For most of SL the team finishing top hasn't played the same set of fixtures as everyone else due to the screwy fixture lists, so arguably crowning them champions wouldn't have been a true reflection of the best side. While that was the case, choosing the champions via the playoffs made sense.

Now that we have a simple fixture list the team finishing top is unquestionably the best side over the course of the season and you could return to crowning them champions. Although it should be mentioned that in fact RL has chosen it's champions via playoffs for the vast majority of it's existence.

I'm pretty relaxed about either method TBH, although if we stick to the playoff format (and I'm sure we will) then I'd like to see the status of finishing top enhanced in some way to properly recognise the achievement.

Awful turnouts like this year's playoffs you mean?

Also I don't recall feeling that we'd won a 'Mickey Mouse cup' at Old Trafford in '91.

It is strange that people ignore this.



No way Leeds should have to play 2 matches to get to the GF. TBH I liked the existing format of top 6 with 1v2 in a GF eliminator.

is that partly due to our long periods between sucesses though?

would Leeds or Saints be that excitied about winning a 'premiership'

I don't think this playoff system is that bad, it just happens that clubs who get lower gates have ended up in the top 8 this year. Whilst the better attended clubs like ourselves, Wire and Bradford weren't in it.

I think the RFL need to look at the price of tickets though, such as offering much better discounts for tickets bought in advance, or even the RFL/SKY distributing cheap tickets like they do for televised Championship games.

I also think the 'old' format would have still led to the same quality of rugby. Because this year the elimination games have been at the same average/poor standard that the 'qualifying' games were last weekend.

but the problem is that if they only had to play one, then they'd have weeks off without a game, which can itself be bad for a team.

I guess that most people who post on here got into the game after 1973 when RL abandoned playoffs. They will have grown up with the 'top of the league' system and so the playoffs just feel like a recent invention to them.

TBH I know how they feel, as I started following RL in the mid 80's myself.


I agree. Seems to me that the top 8 format was thrown together with little thought when it was realised that sticking with the top 6 would leave too many clubs with nothing to play for in the later stages of the competition.

No and i too thought it was a great achievment for us. However and you should remember this a lot of the sides played weakened teams for this competition.



I agree but not everyone can afford to go to the play off games as well. A basic family of 4 would be set back roughly £100 for each game in the playoffs especially if away from home.
It's not just 1 or 2 games it is up to 4 games in the space of a month which could set a family back over £400 and not that many families can justify or afford that amount.
So from a average family of 4's point of view i could understand them waiting till the final eliminator before attending.

The incompetent rovers shop have struggled with their ticketing system so there could be 14000 there tonight!!

8100

A disgrace to the game

Good few from Wigan in that

We got 16,314

hopefully next week the real play off games will start, tense, drama and exciting rugby

"Dear Santa,
All I want for Christmas is to see Rovers win a play off game

Yours Sincerely,
Justin Morgan
Age 34"

Just wondering if everyone on here thought that the new playoff system is rubbish and what everyone else would prefer instead of the current system?

Personally i feel that teams finishing outside the top half of the league getting in the playoffs is bollox so my playoffs would be:

Top 7 get through to play offs

First Round

2nd vs 7th
3rd vs 6th
4th vs 5th

Second Round - Team finshing 1st now has 'ClubCall' as we know the RFL won't accept binning it after instating it.

1st plays winner of any of above games and the other 2 remaining teams play.

The winners of 2 above games play in the grandfinal at Old Trafford.

Thoughts?

Although i never saw fault with Top 6 playoff system