Sky Sports’ new Super League coverage has landed: and we’re all saying the same thing

Aaron Bower
Sam Tomkins, Brian Carney, Jon Wilkin, Jenna Brooks, MKM Stadium pre-match

The verdict is in on Sky Sports' new-look Super League broadcast setup, and it's almost entirely positive! - Alamy

Super League 2.0 launched with a bang on Thursday night – with an explosive Hull derby that saw Hull KR emerge victorious over cross-city rivals Hull KR – and there was one thing that caught a lot of peoples’ eye on social media.

The negativity which has surrounded the sport in recent years has often been directed – arguably unfairly – towards Sky and their coverage.

But it’s clear the broadcaster have made huge strides in the off-season, not least with a number of eye-catching recruits to their broadcast team.

Revered commentators Dave Woods – who led the call on Thursday night’s season opener – and Mark Wilson are on board, along with the likes of Jodie Cunningham and Sam Tomkins.

And Sky’s broadcast, particularly the hour-long opener without a break to build up to the match, was a vast improvement.

We weren’t the only ones who noticed it, either….

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Sky Sports’ new Super League coverage has landed: and we’re all saying the same thing

Australia-based Aaron Wallace was quick to point out how impressive the job done by Brian Carney, Sam Tomkins and company was pre-match: a tweet that was shared by popular commentator Andrew Voss in the minutes before kick-off.

Tomkins was one of several new Sky names on show for the opening night, and his performance was one of plenty that drew praise as Sky’s new-look broadcast team began the season.

Well-respected rugby league journalist Phil Wilkinson was another to praise the new-look Sky broadcast team.

Another popular figure from the world of rugby league journalism in Gareth Walker commented on how Sky had made the derby feel like a real event, something that’s been lacking in recent years.

And Love Rugby League‘s own Drew Darbyshire echoed the same sentiments, with his renewed optimism for the season that lies ahead shared by the majority.

‘Coverage is miles better’: Rugby league fans nationwide respond positively to Sky Sports’ new-look Super League broadcasting

The following posts on X, formerly known as Twitter, don’t go into great detail but do represent a feeling of positivity on the whole.

Many supporters, either via their own individual accounts or fan/club-based pages, nationwide, simply expressed how much the coverage had strengthened when compared to previous years.

We’ll await the viewing figures, but we’d wager they’d increased on years gone by too.

Sky’s bumper coverage continues this evening with all three of tonight’s games shown live – Leeds Rhinos v Salford Red Devils, Leigh Leopards v Huddersfield Giants & St Helens v London Broncos.

You can purchase a Sky subscription including Sky Sports for £39.99 a month.

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Rugby League News Aaron Wallace