off time. Free on road parking very close to the ground was easy to find, which was a bonus - we got in and out faster than we had at the shinier newer Salford Stadium.

There isn't so much outside or assertions the ground but another thing we preferred at Belle Vue were the refreshment stands in the ground. They were well stocked and reasonably priced. 

The pre-game 'entertainment' was just a string of young dance troupes that the club announcers seemed very proud of, but not much to inspire the crowd. It gave time to browse the reasonably priced match programme, which at £2.50 had a lot to read with plenty of general rugby league content rather than just specific Wakefield content.

On the field the game was largely a poor affair. The ground looked very heavy and two sides with plenty of issues and little pace were never going to serve up a classic game of attacking rugby, particularly on a short turnaround. Sloppiness and plenty of errors made this a game a poor watch but because of what is at stake this year there was still tension, which does help create some sporting drama in what was mostly a subdued atmosphere.

Although the game was littered with dropped ball and missed tackles, there was the occasional flash of quality - Brett Kearney's catch and spin for his try, Dean Collis' excellent offload for Peter Fox to break clear and Adam O'Brien's quick play out of dummy half to grab his try and help seal the game were bright moments of quality.

Manese Manuokafoa impressed us both throughout with some very strong running making him the Bulls top metre maker whilst others like Sidlow and debutant Mullally did some tough work too. Matt Diskin got Sky man of the match but we were most impressed with Luke Gale who organised the team around and was very active in attack and defence. He looks to have copied with loss of last year's partner Jarrod Sammut by relishing in the extra responsibility of being a real team leader and is one Bradford player who deserves real credit so far in 2014.

Gale's drop goal finished the scoring and the small group of Bradford fans in the crowd were able to smile for a brief time until the whole ownership issue unravelled again following the hefty points deduction this week.

We left with a happy Tom and gambled a bit on the petrol, just reaching the Tesco at the end of the M55 in time. We talk about all this and some more in Episode 6 of Super League Pod.

Round 2 - Wakefield v Bradford Preview

Two of the favourites for the drop face off on Thursday Night Super League this week, so it could be an early season four pointer.

On previous episodes of Super League Pod bad news stories from both Wakefield and Bradford have been a common occurrence in our news round ups.

One interesting sideline to the game is the recent release of Jarrod Summut to join the Wildcats from the Bulls. Tom isn't too disappointed - he thinks his Bulls need solid, consistent and determined players who will work hard in defence as well as attack. In short, he isn't bothered Sammut has gone.

On the flip side, Wakefield needed attacking flair with Tim Smith gone and fans criticising the pedestrian nature of the half back combos they've had play in the trial games. Now with Sammut and Godinet, they should be able to complement the grit and determination that Richard Agar has instilled in his team in the past with a bit of skill.

Last season


Bradford had the better of things in the Super League meetings last term. The Round 1 win was as dominant as they would be all year in terms of metres gained and was the game that they saw the most possession of the ball over the course of the season. It didn't matter on this occasion that the Bulls tackling was woeful because they hardly had to do any of it. The attacking kicks numbers suggest most of the game was played close to the Wakefield sticks, but it isn't hard to understand why. High numbers of errors and penalties by Wakefield gave Bradford plenty of opportunities with ball in hand. Bradford were making so much ground with a very high 24 successful offloads putting Wakefield on the back foot and making them work even harder.

The reverse meeting was a closer affair on the scoreboard and Wakefield had much more of the ball than the first encounter. Most of the numbers that were skewed in favour of the Bulls in Round 1 were much more even in Round 23. In the end, the big difference was the missed tackles by Wakefield - their defence wasn't strong enough and it allowed Bradford to outscore them...just!

Form guide

Both sides had some disappointing trial games that give us a clue that these clubs will, as was already expected, struggle in 2014 and be in or around the relegation zone before restructure.

Bradford fans would say not to read too much into the Dewsbury game as it was a very young side that ran out there, but the Castleford trial game was an ominous scoreline. Things weren't quite so bad in the repeat fixture for Round 1, but Bradford still lost and that will put extra pressure on them for this big clash. By all accounts it was a lack of concentration and execution in the second half that saw Castleford take control and Bradford run out of steam.

Wakefield may also say not too much should be read into the trial games, as they didn't have any of their new signings yet. Something can be read in to their season opener though, which really they only lost from poorer goal kicking on the day, and Ali Lauititi was convinced he should have had another try but we were too far away to judge. What we did see is Reece Lyne drop a great chance to score near the end. Wakefield showed flashes of threat in the first half and controlled the second half against Salford. They looked further ahead of where we expected them to be with a quarter of their squad only just getting on board, but debutants Pita Godinet and Matt Ryan imposed themselves on the team and grabbed tries, with Paul McShane also very impressive.

Wakefield certainly played the full 80 minutes and its something Bradford will have to match them on if they are to take anything away from this early season relegation four pointer. It should be tense and enjoyable for the restricted attendance that will be in town. If you're going to the game, we'll see you there!

Other games in Round 2
21/02/2014 20:00 Leeds v Warrington *live on Sky Sports
21/02/2014 20:00 St Helens v Hull FC
22/02/2014 15:00 London v Salford
23/02/2014 15:00 Huddersfield v Hull KR
23/02/2014 15:30 Castleford v Catalan
TBA Wigan v Widnes *re-arranged due to Wigan playing in WCC, live on Sky Sports 22/02/2014 09:30

Listen to our predictions on Episode 5 of Super League Pod.

Thursday games
We saw a few Thursday night games at the end of the 2013 Super League season and they've been brought in as a more regular feature in 2014.

Despite them being played for a number of seasons in the Championships, bringing them to Super League has brought a whole lot of discussion from fans.

Mark thinks they should be a good thing for the sport commercially, as TV coverage is significant for club revenues if the sport is to progress and this will give the game exposure with less direct opposition from football, six nations rugby or prime television than Saturday evening games give us. The only real drawback he sees is it started the marginalisation of the Championships that resulted in that competition getting no live TV coverage in 2013 sadly. The moans of fans not being able to get to games is a less significant factor for Mark, its no different to a Friday night game for post-work travel issues and away followings aren't huge all across Super League anyway. Also, many of the announced Thursday night games are local affairs, and others have been announced long enough in advance that people can book their holidays appropriately if they feel they can't miss a game live. Maybe, it might have an impact on the amount of young kids that will be able to go to these games, but then again, its only one game a week and a couple of games each team.

We put the question of Thursday night games out on Twitter and here are some of the opinions you gave:

Ady Heaton ‏@wiganadheaton: Good for sky only.

Andy Barden ‏@Electric_gig: Good for the Sky Sports viewer, if its a big fixture. Also easier to watch then weekend afternoon games. You try watching afternoon games with Wife and Kids.

Paul ‏@mozza_Leeds: I personally think Thursday and Monday games are good. The only stipulation is that they should be derby games only. Cross Pennines games and London/France home games are not fair on the core fans, SL seem to forget about core fans.

Alan Cale ‏@shoddynmungo: Gives us a clear chance to showcase the game with little competition from other sports, let's see how attendances hold up

Martin Ramshaw ‏@martinramshaw: They're more conducive to a happy marriage than Friday nights!

andrew ‏@nuttyboyzok: Rubbish and stupid idea worse than Monday night games. The atmosphere is usually flat as not many away fans make it especially from Yorkshire

Listen out for us discussing all this and much more on Episode 5 of Super League Pod.

Round 1 - Salford v Wakefield preview

The last time we were both at the Salford City Stadium was an important moment in the genesis of our podcast. The idea wasn't born, but the seeds were sown.

Tom has already recalled memories of that trip, for his stag do last May. It was Mark's first experience of a Super League game as a neutral, stood in the away end, an unusual experience for many fans. More followed last year for us both and in our Challenge Cup Final journey, with Tom this time the neutral, the idea came together - to get a wider sense of Rugby League by taking in different experiences at different venues and occasions.

Here we are now, approaching our first 'feature game' of our first season. Where better to start than at a club with a new identity for 2014. A club grabbing positive headlines for the ambition they are showing and the new threat they will pose to the established order.

Last season

Both sides on view at the AJ Bell Stadium, as it's now known, have seen some significant changes in personnel in the off season, for opposite reasons. However, last season could still give us some clues about how this game may go and who will be the main men.

Really its hard to understand how Salford escaped Belle Vue with anything last season (but for four missed conversions it would have been a different story), and its clear how Wakefield took Salford apart in the return fixture. 

A couple of key numbers to pull out are the missed tackles and penalties - Salford gave themselves a lot of extra work to do in those two games. 

Something else of interest is the runs out of dummy half. Wakefield must have managed lots of fast play, though it wasn't just the hooker who was running out of dummy half with their back three getting involved plenty too. It's a tactic that clearly benefited them and winger Cockayne was a key performer in both games, as was full back Richie Mathers. 

Of course Cockayne has gone but the tactic can still be effective with the players they have, and Salford do have one of the oldest first team squads in Super League looking at their top 19/20 players. Quick and feisty play from the ruck could be a way to get at Salford. They were low in the league for marker tackles in 2013, and that with a younger side.

On the plus side for Salford, some of their new signings had strong games against Wakefield last term:

Six of those performances saw over 100m games from a variety of positions in matches with different outcomes. The attacking numbers Hock produced directly against the strength of the Wakefield team in captain Danny Kirmond are a positive to look for come Sunday for Salford.

Keys to the game

There are areas where Wakefield can attack Salford. Around the ruck is an area they got at last season. They should also have a good understanding of what Tim Smith will be looking to do with ball in hand. Potential defensive weakness in the halves is another factor the Wildcats will try to exploit.

However, you would have to fancy the Red Devils as favourites with their expensively assembled team in a much better state of preparation than the Wakefield side still uncertain over how much a role their new overseas signings can have, assuming they arrive this week. The bookies are making the Reds big odds on favourites.

Form

Certainly the preseason hasn't offered Wakefield great reason for optimism. After a hard fought draw on boxing day at Leeds, a close to full strength side were well beaten by Featherstone before a strong first half showing at Hunslet meant a big, yet scrappy, win rounded off the trial games.

Salford on the other hand had a camp in South Africa and just the two trial games. A win at Leigh was followed by a defeat at Warrington, although the fans were very buoyant despite the loss and it seems they are confident going into the season.

Other games in Round 1

13/02/2014 20:00 Warrington v St Helens *live on Sky Sports

14/02/2014 20:00 Hull FC v Catalan *live on Sky Sports

16/02/2014 15:00 Widnes v London
16/02/2014 15:00 Hull KR v Leeds
16/02/2014 15:00 Bradford v Castleford

Listen out for our predictions of Episode 4 of Super League Pod and send us yours!