Blind side johnny Posted March 27, 2021 Share Posted March 27, 2021 Do these seem about right? 2021 Betfred Championship Predictions - Serious About Rugby League (seriousaboutrl.com) Sport, amongst other things, is a dream-world offering escape from harsh reality and the disturbing prospect of change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
distantdog Posted March 27, 2021 Share Posted March 27, 2021 1 hour ago, Blind side johnny said: Do these seem about right? 2021 Betfred Championship Predictions - Serious About Rugby League (seriousaboutrl.com) Who knows but interesting takes! Are Oldham anymore 'provincial' than Dewsbury, Batley, Whitehaven etc? And Newcastle certainly seem to be causing the predictors a few problems. I saw then predicted to be fifth in another article yesterday. It will all come out in the wash! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill H Posted March 27, 2021 Share Posted March 27, 2021 I got as far as Danny Yates still playing for Batley and decided that the rest probably wasn't worth reading. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piggy's mate Posted March 27, 2021 Share Posted March 27, 2021 Me too Bi11, and especially when I saw the Rams weren't in a relegation spot too Touch Rugby W(h)inger and part-time Super Hero (Thursday mornings by appointment) BATLEY BULLDOGS RLFC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blind side johnny Posted March 28, 2021 Author Share Posted March 28, 2021 Yes, not brilliant journalism I know but at least it might get a conversation going. My real concern though is an apparent lack of interest of many except the dedicated few - yes I do include you in that group Piggy's Mate. Sport, amongst other things, is a dream-world offering escape from harsh reality and the disturbing prospect of change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wakefield Ram Posted March 28, 2021 Share Posted March 28, 2021 Think it looks about right. Money talks and those that have spent will doubtless do well. We need to get a good start against Whitehaven to set a marker down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reverend Ram Posted March 28, 2021 Share Posted March 28, 2021 Well I will add my tuppenceworth BSJ- I think as ever there will be some wildcards / don’t think York or Bradford will be as good as everyone predicts and Widnes will be better - so my 14 are Feath, TO, Widnes, London, Fax, York, Dews, Bradford, Batley, Haven, Swindon, Newcastle, Sheffield & Oldham. One must have faith in my profession... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
distantdog Posted March 28, 2021 Share Posted March 28, 2021 16 minutes ago, Reverend Ram said: Well I will add my tuppenceworth BSJ- I think as ever there will be some wildcards / don’t think York or Bradford will be as good as everyone predicts and Widnes will be better - so my 14 are Feath, TO, Widnes, London, Fax, York, Dews, Bradford, Batley, Haven, Swindon, Newcastle, Sheffield & Oldham. One must have faith in my profession... I would be surprised, nay amazed, if Swindon finish that high! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DOGFATHER Posted March 28, 2021 Share Posted March 28, 2021 It is very early days, and no doubt all teams will improve as the season progresses. However, I thought both York and London looked very ordinary today. Widnes didn't look all that crash hot against West Wales until the sending off. Bradford's forwards looked like a 4th division amateur outfit in terms of fitness and physique. Halifax looked okay but nothing either team in the heavy woolen area will be writing off as a no chance of a win game. It's hard to judge after seeing 1 game though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piggy's mate Posted March 28, 2021 Share Posted March 28, 2021 After watching all these streamed games the only team that has surprised/impressed me has been Batley lol Touch Rugby W(h)inger and part-time Super Hero (Thursday mornings by appointment) BATLEY BULLDOGS RLFC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Phantom Horseman Posted March 28, 2021 Share Posted March 28, 2021 The standard of what we have seen so far has been patchy, understandably after the long lay-off and lockdown. Toulouse have only played a friendly (when they looked very good at times). Who knows how many games they will get to play with Covid so much less under control over there than it seems to be here? Fev have looked very sharp in patches but completion rate has been terrible at times especially in the Batley game (16 turnovers in the first hour). If they can put that right they should be hard to beat but they'll get turned over a few times if they don't. York looked good against Sheffield, they made a few changes against London and it probably showed. They should have enough quality to finish top 3 espeically as O'Hagan looks useful at half back. London didn't have Sammut and Fozzard and they should make a lot of difference when they are back, but they don't have the quality of previous years. Great coach though and he should ensure they are competitive but they are very beatable these days, they have lost a load of good players over the last 2 years and look to be at a transition period. The rest...nobody has really looked obvious challengers for a top 4 spot yet so the opportunity is there. Toulouse, York and Fev have the most expensive squads and should really finish top 3, but the door is open for any improvers after that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blind side johnny Posted March 28, 2021 Author Share Posted March 28, 2021 One factor to take into account is the fixtures. Nobody plays everyone else twice this year so, if you miss a game against a fancied club, or against a "lesser" club then this may well influence the outcome. There is also the possibility of positive Covid tests within clubs which is somewhat provided for by the league positions being decided on percentages. Whilst the top four will be involved in a play off for promotion the bottom two will automatically be relegated, no matter how different the number of fixtures played. Generally the fixtures have been randomly generated I believe. Just comparing our two local clubs games that will be missed are: Batley: Oldham (A), London (A), York (H), Bradford (H). Dewsbury: Halifax (A), York (A), Bradford (H), London (H). These are simply given as an example - I can't draw any conclusions from them but over the whole of the league the "missing" fixtures can be a factor. In particular two lucky clubs will avoid the trip to Toulouse, lovely as it is, and all of the logistical gymnastics involved. Sport, amongst other things, is a dream-world offering escape from harsh reality and the disturbing prospect of change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reverend Ram Posted March 28, 2021 Share Posted March 28, 2021 3 hours ago, distantdog said: I would be surprised, nay amazed, if Swindon finish that high! The curse of predictive text! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
distantdog Posted March 28, 2021 Share Posted March 28, 2021 19 minutes ago, Reverend Ram said: The curse of predictive text! Indeed, though l naturally assumed a man of the cloth would be immune from curses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crown Flatter Posted March 29, 2021 Share Posted March 29, 2021 Here’s my prediction: Toulouse Featherstone London Widnes York Swinton Dewsbury Batley Halifax Bradford Sheffield Newcastle Oldham Whitehaven Legs, Dews, Legs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piggy's mate Posted March 29, 2021 Share Posted March 29, 2021 Fev Toulose York Widnes London Batley Halifax Bradford Swinton Dewsbury Sheffield Newcastle Whitehaven Oldham Touch Rugby W(h)inger and part-time Super Hero (Thursday mornings by appointment) BATLEY BULLDOGS RLFC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the old nine ole Posted March 29, 2021 Share Posted March 29, 2021 Toulouse Featherstone York Widnes London Bradford Halifax Swinton Dewsbury Sheffield Batley Newcastle Whitehaven Oldham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blind side johnny Posted March 29, 2021 Author Share Posted March 29, 2021 3 hours ago, Piggy's mate said: Fev Toulose York Widnes London Batley Halifax Bradford Swinton Dewsbury Sheffield Newcastle Whitehaven Oldham Some mistake PM? You don't have us down for relegation. Sport, amongst other things, is a dream-world offering escape from harsh reality and the disturbing prospect of change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
distantdog Posted March 29, 2021 Share Posted March 29, 2021 1 minute ago, Blind side johnny said: Some mistake PM? You don't have us down for relegation. He's clearly feeling full of Easter joy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blind side johnny Posted March 29, 2021 Author Share Posted March 29, 2021 19 hours ago, Blind side johnny said: One factor to take into account is the fixtures. Nobody plays everyone else twice this year so, if you miss a game against a fancied club, or against a "lesser" club then this may well influence the outcome. There is also the possibility of positive Covid tests within clubs which is somewhat provided for by the league positions being decided on percentages. Whilst the top four will be involved in a play off for promotion the bottom two will automatically be relegated, no matter how different the number of fixtures played. Generally the fixtures have been randomly generated I believe. Just comparing our two local clubs games that will be missed are: Batley: Oldham (A), London (A), York (H), Bradford (H). Dewsbury: Halifax (A), York (A), Bradford (H), London (H). These are simply given as an example - I can't draw any conclusions from them but over the whole of the league the "missing" fixtures can be a factor. In particular two lucky clubs will avoid the trip to Toulouse, lovely as it is, and all of the logistical gymnastics involved. I would also add to this that Featherstone and Widnes have already had their away games to Toulouse postponed due to Covid. These will only be played if the respective clubs have a free weekend before the play-offs. Now that both of these clubs have made the CC third round and, hence, the semi-finals of the 1895 trophy, that looks quite unlikely. Sport, amongst other things, is a dream-world offering escape from harsh reality and the disturbing prospect of change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
distantdog Posted March 29, 2021 Share Posted March 29, 2021 2 minutes ago, Blind side johnny said: I would also add to this that Featherstone and Widnes have already had their away games to Toulouse postponed due to Covid. These will only be played if the respective clubs have a free weekend before the play-offs. Now that both of these clubs have made the CC third round and, hence, the semi-finals of the 1895 trophy, that looks quite unlikely. It is a good point. The thing to ask is does it benefit any of those teams? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blind side johnny Posted March 29, 2021 Author Share Posted March 29, 2021 4 hours ago, distantdog said: It is a good point. The thing to ask is does it benefit any of those teams? I don't know, but it might. This simply reinforces my point about the difficulty of predicting league positions this season. No doubt it will simply come down to money spent, as always. Sport, amongst other things, is a dream-world offering escape from harsh reality and the disturbing prospect of change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
georgeb1 Posted March 30, 2021 Share Posted March 30, 2021 think most are welloff with newcastles finishing position , deffo top 8 for me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin James Posted March 30, 2021 Share Posted March 30, 2021 Very interesting to read these predictions and nice/unusual to not see everyone predicting relegation for Swinton. I too think you are way off with Newcastle. They were good against us with 13 debutants in what was a very high quality game with few errors and penalties. They have decent depth and finances to strengthen. Only one game but on that showing they're a top half side even though we did beat them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reverend Ram Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 On 28/03/2021 at 23:02, distantdog said: Indeed, though l naturally assumed a man of the cloth would be immune from curses. Not when the communion wine runs out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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