SL Teams Rated : 2020 Also Rans

Hull FC vs Salford Red Devils

 

The 2020 regular season has concluded. I held back writing about it until it was clear the Covid-19 didn't take any sides out of the finals. The teams below are now done for the season. How did they go?

12th: 0 win %, Toronto Wolfpack (Canada).

It's been reported here and elsewhere about the conditions that the Canadian RL club was forced to accept before given entry. That draconian treatment, coupled with some poor management decisions, limited finances by the owner and then this pandemic forced them to pull out of the competition. All results were expunged. How it all panned out is a sobering reminder of what a dysfunctional state the elite part of RL in the UK is in. 

11th: 17.65 win %, Hull KR (Humberside).

Thankfully there was no demotion this year, otherwise, this side was going down. With a very poor win percentage and scarcely competitive at this level, a lot is going to have to happen before 2021. It's still not decided if there will be relegation next year. Hull KR will be hoping there isn't.

10th: 26.32 win %, Wakefield Trinity (Yorkshire).

The season was variable for Trinity. On a good day, they were a handful for anyone but unfortunately, that didn't happen often enough. The coach and owner weren't afraid to publicly criticise the effort of the players, not an approach I would have thought professional. The players finished the season quite strongly. 

9th: 27.78 win %, Salford Red Devils (Lancashire).

Financial issues had Salford docked three wins, otherwise, the side would have finished 7th. They have limited resources and probably should be at the bottom of the league but have been boxing above their weight for a few seasons now.

8th: 37.50 win %, Castleford Tigers (Yorkshire).

A club with aspirations of making the finals but in the end, the win percentage was well short of that. It was a team that didn't impress but occasionally they were a decent side.

7th: 38.89 win %, Huddersfield Giants (Yorkshire).

I felt sorry for this club. They recruited well and were competitive but too often narrowly lost games. I thought they were worth a finals berth but weren't able to achieve that. Losing their coach during the season wasn't helpful either but these things happen.

The next instalment will be the top sides reviewed.

	Rk	Team	Pl	W	L	Diff	Win %
	7	Huddersfield Giants	18	7	11	-49	38.89
	8	Castleford Tigers	16	6	10	-51	37.50
	9	Salford Red Devils	18	5	10	-115	27.78
	10	Wakefield Trinity	19	5	14	-179	26.32
	11	Hull Kingston Rovers	17	3	14	-236	17.65
	12	Toronto Wolfpack	0	-	-	-	0.00