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I'm gonna go for London to win, we're familiar with the league, know what to expect and have built a bigger squad both in numbers and size. I don't see anyone getting promoted though. Underestimate Featherstone at your peril, they'll be up there and I fancy them to upset the applecart and finish second. We played them a few times last year and probably should've finished higher.

Toulouse....if they can survive the league it will be a good year for them coz they're going down the route of developing young French players and not going on a buying spree which is totally the right thing to do. Their squad might be a bit small and need one or two bodies though.

I think the standard of the league will be a bit of a shock to Hull KR as it was for us and they'll come third. I fear for Sheffield.

My Championship table at the end of the season is:

London

Fev

Hull KR

Batley

Halifax

Toulouse

Oldham

Bradford (after 6 points deducted)

Dewsbury

Sheffield

Swinton

Rochdale

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I'm gonna go for London to win, we're familiar with the league, know what to expect and have built a bigger squad both in numbers and size. I don't see anyone getting promoted though. Underestimate Featherstone at your peril, they'll be up there and I fancy them to upset the applecart and finish second. We played them a few times last year and probably should've finished higher.

Toulouse....if they can survive the league it will be a good year for them coz they're going down the route of developing young French players and not going on a buying spree which is totally the right thing to do. Their squad might be a bit small and need one or two bodies though.

I think the standard of the league will be a bit of a shock to Hull KR as it was for us and they'll come third. I fear for Sheffield.

My Championship table at the end of the season is:

London

Fev

Hull KR

Batley

Halifax

Toulouse

Oldham

Bradford (after 6 points deducted)

Dewsbury

Sheffield

Swinton

Rochdale

I predict that 2 teams will be promoted.

Leigh made it up this year despite traditionally weaker teams not finishing in the bottom 4 (Cas, Widnes and Wakey), due to Leeds poor form earlier in the year and Salford's pts deduction.

I reckon normality may resume and the championship clubs will find it easier. Should London and Toulouse finish on the top 4 they will be very difficult to beat on their own midden

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Why are people predicting that Oldham will finish above the Bulls?

 

Even with a likely 6 point deduction we will have very little trouble clawing them back if their performance when we smashed them 82-0 recently is anything to go by. And, besides, I predict that with a full pre-season with Rohan Smith as coach, we'll be much better this year than last.

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I'm gonna go for London to win, we're familiar with the league, know what to expect and have built a bigger squad both in numbers and size. I don't see anyone getting promoted though. Underestimate Featherstone at your peril, they'll be up there and I fancy them to upset the applecart and finish second. We played them a few times last year and probably should've finished higher.

Toulouse....if they can survive the league it will be a good year for them coz they're going down the route of developing young French players and not going on a buying spree which is totally the right thing to do. Their squad might be a bit small and need one or two bodies though.

I think the standard of the league will be a bit of a shock to Hull KR as it was for us and they'll come third. I fear for Sheffield.

My Championship table at the end of the season is:

London

Fev

Hull KR

Batley

Halifax

Toulouse

Oldham

Bradford (after 6 points deducted)

Dewsbury

Sheffield

Swinton

Rochdale

I'd go HKR, London, Bradford/Toulouse, agreed that Rochdale will probably be bottom but Swinton to survive and Sheffield to go down. I think that at least one club will go up (probably HKR) with Wakefield the most likely relegation candidate at the moment, but at that end of the table there are too many variables to be certain at present.

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The question, as always, is which club will flounder financially part way through the season and throw any predictions out of kilter. Who say Bradford will only get a twelve point penalty? Are Fev financially stable for once? Will Fax be able to cover the shortfalls in sponsorship and avoid players drifting away? Will Toulouse be any good outside of France? Will anyone turn up o watch a good London team play? Will Sheffield be able to find another local park to host their games?

 

Still too many ifs and buts to confidently predict anything. However:

 

1. Hull KR

2. London

3. Fev

4. Batley

5. Fax

6. Toulouse

7. Bradford

8. Dewsbury

9. Oldham

10. Sheffield

11. Rochdale

12. Swinton

Sport, amongst other things, is a dream-world offering escape from harsh reality and the disturbing prospect of change.

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The obvious unknown is the points penalty for the Bulls. 

 

The noises around these parts is that we'll get a new owner with serious dosh, so I'm optimistic that we'll end up with 'just' the 6 points. Over a 23 game season that's easy enough to pull back, as we've cleared out a load of deadwood and our excellent coach has his own squad for a full pre-season (by all accounts the players are training the house down!).

 

I'm confident that the patchy performances that have plagued us for the last two seasons will be thing of the past and we'll do really well. Hopefully, if we do get a wealthy backer, there'll also be money to strengthen when it gets to the business end.

 

HKR will romp the league, and I think London have enough to edge us with our points deduction. 4-6 are largely interchangeable imo. I expect Batley to slip a bit without Kear to motivate them, so I'd take Fev to complete the four. Toulouse will be tough to beat in France but not so much on their travels, so I think they'll be in the middle. The rest will be scrapping around the bottom.

 

With that in mind...

 

1 Hull KR

2 London

3 Bradford

4 Featherstone

5 Halifax 

6 Batley

7 Toulouse

8 Dewsbury

9 Oldham

10 Sheffield

11 Swinton

12 Rochdale

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I don't think KR will romp it Paul. It's intriguing. Am looking forward to hopefully going to Toulouse but won't commit until we are sorted. I think Halifax had a blip last year and will be stronger. Fev have recruited well. Swinton were the best attacking team for me out of the bottom half of the table.

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Casting aside rose tinted spectacles, it is only a couple of months since Hull KR absolutely thrashed Broncos at Ealing. I would say the difference between full time super league and full time championship players was very obvious. The latter were playing at the level they deserved to be at despite not having other jobs.

 

The question is how much closer the player losses from Rovers and the recruitment at Broncos brings them together. I had not been too impressed with the Broncos recruitment and wondered whether it was an improvement on last year. Dixon and Roqica are very good signings though and the former could have a field day if he stays fit as his defensive frailties just won't be nearly as obvious at this level. The question for the Broncos is over their halves' fitness, as Barthau, Api and Sammut have all had pretty poor records with injury.

 

Toulouse are very quick and skilful, but I wonder if they have underestimated the need for size and power in this league. While I hope not, I think they may struggle away from home, particularly if pitches are effected by inclement weather.

 

Whether Bradford can make the top 4 depends on their points deduction. with six it would doable. With 12 they would have to win all their games, albeit that means they should win the dead rubber 8s again. In that case I think it would be two out of Fax, Fev and Batley to make up the four.

 

At the other end Sheffield will struggle given the state they are in. I would guess Oldham, Swinton and Rochdale would be down there and wonder if the switch of Palfrey to the Hornets may make the difference.

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Very very tough to gauge how good Toulouse can be...

In theory they could finish top. When Catalans were almost impossible to beat in France all it would have took would have been a ground out couple of victories.

 

When you think of that fact there's teams like Rochdale, Oldham, Swinton (No disrespect), you can see them winning a good half their games on this side of the pond.

 

Impossible to judge them I'd say.

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As

 

Very very tough to gauge how good Toulouse can be...

In theory they could finish top. When Catalans were almost impossible to beat in France all it would have took would have been a ground out couple of victories.

 

When you think of that fact there's teams like Rochdale, Oldham, Swinton (No disrespect), you can see them winning a good half their games on this side of the pond.

 

Impossible to judge them I'd say.

Ask any Hornets fan how good Toulouse can be. They liked showboating against weaker opposition, but were less keen on teams that stood their ground (Doncaster/Hunslet).

 

And, given that 'little Rochdale' came up as Champions, and Oldham beat a SL team in the Ch. Cup, what do you mean by 'teams like us'? Teams that punch above their weight? Teams that upset the order of things?

 

It's basket-case clubs like Bradford and Sheffield you need to be concerned about.

IMAG0394_zpsvjvgze6q.jpg

 

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Would love to know on what basis people have Swinton finishing bottom, particularly those who have Oldham four or five places higher in the table.

 

 

I did wonder that myself - from what I saw last season they looked to be a  similar standard. although I haven't yet seen them play, I'd expect Rochdale to be in that bracket too. 

 

As for people repeatedly suggesting that Oldham will finish above the Bulls, could I remind everyone that Oldham finished 14 points behind the Bulls last season. So a 6 point deduction is hardly going to account for that - especially as we will be much more focussed and motivated next season having got rid of a huge amount of under performing deadwood.

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Hull KR

London

Fev

Bradford (6pt deduction)

Halifax

Batley

Dewsbury

Toulouse

Oldham

Swinton

Rochdale

Sheffield

 

I think that the Fev fans are in for a real treat this season - I'm liking the pack they've put together.  Some proper mongrel in that lot.

Forever in our shadow, forever on your mind.

 

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Swinton have recruited a mid championship team and I think they will shock a few, Toulouse will win their home games and lose the majority of their away games.

Hull KR & London will be neck & neck and positions could switch, Batley will be tough at home as always and will have learned a lot from last year, Featherstone are capable of brilliance or mediocrity but they will be better for a settled coach & team.

Halifax and Sheffield look considerably weaker than I can remember for years, Dewsbury are always tough but look to have lost a few key players. Rochdale & Oldham will struggle in my opinion but I think Scott Naylor will draft a few in from Leigh and probably stay safe.

All my opinion of course. Fun game.

Hull KR

London

Featherstone

Batley

Bradford

Swinton

Toulouse

Halifax

Dewsbury

Oldham

Sheffield

Rochdale

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I fancy London to be excellent at home, even more so than last year, Dixon and Sammut will have a field day on the fast plastic pitch.  But probably drop a fair few points away from Ealing.  I'm not sure why people think Rohan Smith's such a good coach, unproven at best, Bulls could finish anywhere to be honest but I can't see them in the top 3. 

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There's a valid point made above about Hull KR thrashing London in the play-offs and there seeming a gulf between the SL & Championship teams. That's true and in 3 of the 4 games against SL opposition my team (Fev) were just outmuscled and overwhelmed.

 

That said - had it not been for 3 disastrous errors trying to field kicks Fev might well have beaten Hull KR in our 4th game, and I doubt Hull KR (though bound to go well) will be immune to a few shocks, Bradford and London certainly didn't find it easy when coming down to this division. We did see last season with Leigh how much money talks in this division though and it will be a surprise if they aren't in the top 2, but I don't see them being dominant at the top like Leigh were last year.

 

I was very impressed by London last year, Henderson is a likeable and clearly very effective coach, they seem to have recruited well and I'll be surprised if they aren't up there again.

 

Bradford I'm not completely sold on if they get any sort of meaningful deduction; there seems to be lots of optimism surrounding their coach but he seemed to fail completely to get them up for what was a massive game at Fev (and made at least one bizarre selection decision there too, leaving O'Brien out seemed unfathomable). They obviously have the talent to be top 4 challengers, and maybe more if as seems likely they get a rich owner, but they just weren't that good last season and have a bit to prove for me.

 

Batley really it all revolves around the coaching change, as on paper they look even stronger than last year. They have done very well to hang on to some of their better players (James Brown in particular) and although Diskin will be under pressure you'd think they will be tough to beat again, especially at the Mount.

 

Most at Fev were very pleased with Jon Sharp's first full season back, if a bit disappointed at the fact that we crumbled badly in five of our eight Middle 8s games. The recruitment in the off-season looks to have been geared towards giving us more attacking firepower and more size, and the question mark might be whether we can refind the really solid defence that we had during the first part of the season, having lost two of our most reliable defensive players in Andy Ellis and Tim Spears. I'd imagine we'll use DR to fill in the gaps, as was the case last season, and hopefully we can make the top 4 again.

 

Toulouse clearly are very talented having beaten Leigh at home in the Cup but a full season in the Championship will be a very different test to C1 last year and I'll be a bit surprised if they are top 4 contenders.

 

Halifax on paper have some decent players in their squad but the way they fell apart, especially in defence, as the season progressed suggested there was something seriously wrong. They were a very good defensive team in 2015 but they seemed to be shipping 40 points every other week in the second half of the season, and I was surprised when they gave Marshall a contract extension after they had failed to make the top 4 as he has plenty to prove now. They lost their best player to Batley and after Marshall was scathing about DR earlier in the year they have now gone down that route themselves.

 

Sheffield are starting their recruitment very late (again) and I'll be surprised if they can build a good enough squad to escape the bottom half of the table, indeed it's possible they'll really struggle having lost more quality players in the off-season.

 

Oldham, Rochdale and Swinton I find hard to assess as with so little TV coverage you can only really go on what you saw when they played your team, (plus obviously their results & recruitment) so the only thing I'd predict with those 3 teams is that they will all upset a team that ends up in the top 4 at least once.

 

All in all it looks a very exciting division. Suspect there will be plenty of surprise results again and I've given up trying to predict a final table as I just don't know what to expect.

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With most team's recruitment still not quite finished, Bradford's points deduction not yet ratified

and Sheffield not yet showing their hand regarding anything, its difficult to predict the league table.

 

Still its never stopped me before, so here goes :-

 

1st   Hull KR            - Blair, Lunt, Ellis & Co to run riot. Chairman to splash the cash whenever needed.

 

2nd  Bradford          - If their points deduction is 6 or less. Good half-backs and hookers with the usual

                                  big pack. New owners should bring with them much needed money and hopefully

                                  business acumen. Rohan Kanhai would be able to coach this team into second place !

 

3rd  London            - Should be great to watch and will probably score lots of tries at home with a motivator

                                  in Henderson to coach them. May struggle on their travels, however if Bradford get a

                                  9 point or greater  deduction, switch 2nd and 3rd places around.

 

4th & 5th                 - Featherstone and Batley to battle it out for these places, both hard to beat at home,

                                 but both to suffer the odd brainfart on their travels. Maybe just not consistent enough

                                 to trouble the top 3.

 

6th                          - Halifax, but it will be a distant sixth place, they will lose when they should and may

                                 also  lose a few when they shouldn't.

 

The rest                 - Pains me to say it, but Oldham & Swinton, injuries not withstanding, might just have

                                enough to survive. Both have recruited reasonably well and both have good coaching

                                teams, squad size to go against them, so loans or DR could be the difference

                                between survival or the dreaded drop.  

                           

                                Dewsbury's momentum seems to have disappeared,  recruitment up to date has 

                                not been awe inspiring and there seems to be a general  malaise on their forum, 

                                which does not bode well as this is normally the time of year for blind optimism.

 

                                Toulouse, were the  flat track bullies of last season, they need a change of attitude,

                                game management and personnel, which at present is not overly forthcoming.

                                Don't get me wrong, I want Toulouse to prosper and become a force, it would be so

                                beneficial for the French game and Rugby League in general, I just think that they

                                have too many ageing Antipodeans, who when the chips are down, can't be arsed,

                                couple this with their home grown players eye-watering interpretation of on-field discipline,

                                I think that they will lose a few at home and not win many away. 

 

                                Sheffield, the phantom club of Rugby League, who knows where home will be and who 

                                knows who will be playing for them, but playing catch up at this time of year is certainly   

                                not helping their cause.

 

                                Which just leaves Rochdale Hornets, my team. Can I be objective, probably not,

                                but they are not going to be the rubbing rags that most are predicting. They have 

                                a very astute coaching team who rope-a-doped Toulouse to great effect last year.

                                Again, they have recruited reasonably well, and have a bit of size in the forwards

                                and some pace in the backs, but its the sum of the whole that makes survival a

                                real possibility.

 

                                Relegation, who knows, but not Hornets, thank you very much !    

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I think Toulouse could prove a very awkward fixture for everyone travelling over to France and they could amass an impressive amount of home points. On their travels, however, they will most likely find it a much tougher prospect. Where would a 50/50 win-loss record leave them in the table?

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I think Toulouse could prove a very awkward fixture for everyone travelling over to France and they could amass an impressive amount of home points. On their travels, however, they will most likely find it a much tougher prospect. Where would a 50/50 win-loss record leave them in the table?

 

 

Last season they'd have ended up 7th

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