The qualifiers are making a monkey out of anyone trying to predict anything. Last week, Widnes seemed on a roll while Hull KR were unconvincing. This week Hull KR pass the finishing line at the expense of Widnes!

You'd have to say Leigh seem to have the easiest run-in - if 'easy' is a fair description, with 2 games against championship sides. They should win both and finish on 8 points.

Catalans have the hardest run in, with two super league clubs, especially as one - Widnes - will be desperate to win. Cats fans will have to hope Hull KR might ease up, having achieved their goal. But one win won't be enough for the Cats, as their points difference is inferior to Leigh and it's hard to see it making up the ground.

Most people would back Widnes to beat London at home, securing them 8 points going into their final game with the Cats, and again they've got a much better points difference than the French side.

Bottom line is that if Cats don't win both of their next two games, they'll be playing away in the MPG. If they do win their next two games, they'll not be in the MPG at all. Their future is still in their hands, but the way they've struggled to beat championship opposition in these games suggests that they will soon join London and Bradford in being dumped out of Super League as a direct consequence of the catastrophic decision to bring back promotion and relegation to a sport which can ill-afford even more contraction to small towns and small crowds along the M62 corridor.

loop

Cats could finish 9th and not get relegated.

There is a hidden agenda in all this, and it would not surprise me to see no relegation this year!

Think there wil be a few changes to our team on Friday v Catalans can't see us beating them

Think you are right, Rovers will relax, they have done the job, Catalans vs Widnes should decide who goes up and who plays in the MPG against leigh.

Fair play to Rovers, Widnes attacking play was awful, never looked like scoring and the only time they did it resulted in a Rovers try.

And it's this that makes a mockery of this system.

You'd get extra money and a trophy for winning the middle 8's and it ain't to be sniffed at.

If HKR forfeit their game against Cats, there will be uproar.

Leigh fielded their strongest side for all 7 games last year. H Kr should be no different.

Unfortunately this kind of things happen in all sports all over the world, so it's nothing to do with the system.

I'm sure Sheens will put out a strong side and will want to win, but in a 50/50 with one team desperate to win and one with nothing to play for, think there will only be one winner.

Sheens will play the strongest side available. However, anyoneneeding surgery before next season or carrying a moderate knock probably won't play as their treatment will start now to prepare for next year. Next week will probably see some talented young players like ZDC and Atkin with a few seniors. If Cats are that bad we still might sneak it. It may also be an indication of players we might release, like Ellis, if he plays them injured.

For me, Widnes to go down. Feel sorry for the fans, but the team is very ordinary and the owners haven't done anything about Betts all season when it is clear he is clueless.

You need help, there is no one hiding under the bed and the bogey man isn't real either

Also, Catalan were 10th before the qualifiers ??
Do you mean lose the MPG and not get relegated ?

From the perspective of a top 4/top 8 Super League club you really don't realise how brutal these Qualifiers are until you end up playing in them. You just assume SL clubs with beat Ch clubs and stay up with no real concerns, which in the main is what ends up happening. However once you're actually involved you discover how genuinely easier said than done that actually is. Wires have been dreadful in the last three games, absolutely awful, and our only saving grace is that the level of opposition just wasn't quite good enough to get over the line and beat us, but they all had a very good go at it. 68 points conceded V London and Leigh and two wins with a total of +4 points difference. If either had managed to punish us then we would still be at very risk of being dragged into the MPG because even ten points can land you in it if you get unlucky with other results not going your way. I agree with P&R because I've always firmly believed there should be a pathway to Super League that can be achieved by simply winning games. I also think the current format is quite good because it creates exciting and close competition which is what sport needs. It has been a horrible month to be a Wire though and there's no celebration just relief that it's now effectively over for us.

We've earned the right to do what we want now, still think we'll play a strongest side but the likes of Scruton need ops and carney maybe wouldve played but now there's no point in risking them.

Bottom line is two of leigh, Widnes and Catalan will have it in there own hands regardless of what we do. I don't envy þhe two who end up in the MPG but they will have that on crack at staying up.

We owe nobody any favours and I'm sure we feel no obligation to anyone. I hope we play the under-12's on Friday.

You fielded your strongest 17 'cos you don't run an academy or reserve team.

That's a terrible indictment saying that clubs like London, catalan and Bradford can't survive in a competitive industry, therefore should be subsidised by the creation of a cartel.

Sport is the ultimate competition, if you don't believe in competition in rugby league then it's basically saying rl is not worthy to be a sport.

Widnes 8 (6icon_cool.gif - London H, Catalan A.
Catalan 6 (-12) - Hull KR A, Widnes H.
Leigh 4 (2icon_cool.gif - Halifax H, London A.
London 3 (13) - Widnes A, Leigh H.

Next two weeks are going to be very interesting in the super eights. I genuinely hope that London get into the MPG, it'll show the system works even more with HKR promoted & another championship team in the MPG.

If you have to rely on other teams then it's your own fault really it's dog eat dog as we found out last year saying that I hope you stay up

I agree that there probably will be changes but not wholesale. Sheens will still want the team to win and will devise a suitable game plan with the players at his disposal to do just that.
I believe he will choose to include a sprinkling of fringe players such as Oakes and Cator etc, with senior experienced heads in there as well.
One thing is for sure, the younger players who Sheens does pick will all want to show what they can do, so you can be sure that they will all be fired up for the game against Catalans.