It has been confirmed today that the two teams in 13th and 14th at the end of the season will be relegated.

Most sensible option. However should anyone other than the expected celler dwellers find themselves in the bottom two there may be a rethink.

11th must be this year's target. That way it mitigates any potential meddling from the RFL as they attempt to fudge this new structure.

I was gonna say exactly the same Khlav!

No way would I be giggling if it was, say

Castleford
Wakefield
London

or even

Castleford
Wakefield
Catalans
London

10th is definitely the safety net, 11th/12th you're in trouble of being crapped on from a great height if your post code begins with WF

I think the bottom two will go down but there are enough ways to make sure London and Bradford are not those clubs. Think back to Wigan and all the breaks they were given the year they were in trouble.

Imagine the fancy footwork up at Red Hall if Salford or Catalans finished in the bottom 2!

It would make Michael Jackson look positively flat footed

Will be very interesting if either London, Catalans or Salford make up the bottom 2.

This^^^^^
I fully expect to see some dubious refereeing decisions down at the hive this season - in order to keep them safe!

I think the opposite of London. Unless they have a stellar season, which I doubt they will, I can't see how continued thumpings in the super league helps them at all. The new format will help clubs like them, as they would have better games, potentially, with something to strive for, and allow them to rebuild.

It would be different for Catalan. We can forget about Salford finishing in the bottom two though; their squad is too strong.

It's between us, London, Bradford and Hull KR. I think Cas will have a strong season; Powell has given them some steel, and no longer being a one-man team may help them. Hull KR will miss Dobson, and they can be poor at times. Bulls will be all about the money and lasting the season, I guess. I just hope they do it with a straight bat and without help that could be deemed extra help. Iconic help, perhaps.

Us? Haven't a clue. I think we'll have good spirit but there are so many teams with better squads. It will be a long and nail biting one, that's all I know.

Salford - Strong 17 but I'm not too convinced how well they would cope with a few injuries, plus the jury is still out for me on whether Chase and Smith will make a good partnership.
Cas - Hard to say. Powell has definitely made a difference to them and I know what you're saying about the one-man team thing but how many games did they win when Chase wasn't playing well or not there.
Bradford - Definitely stronger, just depends on whether they survive from a monetary point of view
Hull KR - Don't look as strong as last season, especially with the loss of Dobson
London - Still not got a full squad and what they have looks quite inexperienced barring the odd few players.

As for Wakey - I worry that we have a couple of games to start the season that we should be looking to get points from and yet we are still short of our 3 (4?) overseas signings that should make all the difference to the strength of the team we can put out. Unless they arrive in the next 2 days they are going to start the season without a competitive game playing with their team-mates.

It's going to be a real struggle this season IMO, but I'll back them all the way and we've always done better when written off than when expectations were higher.

Chase made a difference and won games on his own at times - but they were games we should be winning anyway - last year he orchestrated wins against Widnes, HKR and Bradford all at home

BUT he threw the game away for us at Salford, and cost us at least a point at your place on the last day of the season. His interception passes were becoming as famous down Cas as his line-breakers, cause he did them at THE worst times.

Ultimately, we have far more squad depth this year, and I'm much happier with us not playing as a one-man-band any more, with a big experienced squad.

I'd be surprised if we do worse than last season, and I think anyone else would too to be honest.

As for Hull KR, I think they've a similar situation really, but we will know when summer rolls in

FWIW these are my probably mis-guided musings....

Warrington, Wigan, Saints, Leeds & Huddersfield will be the top five again, so what about the others?

Hull - As you were. Should do better given their size and resources. They have lost some key players in Holdsworth, Briscoe & Tickle but their recruitment will keep them at a similar level. They will make the 8 think but another year of under achievement beckons.

Catalans - Possibly due to their set up the biggest set of playing resources in the league. They beat London in a friendly last week with a team that had just 11 out of the squad with superleague experience. 16 potentail first choice players didn't play yet they still looked quite impressive. Always hard to beat at home and will be a top 8 team again i reckon.

Salford - Major recruitment drive and the have bought well. Yes a few of their players are nearing the end of their career but they still have enough in the tank and bring bags of experience. May take them a while to gel but they won't be even close to the bottom end of the table come september. They may start slowly but ultimatley the play offs are a realistic goal.

London - Are, in my opinion, a shoe-in for bottom spot, their team of youngsters will struggle and strength in depth will be a major issue. They may surprise a couple of teams along the way on their new home patch but there will be some good thumpings as well. Time for them to rebuild the brand for a few years in the championship.

Cas - The loss of Chase will be a big one, is Brett Seymour really the man to replace him? They seem to have gone for quantity over quality, signings like Wheeldon, Gibson, Dorn, Finn, Sneyd, Channing all from the bottom two teams or the championship from last year and are all very average. Lynch is getting on a bit and Mariano, as we know, can be hit and miss. The partnership between Carney & Webster is crucial for them if, and its a big if, they are available. Powell will toughen them up and they will be too good to go down but not good enough for the play-offs.

Hull KR - Yes they have lost Dobson and will miss him, but they have recruited well and have plenty of depth. Keating is a decent replacement and guys like Costigan, Langley, Weyman, Cockayne & Poore will have them close to the 8, if not in it.

Bradford - All depends whether the financial issues bite. If they can keep their current team togther then the top 8 is a chance and relegation won't be an issue as they look stronger than last year. If they have to lose a couple or more of their key players then it could be a different story and a struggle could be on the cards. Personally think they will miraculously manage to hang onto their main men and finish 9th or 10th.

Widnes - The one people seem to be over-looking. I don't really see much improvement in them from last year. Yes Tickle is a good pick up for them but they have lost Hock to mitigate it, and Winterstein always did a decent job for them. I rate Hanbury highly at fullback and Brown & Mellor are a good halfback pairing but a couple of long term injuries and they could struggle. If their key players stay fit then they should be ok but they won't break any pots.

Wakefield - So onto us. I really want to be optimistic and say we can defy the critics, backs to the wall style, Wakey spirit etc, etc but I am genuinely fearful this time round. Our first choice team will be competitive no doubt but the squad looks painfully thin in areas and our key signings from overseas have yet to even get on a plane here. It really isn't helpful to have your potential halfback partnership sat waiting for visas/passports so close to the begiining of the season. It looks like they will have no pre-season game match practice and precious little training time before the start of the season, making it likely that it will take longer for the team to get the combinations right. Last weekends cancellation hasn't helped the prep, neither has the cancelling of the pre-season camp. And with games against a still gelling Salford, a troubled Bradford, Catalans at home and London in the first five rounds then a good start is vital but we look up against it from the start. With only 2000 season tickets sold it seems like crowds will be down so Belle Vue won't seen particularly intimidating to visit. The Wakey fan in me says will a bit of luck with injuries we will sneak 12th and be ok. But in all honesty if I was a neutral i'd be tipping us for that second relegation spot. Either way its going to be a very tough year. Fingers crossed.

A fair assessment from WTID. I think London will drop and one of Cas, Widnes Bradford and Trinity will join them.if Kear was in charge I'd back Trinity to survive. As it's Agar I don't think he has it in him to inspire the team to safety.

Hopefully I will be wrong.

Yes, I forgot about Widnes!

I can't help thinking that they are getting a little better each year. For us, we will be in the mix until the end, as hopefully a lot of the mid-table teams are close enough to each other to keep taking points from each other.