World Cup 2026 : Round One (Mens)

The format for the men is unusual. Group A has four teams and they play each other once. The top two progress. Group B teams don't play each other but the three from Group C. Group C teams likewise only play teams from Group B. One team from B and one from C progress to semi finals. 

This means all sides play three group stage matches. With only ten teams participating, having eight quarter finalists would make the group matches of little value. 

On to the first round.

Group A:

Australia 24-22 New Zealand. NZ dominated the game except for the scoreline. It seemed NZ lost rather than Australia won. The win was there for the taking for NZ. Both sides should progress regardless. It just changes who they will play in the semi final game. 

Fiji 40-12 Cook Is. Fiji raced to a 28-0 half time lead, effectively ending the contest in terms of outcome. The Cooks did come back well in the second half but the horse had already bolted. Fiji will hope it can upset the Kiwis and be the second qualifier from the group. 

Group B/C: 

Tonga 30-12 England. Some say it was a shock result, but I don't. England had no warm up matches. Rather than fly direct to Perth, they flew across the world and went to the east coast before having to fly across Australia. With all that, they struggled with combinations, which need to get better.

All that said, Tonga are a top nation. They only led 10-0 at half time and it was 10-6 during the second period. Things got away from England late but the score didn't reflect the contest. The top ranked sides from each group playing first up wasn't smart by the organisers either. England now look out of the semi finals already. 

Samoa 78-4 France. Before the first whistle, this had one way traffic stamped all over it. Samoa were ruthless and France battled valiantly, but that still was embarrassing for France. It was 34-4 at the break and already all over bar the shouting. 

Papua New Guinea 42-18 Lebanon. PNG are good at home and they play with confidence. In this instance, Lebanon stayed in the fight and only trailed 12-18 at half time. PNG pulled away in the second half, but that was a gutsy display by The Cedars. 

For video match highlights and post match interviews, simply click here. 

IMG UK Ratings

A rating system was created by IMG to determine who should play at the elite level of the sport in the UK. The ratings have been revealed for 2026 and they are as follows.

Category A covers clubs 15 points and over. eight in total. Category B those below that figure, six SL clubs lead the way. 

All present Super League clubs (division one) are covered in the blue and yellow shading I have created. 

The top two Championship (second division) I have shaded in pink. They are some way off the current SL clubs.  

The SL clubs are therefore all safe from relegation. The question is, will they be joined by another club from the division below? On the scoring system no. They are supposed to achieve that through points.

The problem I see with the system is that London Broncos have won  three competitions in the lower level and are financially sound, yet are nowhere near SL admission via points. I'm also surprised Barrow got more, no disrespect to that fine club. 

London may get promoted anyway, as that could be part of a media deal. The issue still remains, could any Championship club ever realistically qualify to be promoted with the IMG points system?

UK Championship Play Offs: 2026

I covered the league* and now it's on to the finals. It's a convoluted affair, spanning five rounds. 

Round 1: It was Whitehaven and Batley that departed. As 9th and 10th in the league, not surprising. Widnes and Doncaster earned byes for the next round.

Round 2: In came London and Newcastle. The Sheffield Eagles and Midlands Hurricanes bade farewell. Seeing that they were 7th and 8th in the league, that meant all of the top six remained. London and Newcastle earned byes. 

Round 3: Widnes Vikings and Barrow Raiders said adieu, with Doncaster and Oldham into the semi finals. The top four league sides all making it through.

Round 4: The semi finals had arrived. League winners London easily and expectedly cruised into the final. Fourth placed in the league Doncaster overcame the second placed league team the Newcastle Thunder to take the other spot.

Round 5: The grand final between hot favourites and massive underdogs. The scoreline reveals the extent of the gap. The only fully professional club in the competition made that count. Well done Doncaster for making it to the grand final. The Broncos should be a Super League Club next season, confirmation surely a formality.

*You can view the league article by clicking here.

A full replay below of a live stream. Best watched on YouTube. You have to slide the progress bar along if you want to avoid the live build up.

NRL 2026 Finals (Men)

If you missed my coverage of the regular league season, you can see it by clicking here.

All the top eight sides hit the first round of the finals. Four have a second life if they lose. For two it's sayonara. 

First round: The two that went were the South Sydney Rabbitohs (6th in the league) and North Queensland Cowboys (8th). The NZ Warriors (2nd) and Sydney Roosters (4th) lost so missed out on a bye. 

Quarter finals: An out of form Cronulla Sharks (5th) were blown away by the Roosters. The Warriors didn't lift enough for the finals and were ousted by the Newcastle Knights in a somewhat controvesial cliff hanger. 

Semi finals: The Dolphins (3rd) had been hot leading up to the finals series but were outplayed by the Roosters. Favourites the Penrith Panthers (1st) were likewise upset by the Knights.

Grand Final: The Roosters were favourites but the diogged Knights were not out of the equation. The Knights led 12-6 at the break but with less possession and a poorer field position, it was always going to be tough. Yet the Knights only lost by one point. That determination summed up how they got there. 

The Roosters played a grand final how it should be played. Give the opposition as little as possible. The stats say they should have won by more but the margin of victory isn't the point. Winning the grand final is, no matter how you do it.

The highlights of the final are below. Best watched at YouTube. 

NRLW 2026 Finals (Women)

Six clubs lined up for a shot at the coveted crown, the grand final. The third to sixth sides comprised the first round. The regular season summary can be seen by clicking here.

Quarter finals: The Wests Tigers (4th in the league) and Newcastle Knights (6th) ended their journey here. The Wests lost out in a tight one. In came the top two league teams for the semi final.

Semi finals: Neither match had a run away scoreline. The League winner and hot favourite Sydney Roosters went through and the Brisbane Broncos (3rd in the league) defeated second placed Gold Coast Titans. 

Grand final: Last year's finalists were back for round two. Brisbane edged that match but the Roosters were favoured to reverse that result. So it proved with the Roosters taking a 26-0 half time scoreline. The game was over but the second half was close. 

The highlights are below, best watched at YouTube.

European SL 2026 Finals

The 2026 season has concluded. How have the top six clubs fared? Here's my assessment.

6:Leigh Leopards. Sixth in the league and out at the first hurdle in the finals, the quarters. They wanted more as they made the semi finals in 2025 but not good enough.

5: Hull KR. Grand final winners to a quarter final exit, but poor discipline and perhaps over confidence unhelpful to the cause. Fifth in the league too.

4: Leeds Rhinos. Second in the league gave them a bye but narrowly lost their semi final match. There was some murmuring about the penalty that sunk them but I thought it fair. A good season but not quite there.

3: Wigan Warriors. Already had won the league and cup, they were so good on their day but their semi final was a poor effort. Comprehensively beaten and not a reflection of their season.

2: Warrington Wolves. Always the bridesmaid but never the bride, this was their chance to make it their year. Third in the league and a grand finalist. They recently have often played in the finals series and have made grand finals, but their last grand final victory was 1986! They need to catch the bouquet.  

1: Wakefield Trinity. The Trinity comes from when they were formed in 1873 as a team associated with a church. Their last grand final victory was 1968! Since then they have struggled to emulate their better times. They were in the second division in 2024.

Fast forward two years. They came fourth in the league and then won three games to take the grand final. They led 19-0 at the break and despite losing the second half on the scoreboard, were just too good. Well done Trin. A highlights video will follow soon. 

If you missed my coverage of the league season, simply click here.

The highlights are below. Best watched on YouTube.

Queensland State Club Rankings: 2022-26

The Queensland competition is a vibrant one, covering a large distance and even reaching up into PNG. The last five years are covered here, points allocated according to how I've done it. There could be other ways to do it.

Gold Coast club the Burleigh Bears are the most successful, just ahead of the Redcliffe Dolphins. The latter act as a feeder club to the Dolphins in the NLR, giving them a slight advantage, provided it is managed well. No other club has such a direct link to to a top tier club. 

Some clubs are consistent on a good or not so good way. Others can be surprisingly variable, such as Bribane side Norths and the PNG Hunters in 2026. Any decent player in this league not getting a crack in the NRL should look at Super League in the UK. Some are going and doing well. 

UK Women's RL Rankings: 2023-26

Currently, the UK game for women revolves around four clubs. These are listed below at rankings 1-4. They have contested all the finals between them. Wigan have been the most successful over the past two years, but it's St Helens that have been the most successful, according to the way I've scored it anyway. 

There are three competitions, the League, Finals and cup listed below. As Cardiff and London haven't played at the top level in England, the cup is their only opportunity to score points, and commendably, they both have. 

Saints had a relatively poor 2026, the fourth best club. Is that a hiccup or a sign of things to come? Captain Jodie Cunningham and vice captain Emily Rudge are departing, leaving a potential leadership problem. We will see.  

As for depth, the top four sides offer some financial reward to the players to varying degrees. I don't think below that any teams offer anything other than the pleasure to play. Barrow does well, in the top tier of the women's game while not to have a men's team in the top division.  Featherstone is doing even better, with no men's team at present. 

Queensland Cup 2026 Finals Series

The 2026 season has concluded with a long finals series, four rounds. The grand final video highlights are below, which can be viewed on YouTube. If you want to see the results first, they are below the video.

The Sunshine Coast won the league, coverage of that by me can be seen by clicking here. The finals themselves had results go as expected. It came down to the grand final with the top two league teams. Redcliffe had an advantage of having the Dolphins play in the NLR elite league, some well known names representing Redcliffe in the final.

The Sunshine Coast were on top early on but as the game progressed, Redcliffe came back and ultimately took title somewhat comfortably in the end. 

UK SLW 2026 League Standings (Women) Now Completed

The 2026 league has been concluded. How have the clubs fared? Here's my assessment.

I don't have in depth knowledge, but it's clear there are two divisions within one. There isn't enough talent to support eight clubs with any level of equality. The only way to increase the quality in depth is by offering young women a pathway and a chance to play the game competitively. 

5-8. While these four teams are good enough for the top 8, they are well off the pace when compared to the top four.

1-4. These teams possess the most talented players. Still, the top two within this elite level were a notch above the other two below them. 

To deal with the difference between the top four and lower four, the top four were then divided into the Super 4s, retaining their points from the table above and adding to them. 

Wigan did drop a game but ended well ahead. Three below had a tussle, with York slipping past St Helens on points difference. 

York's inflicting Wigan's only loss in the last game of the Super 4s, securing a playoff match with Leeds.  They won that 12-0 and headed to the grand final. York needed to defeat Wigan again and they did and took out the grand final 8-6 in a scoreless second half. 

The lower four then carried over their points into the Shield phase. The rank was only changed with Barrow moving up, courtesy of a superior goal difference. Barrow won two of their Shield games and Leigh lost all of theirs.

Leigh now had to defeat the London Broncos from the lower division to retain their Super League status. They were well beaten 6-36. London are promoted and Leigh go down to the Championshop competition below.

UK Championship League: 2026

This competition is almost in the 'too hard' basket of UK RL. It costs money to run but doesn't generate enough to stand alone. Obviously, sponsorships, ticket sales, and revenue from other locally generated means are important. Centrally distributed funds are also needed. How much does that amount to?

I don't know, but the top amount is £147,000 and the lowest £28,000. The total would exceed £1,000,000, which I assume is money they don't generate. Still, they are an important part of the pyramid of the game, so money well spent. 

As for the season itself...much to be dissected. With the combining of the two leagues below the elite Super League, it ended up as one twenty team league. Let's break it down.

Three teams were promoted to SL and one was shut down due to finances. They are listed at the bottom of the chart below. Salford was relegated from SL. Only two of the six Championship play off clubs from 2025 made it onto the list below. They are Oldham and Halifax. 

Teams marked with a P in the 25 column are clubs that came up from the lower division when it was terminated. They looked like they would be lambs to the slaughter, but not so. Three made the ten team play offs. 

The amazing club is the Newcastle Thunder. They came last in the lower League One with no wins from eighteen matches. This year, rubbing shoulders with experienced Championship sides looked a daunting prospect. Instead, they have come second! Why? Strategic partnerships with SL York and NRL Penrith helped. They have also improved their whole operation in various areas. It just shows the potential when a club is well run and gets strong initiatives in place.

Halifax and North Wales had points deducted for financial issues. North Wales moves to South Wales next year. More travel, but hopefully the southern regions of Wales has more to offer.

The play offs article can be seen by clicking here. 

SL Attendances : 2026

Attendances for the UK elite division in 2026 are up 16.6%. A positive result, but more complicated than that. Going to 14 teams has lifted total attendances, but all the new clubs are below the average figure. Yet it hasn't affected the average. 

That's a positive, as the three new teams should have negatively impacted the average. That begs the question, why has the average held up well? The incumbent clubs have, for the most part, broken even or gone up. Well done to them and their fans. 

A recent issue is playing a games in the USA. Wigan in 2025 (45,209) and Hull KR in 2026 (45,719) has affected their averages greatly. I just can't ignore their 'home game' overseas and the people who turned up to watch. This year Wigan are well down and KR well up just because of this one promotion. 

I was going to do historical averages as I did with the NRL. However, with promotion and relegation, it was going to be fiddly to do. I might do a piece separately on that. 

Queensland Cup Regular Season : 2026

I don't follow it week by week, but it is a strong competition so I check in at the end of the season to see. It does vary quite dramatically too, as we shall see. Green shows the teams making it to the finals and yellow for those whose season finished at the conclusion of the league competition. 

The Sunshine Coast won the league for the first time since 2019. The Redcliff Dolphins last won in 2018 and again missed out this year. The Central Queensland Capras came from 13th to 3rd in a huge swing in a positive direction.  

The Burleigh Bears were the league winners in 2025 but could only manage 4th this year. They also won the league in 2022 and 2023. The Mackay Cutters and Brisbane Tigers made the finals after failing to do so last year.

Wynnum-Manly, Norths Devils and PNG Hunters competed in the finals last year but missed out in 2025. Northern Pride won the league in 2024 but failed to even make the finals series since. Spare a thought for the Western Clydesdales, who since their formation four years ago, have been perennial bottom feeders. They play out of Toowoomba and do have a history that was broken for a time before their recent emergence.

NRLW 2026 League Standings (Women)

The 2026 women's league has been concluded. How have the clubs fared? Here's my assessment.

12: St George Dragons. Tenth last year and twelfth this year. They are not a strong club presently. A season to forget. 

11: Canterbury Bulldogs. Very similar to St George but slightly elevated. 

10: North Queensland. They were top four last year and didn't cover losses in the roster. 

9: Cronulla Sharks. It's been suggested they haven't invested as heavily as other clubs and if that's the case, then dropping to tenth from finals footie is all they could expect. 

8: Parramatta Eels. Much the same as last year. 

7: NZ Warriors. The roster was strengthened and early on, they looked finals ready. Then the wheels fell off and they became the worst team in the competition. Embarrassing.

I will do the top six teams, with the finals review viewed by clicking here.

European SL 2026 League Standings

The 2026 league has been concluded. How have the clubs fared? Here's my assessment.

14: Bradford Bulls. Newly promoted in 2026 and with a full allocation of funds, yet still got the wooden spoon. A rubbish effort and need to do better.

13: Castleford Tigers. One from bottom last year and with two more teams competing, still second from last. Occasionally played really well but the rest of the time terrible.

12: Huddersfield Giants. Started really badly but by the end of the season, one of the form teams. If only they had started better....

11: Hull FC. Seventh to eleventh. There were glimpses of quality but it was not delivered with any consistency. 

10: York Knights. Newly promoted and with less funding than others, yet somehow put out a more than creditable performance. They had wooden spoon potential, but were far better than that.

9: Catalan Dragons. Fully funded but paying travel expenses for all visiting UK teams. Their poor recruitment is letting the club down.

8: Toulouse Olympique. Not fully funded and paying travel expenses for all visiting UK teams. They really should have finished bottom of the table but had a wow of a season, all things considered. 

7: St Helens. My record of allocating points show this to be their worst season since the 1993-94 season. Perhaps their fifth finish last year should have been a warning. The roster needs some work. 

The top six teams and finals review can be seen by clicking here.

NRL 2026 League Standings

The 2026 league has concluded. How have the clubs fared? Here's my assessment.

17: St George Dragons. No dragon slaying here. Wooden spoon winners and dropped two places from last year. Worse points differential too so absolutely got what they deserve.   

16: Gold Coast Titans. A better roster than the outcome. Points difference higher than the two above, which indicates they should have finished higher. 

15: Wests Tigers. Started the season strongly but imploded as the season progressed. Off field dramas didn't help. 

14: Brisbane Broncos. Fourth in the league and grand final winners in 2025. What a debacle this season! A rubbish effort and underachieved badly.

13: Parramatta Eels. Not a bad roster but dropping two places from 2025 was a poor result with the potential they have. 

12: Canterbury Bulldogs. Third in 2025 and started 2026 well but imploded. This was well short of where they should be. A season to forget.

11: Canberra Raiders. From league winners to eleventh was a shock. Probably overachieved in 2025 and underachieved this season.

10: Melbourne Storm. The worst result since 2010 when they were barred from winning points. 2002 was in fact the last time they finished lower in normal circumstances. They are expected to be in the finals.

9: Manly Sea Eagles. Same as last year and have found their level. Started well and then the wheels fell off.

The top eight teams with the finals review can be seen by clicking here.

NRL Attendances : 2026 & Much More

Attendances for 2026 are up 1.9% on the complete 2025 figure, and up 28.3%  when compared to the previous years, going back to 2000. A positive result, especially the historical one. The averages below for each club exclude Magic Weekend matches but the total average includes it. 

The Dolphins are an anomaly, due to the fact that some of their games are played at their home ground, which is a small suburban one, and the rest that are played at Suncorp Stadium, which is very large. They are also the newest club in the competition, currently in their fourth year. 

Another recent issue is playing a few games in the USA. The Roosters and Sea Eagles benefitted in 2024 (40,746 attendance), Raiders and Panthers in 2025 (45,209), Bulldogs and Knights in 2026 (45,719). This can throw up short term variances. 

Overall, not a great result compared to 2025. Perth come in next year and the 20,000 average is the same as their full capacity. Therefore, unless they sell out every match, won't quite help the average grow. Of course, the benefit to the code is far more important than that single metric. 

NRL Offer to SL

I'll try to make sense of where it is now.

UK Objective: UK's Super League needs help and the Australian Rugby League commission (ARLC) put itself forward as the deliverer. 

ARLC Objective: To strengthen the game of RL and take it to another level globally. 

Initial Offer: Approximately £6 million per season over five years. The Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC) wants its stake in the Super League's commercial arm increasing 10% each year until they hold a 50% share. That gives the ARLC virtually all control of the game internationally.

UK perspective: They are pretty much giving up control for minimal gain from what they have already.

ARLC perspective: They are taking on something that isn't strong, so they're not offering much for it.

Possible outcome: Unless the offer is somewhat better, it isn't happeneing. I feel that initial comments by the ARLC would have given the UK SL/RFL hope of quite a bit more. The first offer now made may just be to lower UK expectations. 

Conclusion: The whole concept has merit but the ARLC's first offer isn't good enough. What is the ARLC's primary objective? I believe it is to increase the game's international profile and increase revenue. 

If the UK is an integral part of that, then maybe the ARLC has to accept that cutting a deal with SL needs to be done. The expansion of revenue in future won't be in Australia or the UK but new media deals elsewhere. The initial offer suggests the ARLC wants to take the game over in the UK with as little outlay as possible. For the game in the UK, giving up so much needs to have a bigger carrot. 

Men's Internationals: 2026 (Jan-July)

27.02. USA 28-20 Scotland. Location: Las Vegas. USA.
Scotland started strongly and led 12-10 but the USA came back to claim the win. 

02.07. Norway 6-56 Canada. Location: Lillestrøm, Norway.
Canada took an early lead and were ahead 22-6 at the change around. They were too strong for a gallant local side.

05.07. Scotland 22-10 Canada. Location: Hawick, Scotland.
Scotland put the USA loss behind them with a victory back at home. They led 14-6 at half time. 

11.07. Netherlands 6-34 Canada. Location: Dordrecht, Netherlands.
Canada rounded out a successful European tour. They lead 22-0 at the change of ends. 

Women's Internationals: 2026 (Jan-July)

27.02. USA 14-26 Scotland. Location: Las Vegas. USA.
Scotland led 10-0 at the break and went on to take it reasonably comfortably. 

19.07. Wales 0-14 Canada. Location: Neath, Wales.
Canada led 10-0 at half time and went on to keep Wales scoreless. 

25.07 Scotland 4-34 Canada. Location: Hawick, Scotland.  

Canada led 14-4 at the break but in the second half it was all Canada. 

25.07 France 4-38 England. Location: Toulouse, France. 
France took an early lead through two penalties, but that was their lot. England led 28-4 by half-time. England scored seven tries in all. They are yet to lose to France in the women's game.