LEEDS RHINOS assistant coach Jamie Langley reckons Super League is well-placed to celebrate its 30th anniversary in style – thanks to some key changes.
The ex-England loose forward has been around for the bulk of the summer competition, having made his debut for Bradford Bulls back in 2002.
After almost 300 career games, he has since forged a reputation as one of the best young coaches in the sport.
Langley, whose Leeds side opens at Leigh on Friday, told League Express: “I’m really happy that they’ve decided to expand the league ahead of this season.
“I know some people are against it. But that’s the direction we have to go if we are to move forward.
“There might be some short-term pain with it, but those players are going to develop, they’re going to get better. The coaches will develop and get better as well.
“We should be able to get up to a standard whereby we have a really competitive league with more variety, more teams, more players and more diversity.
“That’s more appealing to watch than just the same eight teams slugging it out every single year. I’m not a big advocate for that.”
Langley added: “I’m really happy that Bradford, York and Toulouse are now stepping up.
“A lot of the teams have strengthened. The teams that probably misfired last year will be better.
“Castleford have obviously spent the cap this year, Hull FC have recruited really well and both Catalans and Warrington will be better.
“Huddersfield will be if they can keep everyone healthy. So there’ll be a real high level of competition across the league.
“With the decision to speed the rucks up as well, it’ll also just be a better product for the fans to watch. And that’s what we all want.
“I just can’t believe it’s taken this long for them to make that decision when you compare and contrast Super League and NRL.
“You knew it was going to get highlighted in the Ashes. We knew it was going to come to a head, and it did. But it’s a positive change now.”