The Boys Are Back In Town

The new rugby league season cannot come soon enough

After a domestic season which finished in dramatic style with the Million Pound Game there was a sense of excitement for first the Four Nations and then the 2017 season with Toronto joining League One and Leigh getting another crack at Super League.

The Four Nations was a disaster for the sport. Not withstanding Scotland's excellent efforts, the whole event felt flat and didn't capture the imagination of the general public. So much hinged on England's results and performances that once Shaun Johnson had put on a masterclass of in-goal kicking to defeat the 'Wall of White' (worst nickname in sport?) nobody within the English game really believed they had what was needed to win the tournament.

And so it proved as Australia cruised to another tournament win in front of an Anfield crowd which went in hope of a New Zealand upset. Wayne Bennett was criticised for his interview style, the RFL was criticised for its venue choices, Scotland were criticised for picking players who thought Perth was just a place in Australia. As is often the case in rugby league, hardly anybody had a good word to say about anything.

Since then we've had disputes over England training camps with Kieron Cunningham making it perfectly clear that he sees international rugby league as an inconvenience he could do without. The future of the World Club Challenge was thrown into doubt with NRL sides falling over themselves to decline the invitation. Denny Solomona permanently removed himself from Christmas card lists in the Castleford area by 'retiring' only to rock up at Sale soon afterwards and once again open up calls for scrapping the salary cap, bringing back franchising and getting rid of Toronto before they've even played a game because everything that has gone wrong since 1895 is their fault.

And the coup de grace is the shambles that has become Bradford Bulls. Liquidated just weeks before the season is due to kick off but with a place kept open for a new club by a governing body which frankly is in a no-win situation partly of its own making. Quite how the RFL think stitching together the ashes of Bradford in the space of a few days is a solid foundation on which to build a club is beyond me. They need to step back, analyse and learn from the mistakes made. Rushing back in is akin to falling off a motorbike and jumping back on without looking to see that the reason you fell off is because of a flat tyre.

So that has been the winter for this great sport. My call to all involved in the game is that we draw a line under it. With all the negativity coming out of the game, we have very little right to complain about a lack of positive media coverage.

2017 holds plenty of intrigue. For the first time in the Super 8s system we have seen a side promoted to Super League. How will Leigh cope with the demands of playing full-time teams every week? If the Qualifiers were anything to go by they will feel they have a shot at not just staying in SL but avoiding being in the bottom four altogether. Will we see a revival for Leeds after a tough year saw a dramatic fall from grace for the 2015 treble winners? Will Wigan's consistency see them dominate or could Hull FC or Warrington finally see a new name on the trophy?

In terms of players it will be interesting to see how Declan Patton and George Williams develop. The two are exciting prospects and potential England World Cup stars. Will Slammin' Sam Burgess rediscover his best form? What a story that would be if he could lead England to victory on Australian soil. Excitement for the World Cup may have been dampened by the Four Nations but you never know, it could finally be our year.

Outside Super League, the Championship looks wide open below Hull KR whose excellent season ticket sales are the biggest good news story of the winter and London who have been steadily building for a couple of years. Imagine what a place in the Qualifiers would do for Swinton or Oldham. Toulouse are something of an unknown quantity after stumbling over the promotion line last year and without making the raft of signings many expected. Still, the trip to the South of France was the first fixture every Championship fan looked for. A second strong club in France can only do good for the sport.

Then we have Toronto. It sounds ridiculous. A team in Toronto joining the third tier of a sport within which many regarded Liverpool as an exotic venue for the Four Nations final. The incredulity with which the announcement that the Wolfpack were joining League One was met has subsided although some you sense are desperate for them to fail just so they can say 'I told you so'. If Toronto manage even half of what the hugely convincing Eric Perez is aiming for we could be on to something big. I'll be honest I'm under his spell. If you haven't watched the interview on Rugby League Back Chat I'd urge you to do so.

We have a few weeks left before the gates are opened on the new season. Let's make some noise about how great the sport is. If we as fans, volunteers, players, coaches, administrators don't do it, nobody else will.

You never know, someone might hear it and decide to go to a game. Just as long as the game is in easy reach of the M62 and isn't taking place on a Thursday night or at the AJ Bell (traffic is a nightmare don't you know) or is the 5th time those sides have met or every minute doesn't matter or there are too many Australians on the pitch or if there are not enough Australians on the pitch or if the Bovril is cold or if......