I am not a football fan and don't watch it, but given its success both financially and in terms of attendances I guess they have got things right.

The system isn't right. Its all about money, viewing figures and about SKY

Although as a Saints fan I'm delighted to be at Old Trafford the team that finished top should always be the Champions.

As I have always been an advocate of having the World Club Challenge played at the end of the season and not at the start
it would be possible to have an expanded World Club Challenge if the team that finished top of SL were crowned as Champions and less matches were played.

It would make every round of SL much more important and at the end of the season we could have top four from SL playing the top four in the NRL in a pure knockout sudden death system following drawing teams out of the hat. The tournament could alternate each year from the Northern to the Southern Hemisphere.
The NRL would have to change thier play off system as well to accomodate it though and that wouldn't be easy.

If this system was in operation we would have Wigan as Challenge Cup winners, Warrington as SL Champions.

Wouldn't it be great for Warrington, Wigan, St Helens and Huddersfield to be going head to head with Melbourne, Manly, Brisbane and Wests Tigers in a knock out competition.

So you are saying the injustice is the reason why they didn't win and not the system in place.
In which case your loss in 2005 (?) was just a case of hard cheese, I am talking about a system which allows a mediocre team to finish 8th but still be called Champions, would that be for the good of our game?

I agree with Saddo on this one. I like playoffs in sport, NFL, NRL, Super League. I'd be disappointed if it went back to just the league.

I'm still pleased that we won the league though, that's an achievement for me and I'm always going to have happy memories of 2011. But no complaints from me about 1st and 2nd not being in the Grand Final - us and the pies have played 5 playoffs between us and had 2 wins and 3 losses. Saints and Leeds played 5 playoffs between them and had 5 wins and 0 losses.

Now your talking, that really would be for the good of the game.

I must admit I think 8th is too far. There isn't the quality in the league to go past 6th. I've put my theory about the ideal series on here recently, but I do agree with the playoffs as a concept. Imagine the NRL without the Grand Final? Imagine the NFL without the Superbowl?

Your tedness know's no bounds, does it

The 3 point game has to have it, as their games occur whilst Internationals are being played at the same time as their club games, so hardly fair to the clubs that have 5 or so players involved in internationals, is it.

And as for the other sports you've mentioned...well, they're all American (and as boring as @@@@, too) DO WE HAVE TO COPY EVERYTHING THEY DO???????????????

Let's face it, this seasons play-offs are 'tainted'
Poor interest, spectator wise
Two teams that finished a long way behind the leaders, will be contesting the final, to be called 'champions'...but fair play to them, they've done a job when they've had to. BUT, at the end of the day, they've turned a competition for a LEAGUE, into that of a CUP............poor.

THE LEAGUE IS THE LEAGUE....END OF

And between Wigan and us we have had 42 wins this season whilst Leeds and Saints have had 32 wins, which is the greater achievement and should be reconised as such?

And between Wiagn and us we have had 42 wins this season whilst Leeds and Saints have had 32 wins, which is the greater achievement and should be reconised as such?

Sorry double post

The league table recognises it.

In 2009 we had 12 wins in the league and Huddersfield had 18 wins, but we won one more game in the Challenge Cup. Was their achievement greater than ours?

But thats part of my point currently all the kudos is given to the G/F winners, the best team in the Comp gets no more than a 'mention' as League Leaders. Thus not correctly recognising and rewarding the best team over a season. But potentially hailing a mediocre team as Champs.

By the way I do not perceive either Leeds or Saints as mediocre.

I don't see what the problem is with the play offs, it's a format that's been going for nigh on a century. Leeds finished top of the league many times only to be beaten in the playoffs. We only classed ourselves as "champions" for the first time when we won the playoffs in 1961, and rightly so. How about Tiger Woods walking off on the 17th hole at the open championship and declaring himself the winner or Mickhael schummacer finishing a couple of laps early and declaring himself champion. It ain't over till it's over and 8th October is when the champions are crowned. Nobody remembers the "hubcap" winners and you only get a winners ring when you walk up the steps at Old Trafford. It's fair because they're the rules and everyone knows that at the start of the season.

We currently play to a system which allows a team to win 29 games on the run and lose the 30th to end up with nothing. That 30th game could be lost to a team that finished in the bottom half of the table and maybe only won 17 games all season, though crucially they won their last 4 games.

No it isn't 'right', but it is the way the competition is arranged. Good luck to Saints and Leeds, they couldn't get close over 27 rounds of SL, but they have been able to get the results when they REALLY mattered.

The current format the way it is at the moment would mean there would be nothing stopping us playing our kids in the league for 80% of our games next season lower the standard of the super league regular season, scrape 8th place and then go into the playoffs which is apparently the big thing with a fully fit and fresh squad, maybe then the RFL would have to have a rethink , it does seem quite silly and embarassing from other sports perspectives that the league basically means nothing. and yes i thought this last season aswell

I've said it for years and I'll say it again as a Leeds fan who's team may or may not benefit from the current system next week - there is not enough kudos given to the winners of the league after the weekly rounds, its really got nothing to do with the Grand Final but its everything to do with a complete lack of respect from everyone in the game (players coaches and admin) and particularly from Sky Sports - any team who finishes at the top the premier professional league in one of the worlds toughest sport deserves to be recognised with a title that is at the least equivalent to the winner of the grand final.