11 Conclusions: Expansion issues, quick ruck success and Castleford signing issue

The opening weekend of the Super League season threw up some huge storylines both on and off the field.

Whether it was big crowds, big shocks or big performances, there were a lot of talking points and a lot of issues to tackle from the last few days.

So let’s do exactly that right now with our conclusions from the weekend’s Super League and Championship action..

Expansion (both kinds) works

How can you say it doesn’t? Two of the three promoted teams won at the weekend, and both of them offer new geographical landscapes for Super League to get stuck into.

The big headline obviously came at York, where a sell-out crowd watched the Knights stun Hull KR and offer huge hope about the future of the game in North Yorkshire. But with both French teams winning, including newly-promoted Toulouse, it’s hard not to get excited about France’s prospects – even if it is just one weekend!

14 teams gets off to a great start

There were critics about expanding to 14 teams: and we were among them on occasions, we’re not afraid to admit it. And yes, it’s only one round of fixtures, but that’s all we’ve got so far: so that’s what we’re judging on.

On the whole, there were great games across the board and the unpredictability that was such a strength of Super League in 2025 looks to be continuing into 2026. That can only be a good thing.

Warrington’s new star – and right recruitment decisions

Cai Taylor-Wray stole, and re-wrote, all the headlines on Friday evening with his performance against St Helens. But it underlined how Warrington have had a pretty good off-season when it comes to recruitment, both ins and outs.

The decision to cut Matt Dufty looks to have been the right one to allow Taylor-Wray to shine, while the likes of Toafofoa Sipley also stood out on their Wire debuts.

Castleford have a Mikaele Ravalawa issue

Don’t worry, we’re not writing him off! The monstrous winger is clearly a handful, and he will clearly be exciting in Super League 2026. But the Tigers may have to readjust their game-plan on how much ball-carrying he does because on occasions on Sunday, it looked like they were over reliant on him.

That led to him making a couple of errors, and he faded as the afternoon went on after a strong start. He’ll be a great acquisition for the Tigers, they just have to manage it better.

Junior Nsemba looks back on form

There were lots of positives on Sunday afternoon for Wigan. Zach Eckersley’s display, Patrick Mago’s impact and Ollie Partington’s second debut were among them. But the one that stood out for us was Junior Nsemba.

After a difficult 2025, this will be a big year for the forward, who walks into England’s World Cup squad if he’s on form. He showed on Sunday that there are positive signs this could indeed be a strong campaign.

How do St Helens solve the spine issue?

Here we go again. St Helens have lost another key player for a prolonged period with Jack Welsby down due to a shoulder injury, and it leaves Paul Rowley facing a major dilemma.

Does he move someone like Nene Macdonald into fullback to keep continuity in his halves, or does Tristan Sailor become the player who has to move around for the sake of the team yet again? It’ll be a big decision that Rowley will have to make.

The quicker rucks worked – despite the critics

There were some objections, with Wakefield Trinity coach Daryl Powell arguably the loudest. But the speed of the game seemed to a flow a lot better from our perspective in Round 1, with the new interpretations around the ruck having a good impact.

Hopefully the speed is maintained and as the players adjust, there will be fewer penalties and set restarts, and we’ll have an aesthetically pleasing game to watch.

Don’t judge Leeds on one defeat

The cavalry are coming back over the hill this weekend when York Knights roll into town, and that’s when we’ll see a much clearer identity for Brad Arthur’s Leeds Rhinos going into 2026. They were poor at Leigh on Friday evening, but the mere threat of players like Jake Connor returning means the Rhinos probably can’t be judged too much on that loss.

The new-look Championship is working

It’s creating compelling stories all across the division. A word for Salford RLFC, who won their first league game since reforming by beating Hunslet – but the trio at the top are certainly not three anyone would have expected. Barrow Raiders, Rochdale Hornets and Dewsbury Rams are three from three – hinting that things are going to be unpredictable throughout 2026. Bring it on!

Mikey Lewis won’t miss the World Club Challenge

That’s our sensible bet. There’s no way the Rugby Football League’s disciplinary process will penalise him harshly enough to allow Hull KR to go into a game against Brisbane Broncos without one of the best players they have.