Wakefield Trinity coach Daryl Powell takes aim at Super League fixture schedule

Wakefield boss Daryl Powell has labelled Super League’s fixture schedule ‘ridiculous’, with Trinity set to face St Helens for the second time this season in Round 7 on Friday night.

Newly-promoted Trinity were beaten 26-6 by Saints at Belle Vue back on March 1, with that game taking place in Round 3 of the season.

Four rounds and just under six weeks later, Powell’s side travel to the Totally Wicked Stadium.

That game precedes two clashes against rivals Castleford Tigers, including one at Magic Weekend, in the space of a fortnight. In-between those two meetings with the Tigers, Wakefield travel to Perpignan to take on Catalans Dragons.

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Wakefield Trinity coach Daryl Powell takes aim at Super League fixture schedule

After Friday night’s game against Saints, Wakefield will have played seven Super League games this term without facing Wigan Warriors, Cas, Catalans, Salford Red Devils or Huddersfield Giants.

Coincidentally, taking Wigan out of the equation there, those four remaining sides are actually Super League’s bottom four pre-round.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of their trip to Saints, Powell said: “I think the fixture list is crazy.

“We’ve not played Huddersfield or Salford yet, but then we’ll play Cas twice (in the next three weeks) and we’ll have played Saints twice (after Friday night).

“It really is madness… I don’t understand, they say it’s a computer that’s picked it, but where is this computer? It’s just ridiculous.

“Quite a lot of teams have played against both Cas and Salford, and we haven’t.

“I’m not saying there’s anything in that, I just think you can’t really get a true perspective of the competition.

“There’s nothing we can do about it though, we’ll just crack on and take each game as it comes.”

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