Super League Preview: Harlequins

The One Pointer heads to the capital as our Super League preview focuses on Brain McDermott's Harlequins.





Super League's London based side have always been a difficult team to measure. Whilst they can, and will, be utterly dreadful one week they are equally capable of upsetting the league's big boys through the course of the season. Bradford and Hull will be two teams that will vouch for that whilst Wigan, Warrington and Salford will also reluctantly admit to falling short against the Quins.

But whilst they are happy to punch above their weight on occasion, the Londoners can appear lost at times. A 60-0 defeat at home to Leeds, a 62-14 reverse at Huddersfield and a 34-0 thumping at Salford typified the Quins fluctuating fortunes.

But under the leadership of Brian McDermott, Quins ought to be more consistent and the smattering of stars that league fans in the South have become accustomed to have been complimented over the off-season.
Aussie test playmaker Scott Hill has arrived from Melbourne Storm and his experience will be invaluable whilst former Wigan and Castleford stand-off Danny Orr could provide the perfect foil for the NRL veteran.
Julian Rinaldi has jetted in from Les Catalans and joins Henry Paul in a side that lacks no competition for the 6 and 7 jerseys.
But the player to watch could well be one youngster who made a real impact with the opportunities that were handed his way. Talented loose forward Michael Worrincy made an immediate impact against Warrington Wolves last season and is one player who may well cement a place in Brian McDermott's starting line as the season progresses.

The problem for the Harlequins will be stringing a series of results together. On any given day they can leave any visiting team lost in the big smoke. The experienced heads of Orr, Hill and Paul playing in key positions may well be turns that around in 2007 and the 'Mighty Quins' may well make the top six this time around. The odds are against them however. Even if they manage to develop the winning habit, few would envisage them toppling the likes of Warrington and Wigan.

The One Pointer Prediction: 8th
Player to watch: Michael Worrincy - one for the future.

Super League Preview: Les Catalans

In the second installment of our Super League season preview, we head over the channel to check out Les Catalans Dragons.





If you happen to be residing in a WF postcode area, the chances are that you aren't overly keen on the Dragon's presence in the engage Super League. As Castleford and Wakefield battled against the drop to the National League, Les Catalans were the ones left propping up the rest of the table, taking advantage of their three year exemption. As most can imagine, that didn't go down very well in Castleford, who eventually made way.

This year the Dragons will be looking upwards and the signs are that the club is thinking positively. Supporters visiting Perpignan brought over £3m in tourist cash to the region, building strong support for the side in the city. 2007 will see the Catalans return to their renovated home, Gilbert Brutus, and they've invited some exciting new faces to the home coming party.

Queensland representatives Casey McGuire and Adam Mogg will add undoubted class to the Dragons back line. McGuire, who scored 25 tries in 117 games in the NRL, an impressive strike rate for a utility player, looks like forming an exciting partnership with Stacey Jones. Mogg on the other hand comes as a renowned scorer, with 33 NRL tries and three tries from as many State of Origin appearances.
Clint Greenshields and Aaron Gorrell arrive from St George whilst the more unknown Sébastien Raguin has signed from UTC's rivals Toulouse.
The French second-row is capable of competing with the best, as Leeds found out in the 2005 Challenge Cup semi-final and if he can produce the same form that saw Toulouse shoot to fame then the Dragons may have one of the finds of the season.

Defensive frailty was what ultimately proved the downfall of the Dragons. The side posted the second worst defence of Super League XI, yet still scored more points than sixth place Salford. How much of that was down to travel sickness is going to be difficult to prove but the players brought in are still not the sort of names you'd bring in to shore up a leaky defence, more add flair to an attacking line.

As for their prospects for 2007, I certainly don't think that they'll be bottom of the pile come September. Despite the poor league position, there were several positives that came out of the French side. Victories over Wigan, Warrington and Salford and having the league's top scorer amongst their ranks were the season's high points and the club ran the eventual Grand Final runners up extremely close on two occasions.
Much will depend on how the Catalans cope with the air miles and how well they can stop their own line being breached. They'll certainly score points, it's just at the other end that where there could be a problem.

The One Pointer prediction: 10th
Player to watch: Casey McGuire - how will his partnership with Stacey Jones develop?

Super League Preview: Bradford

The One Pointer has started it's preview of the 2007 Super League season and in our first installment, we look towards Odsal to assess the chances of the Bradford Bulls.




After what could mildly be described as an 'eventful' 2006, the Bulls still only ended up 80 minutes from Old Trafford.
After losing Brian Noble, Stuart Fielden and two league points, Bradford secured forth place in the league table, eased past Salford and battled their way to the Grand Final eliminator against Warrington before succumbing to Hull FC in the penultimate game of Super League XI.

Newly appointed captain Paul Deacon will lead a new look Bulls side into the Odsal bowl, with no fewer than five new players have arrived in BD6, some with their fair share of controversy, whilst seven first team players have walked through the exit door.

David Solomona's much maligned transfer eventually went through and he is certainly the most recognisable of names coming into the club.
Perhaps the biggest signing though could be that of Glen Morrison. The former Parramatta forward has clearly impressed his new employers enough to merit the vice-captaincy and he is one player who many of the Bulls faithful will liken to Brad Mackay, the Aussie lock who served them so well in 2000.
Also in the forwards, Steve McNamara will be hoping Andy Lynch returns from injury sooner rather than later but in 18-year-old Sam Burgess, they've uncovered a more than capable deputy.

But the Bulls do have their weaknesses. Whilst few would the partnership of Lesley Vainikolo and Shontayne Hape, the unexpected departure of Marcus Bai has left a considerable void in the Bradford three-quarter line. Youngster Andy Smith has scored tries for fun in the U21's but it remains to be seen if that form will carry over into Super League.

I wouldn't expect Bradford to finish in the top three but as they've proved in the past, that's not necessarily a bad thing. Bradford know when to peak and it'd be no surprise to see them pushing for a place in the season showpiece come October.

The One Pointer prediction: 4th
Player to watch: Glen Morrison - a workhorse at the base of the scrum

Into the Emerald Isle

Back when Murdoch and Co took over Super League in 1995, talk was of Rugby League teams being dotted all around the continent.



Amongst the proposed cities that would host Super League sides was Dublin. It's good transport links to the North virtue of low-cost airlines and ferry links and it's rugby loving public made the Irish capital the ideal venue, or so they thought. Alas, the collapse of the proposed mergers meant Dublin, or any of the other cities, were out of the picture.

Twelve years on, Leeds Rhinos have pushed the Irish case again. The Rhinos are currently training at the Dublin City University and by all accounts, have been impressed with what they've seen. Assistant coach and former Ireland international Francis Cummins has come out and sung the praises of Dublin and touted the merits of an Irish Super League franchise.

For the fans, support is likely to be high. Perpignan has proved a huge success with supporters and a hop across the Irish Sea is sure to be a winner amongst the various bands of travelling fans.
The city is renowned as an enjoyable 'city-break' destination and the area is easily accessible. Low-cost flights are available to Dublin from Leeds Bradford, Humberside, Doncaster Sheffield, Blackpool, Manchester and Liverpool whilst ferry links operate from the north-west.

But on the playing side it's where the pro-Dublin arguments start to falter.
Les Catalans worked for a very simple reason - it was a Rugby League area. The clubs were already in place, a competitive league structure was already in place and most importantly, there is an amateur and youth system which can support a Super League club. Perpignan had everything there, ready to go. It just needed Super League to raise the profile of French rugby.

In Dublin on the other hand, that's not the case. The amateur set-up, although improving, is not capable of sustaining a Super League club. Given the strength of the GAA and the IRU, the talent pool is fairly shallow to begin with and the lack of exposure of the 13-man code to the natives makes it difficult to make the game an attractive proposition to the nation's youngsters.

That makes a Super League franchise an non-starter. In such an environment any side would be reliant on overseas imports and quota loopholes, very much reminiscent of Paris Saint-Germain in the mid-late 90's.

The other option would be to start from the bottom and work upwards. Instead of throwing Dublin in at the deep-end, let them work through the ranks, starting off in National League Two or even the Conference National (the new name for the defunct NL3). That brings it's own downbside though.
In both competitions, players still hold down full-time jobs. We've already seen the disapperance of teams from Coventry, Birmingham, Essex, Teeside and Carlisle due to the demands that travelling to and from Yorkshire placed on their players and an Irish side would quickly follow the same path. Once you've factored in flights and the associated problems and expense, you see that an amateur/semi-pro team from the emerald isle isn't a viable option either.

Leeds' intentions are good and in an ideal world, we'd see an Irish franchise in the not-too-distant future. Unfortunately, the practicalities just don't add up. This isn't like Perpignan. The Catalans had the foundations to build on. The IRL are starting from scratch.

Give that man a Medal!

Former St Helens stand-off Tommy Martyn has placed his Challenge Cup winners medal on eBay to raise cash for former team mate Steve Prescott.




Martyn, who won the medal against Bradford Bulls at Wembley in 1996, is hoping to raise at least £2000 to help ex Saints and Hull full-back Prescott in his fight against a rare form of stomach cancer.

With the target already broken with 48 hours still remaining on the auction, the target has already been broken and with the bulk of the bidding traditionally coming in the closing stages, one can only wonder what the final total will amount to.

Hat's off to Tommy Martyn for a fantastic gesture.

It Doesn't Quite Add Up

Today the RFL announced a brand-new, ultra confusing points method for the National Leagues for 2007.











Well, it's not that confusing, but it's more complicated than a league points system probably needs to be. Gone is the simple two points for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss. This year will will see National League One and Two as well as the Northern Rail Cup sides pick up three points for a win, two for a draw and one for a defeat of 12 points or less.

All other competitions, including Super League will still maintain the traditional 2-1-0 format, with the new system appearing to be an experimental system.

The idea is to create more competitive games by giving sides something to play for when a game appears dead. In the 'old' system, being 18 points down with 5 minutes to go would struggle to motivate event the most enthusiastic of players, the new system will give them the incentive of one futher competition point should they manage to get over the whitewash.
It's an idea that has been used in Rugby Union. In the 15-man game, teams can pick-up bonus points for scoring four tries or more and for losing by less than eight points.
It's success has been difficult to gauge. Complete thumpings are becoming less common, but the salary cap, international weeks and rule changes have arguably had more of a influence than the offer of consolation points ever will so the question remains, will we see a difference?

Here's how last season's National League 1 table ended:
1. Hull KR - 32pts
2. Widnes - 28pts
3. Leigh - 26pts
4. Whitehaven - 25pts
5. Rochdale - 16pts
6. Batley - 16pts
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7. Halifax - 14pts
8. Doncaster - 13pts
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9. York - 10pts
10. Oldham - 0pts

And here's how it would have looked under the new system:
1. Hull KR - 48pts
2. Widnes - 42pts
3. Leigh - 42pts
4. Whitehaven - 39pts
5. Rochdale - 29pts
6. Batley - 28pts
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7. Halifax - 27pts
8. Doncaster - 26pts
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9. York - 20pts
10. Oldham - 2pts
(with thanks to www.blackandwhites.co.uk for the calculations)

Fundamentaly, there is no difference. Each team remains in the same position. What you can see though is a more competitive competition, particuarly in mid-table. Under the new system, Doncaster could have gone into the last game of the season with the possibility of securing a play-off berth. As it was, their final outing of 2006 was meaningless as far as they were concerned.

I wouldn't expect the new format to get the thumps up from supporters and to be honest, it's not an idea I'm overly keen on. Perhaps the new format will add fuel to the Eurosport fire, making the league more attractive to a prospective broadcaster.

Like with all experiements, it's easy to hold your hands up if things don't as you planned. The 2-1-0 system was simple and functional. We'll wait and see what chaos may or may not ensue with this one.

How long does it take to get in the England Rugby Union Team?

Well, how long do you reckon? How long would a complete novice need to prove that he is the man to defend Rugby Union's greatest prize.






Six weeks? Three months? A year? Nope, you'd be miles off. It's actually much quicker than you think.

According to nationaly renowned kick & clap hack Stephen Jones, it takes just eight minutes to prove you are up to task of representing the current World Champions.

Don't believe me? Check out today's Sunday Times:

In an eight-minute spell on New Year’s Day, Andy Farrell became a serious contender for the hugely problematic England inside-centre position.

It takes just ten percent of a Guinness Premiership fixture for a 32 year old code convert to prove that he is indeed the saviour the the RFU thought he would be, so much so that they took a seven figure sum out of the piggy bank back in 2005.

So much for the "specialst skills" needed in the fifteen man game.