The * Season : Tue Dec 01, 2020 10:24 am  

A lot of talk on social media were saying that any trophies won should have an asterisk(*) before or after them.

Well, I don't agree, we had

A Challenge Cup Final that was won and/or lost by a goal kick.

A League Leaders Shield that went down to the very last game.

A Grand Final that was won and/or lost on the width of a post or crossbar.

In all a fantastic season given the really awful circumstances caused by Covid.

Roll on March 2021.

Re: The * Season : Tue Dec 01, 2020 11:37 am  

Challenge Cup - didn't deviate in a significant way from the plan, anyone with any realistic chance of winning it played each other in knockout games. I'd put it on a par with other CC wins even though it's not ideal that the Championship sides had to pull out.

LLS and Grand Final - teams didn't play everyone twice, the structure of the season was changed more than once late during the year and we had games being arranged at really short notice. For that reason I can't put them on a par with other years and they do deserve an * for me.

Having said all that, credit to the clubs and the RFL for keeping the sport going and I think it was the right thing to do. The survival of the sport is more important than the integrity of one season.

Re: The * Season : Tue Dec 01, 2020 1:34 pm  

The outcome of the finalists and league leaders had a normal progression to it, so I would say delete the asterisk.

The Grand Final - the two best teams got there in the end, it looked at one point that the RFL were going out of their way to get Leeds + Catalans in the top mix, then we had Huddersfield and Salford added into the play offs as standby teams.

If Huddersfield Giants became Superleague Champions, I would probably put an asterisk on that champions title.

Re: The * Season : Tue Dec 01, 2020 3:24 pm  

Completely agree. The only * that should be there is to highlight the outstanding games of the season.

Re: The * Season : Tue Dec 01, 2020 3:49 pm  

No * for me, Leeds deserved to win the challenge cup and Saints deserved the GF.

I was glad to watch the games this year as a distract from news.

Can’t wait for next year to get into the grounds.

Re: The * Season : Wed Dec 02, 2020 10:10 am  

It has to have one simply because the season was not completed as initially set out. It doesn't take anything away from the two final winners (I said on another post it is possibly the toughest one to win given the chopping and changing of fixtures etc) but it will need to be indicated in future years that the season was affected by covid.

I've said all along the season was a farce with the changing of the rules and formats but seeing as Wigan lost the final that now opens me up to claims of sour grapes. It's not that and I would say the same had we won. The * should go next to the season not the winners.

2018 - Wigan
2019 - St Helens
2020* - St Helens

*season affected by covid

Re: The * Season : Wed Dec 02, 2020 10:16 am  

It also would need noting that Toronto pulled out

Re: The * Season : Fri Dec 04, 2020 5:11 pm  

Nah! The cup was a lottery and we managed to crawl over the line. The GF was contested by the two best teams in the league this season and went to the wire. Don't think it would have been different teams in GF even if we'd completed the season. Don't think us, Hull, Wire or Catalans will be complaining that we'd have been any closer to the GF had it run its course.