New Castleford signing Liam Finn hopes his seamless transition to Super League from the Championship will encourage more clubs to recruit from the second tier.
The 30-year-old, who enjoyed a short spell in Super League with Wakefield, thought he didn’t have what it took to compete in the top flight, but when former coach Daryl Powell signed him from Featherstone Rovers, he sensed a chance and took it with both hands. Indeed, he has played an influential role in the Tigers’ superb start to the season.
“I hope it opens the door for a few more Championship players,” he said.
“This new set up will enable a bit more free flowing movement between Super League and the Championship. In that mid-tier they will have a chance to prove themselves three or four times in a season against a Super League team, rather than maybe once in the Cup and people putting it down to a lucky performance.
“There’s certainly 10 or 12 people that are ready to step up now and probably more when you put full-time training into individuals. I think people get carried away a little bit with Super League. It’s just a game of rugby league at the end of the day which we’ve all been playing since we were young boys.
“It’s not a different game. They are still playing at a very good level in the Championship and the step up is more than do-able for quite a few.”