Leading Super League coach ‘unsure’ on expansion as key problem queried

St Helens coach Paul Wellens admits he is ‘really unsure’ on the prospect of Super League expanding to 14 teams in 2026, and says he doesn’t know whether the player pool is deep enough to support such a move.

The Saints were one of nine clubs that voted in favour of expansion as early as next year, with two teams to be handpicked by an independent panel along with the 12 highest-ranked clubs in the IMG gradings.

Wellens was coy to be drawn too much on the situation when asked in his pre-match press conference, and admitted he would have to seek more information on the matter before making an absolute commitment.

But he did warn that any expansion had to give consideration not to ‘dilute’ the product and to ensure there are enough elite-level players to support 14 top-flight teams.

He said: “I’m really unsure at this moment in time. What I would love and what we need is the competition to strengthen and to grow.

“If that’s by going to 14 teams, if we’re going to strengthen by doing that, then it can be good. What I will say is that we have to be careful we don’t dilute it as well. I’ve not got an opinion one way or the other right now.”

Wellens continued: “You’d like to see a bit more in-depth information around where the players are going to come from.

“The quota has been increased and that’s one way of doing it. You’ve got to question whether we have the depth of player within the game over here. That’s not me saying we don’t, I just don’t know at this moment in time.”

Wellens has already confirmed that the Saints will likely not utilise the full extension to the quota for 2026, with clubs allowed to use ten squad positions on players from overseas.

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