Super League players return to training

James Gordon

Leeds and St Helens whet the appetite for the Super League restart with videos of their players returning to training on Monday.

Amidst a backdrop of a handful of clubs still locked in negotiations over player pay, the competition’s most successful club and its reigning champion got back to work.

Huddersfield became the first UK club to return to training, with all players and staff reporting back on Saturday.

The Giants are due to face Leeds as part of the triple-header that marks Super League’s return next month.

They were the first club to be tested last week, with all players and coaches testing negative.

Saints have relocated their training base to their Totally Wicked Stadium home, as per COVID-19 guidelines.

 

A report in The Mirror over the weekend revealed that Castleford, Hull KR, Salford, Wakefield, Warrington and Wigan were yet to agree pay cut terms with players.

Of those six, Hull KR were the first to confirm that players had returned to training on Monday morning, despite not having reached an agreement, though owner Neil Hudgell told the Hull Daily Mail said the players were understanding of the situation.

Catalans resumed training on Friday, although president Bernard Guasch’s demands to play home games in Perpignan is believed to be a key reason the Super League fixture announcement has been delayed.

Guasch announced in the local press that the Dragons would be playing at home on August 8, which went against the previously announced plans that games would be played across three “neutral” venues in the UK.

With restrictions on crowds relaxed in France, Catalans could play in front of limited crowds prior to their English counterparts.

Super League Castleford Tigers