While rugby league may struggle to garner the attention and national media coverage when compared to other sporting codes in the United Kingdom, the English Super League still delivers an elite product that warrants recognition. With its popularity largely concentrated in the Greater Manchester and Yorkshire areas, the average sports fan often doesn’t get the opportunity to witness the exceptional athletes and free-flowing play that exists within the game of rugby league.
Whether you’re an avid of the sport or you’re still yet to completely familiarise yourself with the 13-a-side contest, there’s something for everything this weekend as the Super League’s semi-finals take place. The winner of each fixture will book their spot in the Grand Final, which is set to be held at Old Trafford on September 24th. Read on as we dissect the four teams remaining in the competition and how they have fared throughout their 2022 campaign to date.
St Helens
Finishing atop the league table, this famed rugby league club are the current favourites to win it at all at 6/5. The Merseyside outfit won an impressive 21 games this season, and if they can go on to hoist the trophy yet again this year, it will mark their fourth consecutive Super League gong. With a star-studded squad that includes the likes of English internationals Jack Welsby, Tommy Makinson, Jonny Lomax and James Roby – along with State of Origin representative Will Hopoate – it’s easy to see why they have experienced so much success in recent years.
St Helens should come into their semi-final match-up refreshed and healthy, after they were rewarded a week off as a result of winning the minor premiership. While most seem to be of the belief that it provides them with an added advantage heading into the second round of the play-offs – they will have to be on-song as they are coming up against a red-hot Salford side with nothing to lose.
The Red Devils dominated Challenge Cup finalists Huddersfield 28-0 away from home in the first round of the play-offs – and with quality players such as Brodie Croft, Ken Sio and Kallum Watkins at their disposal – they always remain a threat.
Wigan Warriors
This year’s Challenge Cup winners, the Wigan Warriors are the last team you want to meet come finals time. They have strike across the park, with former NRL players Bevan French and Jai Field instilling fear into their opposition with their adlib and attacking brand of rugby league. Similarly to St Helens, their second placed finish at the conclusion of the regular season saw them enjoy a week off.
However, while they have proven to be one of the best two sides this season, they can’t afford to be complacent as they will be up against a Leeds Rhinos side who are coming off the back of an upset win over the Catalans Dragons.
If you bet on sports, the Warriors are favoured to reign supreme at the DW Stadium this Friday night, entering the fixture at odds of 3/10.
Leeds Rhinos
Sitting 11th on the table in April, the Rhinos’ campaign looked all but over just a couple of months into the season. However, after the appointment of their head coach Rohan Smith, the Rhinos went on to win 13 of their last 17 games to finish in 5th position and book a play-off spot. Despite their incredible run of form, they faced a tough opening post-season match-up against last year’s grand finalists, the Catalans Dragons.
They proved too strong in Perpignan, defeating the French outfit 20-10 in a fiery and controversial clash. It won’t get any easier for them this weekend, as they take on the heavily favoured Wigan Warriors away from home. However, there are many Rhinos teams that have proven doubters wrong in the past – therefore if you’re after a value offer this weekend – the Yorkshire men might be your best bet to cause an upset at 3/1.
Salford Red Devils
The surprise packet of this season’s play-offs has been the Red Devils. Scraping into the top 6 and entering the knockout fixtures without much expectation, the Manchester side displayed just how dangerous they can be when they’re firing on all cylinders. They head into their match-up with table-toppers St Helens as the heavy underdogs, however, they have already proven that their attacking style of play could pose their opposition some problems.
While fans and pundits were impressed with Salford’s 28-0 thumping of the Huddersfield Giants on the weekend, punters still feel the minor premiers will be too strong on Saturday. For those after some betting tips, St Helens are the favourites at 7/19, while the Red Devils are outsiders at 11/4.