You're just dissapointed because you were supposed to be making your debut.

Well yes me and Winslade and trained hard all week, the John smiths had been going down real well. But I can accept they got scared of us making the squad and then I guess Saddened had a word about how dangerous we were once he knew we were only being paid in jelly Babies.

I will refrain from making any further comments as I've been suspended from other forums for a week this year due to breaking rules on the virus

Well lets hope you are not still contagious then.

A 24 : 0 walkover would only be if a team could not fulfil a fixture due to other reasons, such as injury. If the game is off due to 7 or more covid cases and / or close contacts then the game is postponed. It may be rescheduled for a later date if both clubs can find a suitable date. Clubs need to get 18 games in this season, after that it goes on percentage wins.

The league has weighted the fixture list such that there are more games towards the back end, after we unlocked, so as to maximise revenue. The clubs are all feeling the pinch financially so they would want to play as many home games as possible, but it won’t be easy. Probably the best that will happen is if you find out early in the week that your scheduled opponents can’t play then you may be able to re-arrange with another club (I think that it was Hull KR vs Catalan that got rescheduled this way?). That isn’t possible this week as, so far, all the other games are on.

I'd say that would be fairer, but it won't happen. The league won't want to reschedule things unless they have to (i.e. two or more clubs have to pull out of the Magic Weekend) and the maths doesn't actually work at the moment because Wigan have yet to miss a game, so you'd need to 'fudge it' in some way.

Stop testing healthy professional athletes? Just a suggestion.

I think it’s fair to start to raise that argument, or similar arguments. Anyone who is vulnerable has been vaccinated or at least had the choice to. All over-18s have had at least one dose or been offered it. We’re about as vaccinated as we’ll ever be, and the virus will always be in general circulation. A lot of what we’re doing at the moment is more about pleasing those who remain anxious. The problem is, that anxiety will only get worse the longer you let people believe that the virus will somehow go away, or that we can survive with all these faux restrictions in place that now aren’t really making any difference other than destroying livelihoods and putting more people into poverty (ironically shortening their lifespans anyway).

Time to wake up to reality and go about life responsibly but normally.

Or how about continue the testing and if a player is positive they don’t play and those that are negative do play, regardless of any contact.

Is the testing the main problem here? Surely it’s the rules that are being adopted and then open to abuse from club to club? Quite simply it’s too easy for a club who have a couple positive case amongst key men, a few others banned or injured, to then say we can’t play because we’ve also got half a dozen close contacts too. Who stipulates who is and isn’t a close contact? It won’t be an independent body that’s for sure.

During the Euros Billy Gilmour tested positive, yet I’m pretty certain none of his team mates had to self isolate. Are we saying he didn’t have close contact with any of them?

Of course though it was in Scotland’s best interests to play their games, fulfil their fixtures and utilise their whole squad, in Super League that’s just not the case, especially when certain clubs are better off not playing, rather than actually playing and getting beat.

I think it'd be better to stop telling healthy people to self-isolate after a negative test.

And scrap the postponement rule. You either play, or forfeit the game.

How dare anyone suggest something as sensible as scrapping the pointless magic weekend, or even more sensible, using the dead space where the world cup would've been in November, to complete the outstanding fixtures. Of course the RFL won't go for this because it moves the final back a few weeks.

Yeah agreed. Unless a player starts to develop symptoms then do a test but at the minute clubs are testing 30 odd players and staff each week and then using that as an excuse to postpone games for their own advantage if one player tests positive. It shouldn’t be allowed and something has got to change.

Other sports have been and are still testing their players regularly, yet it’s not causing similar disruption to their fixtures.

Footballers literally travelled all over Europe for a month for the Euros and completed the tournament with little or no disruption, even though several players tested positive.

The issue isn’t the testing, the issue is the league format and governing body giving teams far too much leeway and little incentive to complete their fixtures.

How many games scheduled to be shown on sky have been called off due to this covid..only asking because do clubs get money from there game being on sky...e.g Hull been on sky twice recently Leeds and saints..play us and it's off...or is this me being synical

I have a confession. After 40+ years of watching RL and preaching the mantra that it is the greatest game, I find myself enjoying football as much, even more in some cases. I've been a Man Utd fan all my life, but football always came a distant second to RL in my affections, and for sheer excitement and awe - no more.

We can no longer pretend that our game is in anything other than significant decline in all areas if we want to.save professional RL.

The cap has drained the sport of star quality yet clubs still throw marquee money at overseas "stars"
The sanitised, sterility of the game with it left devoid of aggression has robbed it of much of its gladiatorial appeal
Standard of officials, at an all time low and that's quite a statement
Lack of direction, transparency, leadership and commercial acumen from the governing bodies
Constant tinkering with the rules

COVID has merely emphasised the glaring void in a sport bereft of a modern, forward thinking, dynamic leadership.