With regard to how much kudos it gets you the LL trophy itself is virtually meaningless outside your own fanbase, even then to many it has no true value in the sense of silverware. Yes it's a physical award but with the play-offs still to go to reach the true finale it's always being a bit limp.

Nobody looks back (nor indeed is it registered in the clubs history) stating that Hull FC were the LLs in 1922/23 when Hull KR that won that seasons play-off, and vice versa in 20/21 when Hull won the play-offs and Rovers were the league leaders.

I personally don't think the trophy/award in itself makes any difference at all except for the money and theoretically better fixtures which have far more intrinsic value and meaning with regards the end goal. You could say that being at the top instills more confidence but then as seen, any team at any time can lose, top of the league/long winning streak or not.
IF we do finish top, I just hope we don't do a Huddersfield!

League leaders shield should go to whoever is top after everyone as played each other twice. But like many have said, doesn't really mean a great deal anyway

finishing top proves you are the best team,winning the grand final does not.leeds won grand final finishing 5th,what did that prove.nothing apart from you can win a few games at end of season.its obviously makes money and sky like it,but to me its a micky mouse end of season non event.

RL has traditionally decided it's champions through a play-off event, so whether you agree with the system or not it's hardly 'mickey mouse'. Neither is it an invention of Sky.

Deciding the champions by whoever finishes top was a relatively short-lived system when compared to play-offs.

Has anyone heard the rumour that the challenge cup will now be awarded after the 1/4 finals?

No One has won the league leaders shield playing less than 27 games
and in other seasons we've had some form of concocted extra fixtures.

when the league had 12 teams it meant you only had 22 games if you played everyone once. So we got those random extra 6 and then later 5 games..........

when we had 14 teams we just got the one extra magic weekend game......

Year Leaders Pld
2003 Bradford 28
2004 Leeds 28
2005 St Helens 28
2006 St Helens 28
2007 St Helens 27
2008 St Helens 27
2009 Leeds 27
2010 Wigan 27
2011 Warrington 27
2012 Wigan 27
2013 Huddersfield 27
2014 St Helens 27
2015 Leeds 30

Pains me to say it but it is deserved, best team of 2016 finished top.

Don't the quarter finalists have to play off in a new fangled mini league called semis and final though?

The first grand final was'nt until 1998 so not sure what your getting at by saying rl traditionally used play offs to decide champions. The premiership was never that and basically a end of season knock out trophy were you had to finish in the top 8 to be in it but the championship was already awarded ( normally to Wigan in my time ) before that for team that finished top.sorry if misunderstood you but rl being round long before 1998

What Kosh said was that the champions had traditionally been decided by a play-off event, the concept of being crowned champions after being top of the league is a relatively new one, introduced in the early seventies I think. Prior to then, the championship was awarded after an end of season play-off system, similar to now.

Then he's wrong.the grand final was'nt until 1998.before then if you finished top you wad champions like Bradford was before the play offs were introduced. Maybe we've had the play offs in super league for longer than not but r.l wasn't invented in 1998.i like the play offs and wouldn't go back to no play offs but in the history rugby league the play offs are a relatively new concept although they av been around for 17 yrs now

I think you need to do a bit of research before you make yourself look even less informed