They are playing top notch rugby in comparison to the competition they have, and therefore a joy to watch. As you say they can only beat what is put in front of them, but all that competition is absolute dire in comparison to years gone by. Forget the attacking quality, even if these poor teams played with the sort of desire and intensity in defence that teams were doing in previous years, then that quality attacking game of Cas wouldn't really be happening.

The (not so) great thing about threads like this one, is that they can never be resolved. Short of a back to the future style intervention, Cas 2017 can never play Leeds 2004, I bet it'd be a belter of a game though. The important things for mine is that 1) Cas have been the stand out Team this year and as others have said a joy to watch (unless they were playing us) and 2) There appears to be a consensus that Super League is going backwards. If 2) is true, it doesn't bode well for the future of the sport we love.

It isn't only Super League going backwards. The game as a whole, including the NRL is going the same way.

Even if you could what rules do you play it under? The ruck, PTB's, 3/4 men in a tackle etc, so much different from 2004.

Perhaps a better closer comparison would be Warrington 2011 vs Castleford 2017. Both played great attacking rugby, scored points for fun, won their 1st LLS, got knocked out of the cup in the QF by the eventual winners and just like Cas are going to do Wire lost a home playoff SF when everyone thought they were nailed to reach Old Trafford

I think the difference between this Cas side & other teams from earlier years, even the better Cas team of c1992, is that this one is better coached. The Leeds, Bradford, Saints, Wigan teams were stacked with great players who played a far more off the cuff style with plenty of individual brilliance. Cas have improved as a team & as a squad over the last 4 years, but there are only probably a couple of players who are shoe-ins for England, Aus or NZ. I reckon Hull have easily the top squad in SL, but Radford lacks attacking nous as a coach.

It not even close, firstly Cas have not even won the grand final or got their yet and even if they do, the 2004 side would wipe the floor with them, there are simply not players in super league like senior furner and Ali, especially Ali, that before we mention the golden generation. Cas have assembled a good side out of misfits average players and upstarts and produced a good unit. the Leeds 2004 side was a great unit and team but backed up by some sensational individuals. the 2015 Leeds side is also way better than this Cas side. they may have lost more games than 2004 but when it came to peaking and big games they were unbeatable.

for the record i think the leeds side from 207-209 3 in a row was the best team/squad over a sustained period. that was the golden generation at the peak and only saints could get close.

It is a largely impossible comparison, since the competitions are so different.

I would however make the point that Leeds in 2004 had to contend with the nucleus of the unstoppable Bulls team of 2003 (that beat us five times), a Saints team that had the likes of Long, Sculthorpe and Cunningham in their prime (before the betting scandal hit later that season), and a Wigan team that were repeatedly breaking the salary cap in that period or had exemptions to do so.

In contrast, the nearest competition for Cas in 2017 seem to be a Leeds side that came close to finishing bottom of the table in the previous year...

I agree with this. Also think Wigan have a better all round squad man for man on paper than Cas. A huge amount of the plaudits and praise has to go to Powell and his coaching team for where they have got this group of players to where they are at the minute, and the style they have done it in is even more impressive.I Wish more sides in the league were coached in such a way, SL would then become a very watchable product again across the board.

Pains me to say, but although i agree with everything you say, the best team of the whole SL era was the 2006 Saints with Lyon at his peak- Sculthorpe, Long, Pryce, Wellens, Cunningham etc.. - Huge front rowers and a young Graham and Roby. Despite all our superb sides i don't think we ever got a year that would topple that team.

Guffaw, chortle, s

I can't make my mind up about the current Wigan side.
Tomkins's - both a shadow of their former selves
Burgess - ditto atm
Lealuai - ditto
Manfredi - great player, who knows how he will come back
Gelling - too stupid for words
Gildart - great prospect but too small to be world class
Williams - great player, needs a half back coach
Forwards - Bateman - brilliant. Farrell - SL workhorse. O'L - great leader/player, how long has he left?
None of the others are up to much. Some good prospects, but that's all they are atm.

I'd rather have the Leeds squad on balance.

Wigan are tired. For nearly a decade now they have been focussed on physicality and they just arent strong now.

People say the SC has been a leveller and it has undoubtedly brought the big clubs back to the pack, but i think people underestimate the effect of how many games we are playing a lot of teams just look spent far too often.

Yes but we were in a bit of transition year 2006, they were great side but a year later on with practically the same squad and on course for a successive treble we whooped them in the grand final. and the next 2 years as well. our squad in 2007 was much better than out average 2006 squad only hull challenged saints that year. our 20078-2009 squad was better than saints squad 2007-2009 which was mainly the 2006 squad minus lyon from 2008 onwards.

Really? Leeds 2006 was not transition and was pretty much the same squad in 2007 and 2005 for that matter, infact we had added JP for 2006. we were just not good enough and got mugged in the play offs first against Wire iirc.

Lets not forget 2007 saints won the LLS shield again and again in 2008, i think 2008 they had like a 22 or 23 match winning streak, that was a great team and we did fantastically well to win 3 in a row over that lot. I still believe 2006 was it's peak though and was the best side SL has seen although it would be close between the Bulls early 2000's and our 2007/8 sides.

In 2006 Saints scored 48 points and 2007 it was 38.

Leeds were 38 points in 2006 down to 37 a year later but teams did play a game less, so seems more a case of Saints dropping back a bit.

Whilst no real change in points we won the additions of Kylie and most crucially Webb in 2007 were big. Add in Donald settling after a poor debut year and Peacock after being switched between prop and 2nd row in 2006.