Before the season started, everyone had predictions of how all 12 Super League teams would fare in 2021. But, just how have the teams actually performed so far when compared to how people predicted?
12th: Salford Red Devils
Salford have arguably had the two most difficult fixtures to begin their season, but they have still significantly underperformed. Despite conceding 64 across their first two games, Salford have also looked extremely toothless in attack, managing just two tries so far this season, a statistic that will certainly concern Richard Marshall.
11th: Huddersfield Giants
Huddersfield haven’t necessarily been very poor in either of their games, but after a lot of new faces joined the club, there was huge expectation on Ian Watson’s side. They have failed to pick up a point from the first two rounds, and although it is extremely early on in the season, their form needs to improve to start looking like strong play-off contenders.
10th: Leigh Centurions
There was little expected of Leigh as they came into Super League, and the fact they lost to Wigan and Warrington in the first two games should not cause major concern to Leigh fans. They put in a strong first-half performance against Wigan but in their last two hours of Super League rugby there have been few positives to draw upon.
9th: Wakefield Trinity
Chris Chester’s side put in a decent effort in the opening round against Leeds and narrowly missed out on two points, but their performance against Wigan will concern many Wakefield fans. Despite going in level at half-time, they conceded 28 unanswered points in the second-half.
8th: Hull K.R
Although Rovers are yet to earn a point so far this season, they have put in two impressive performances. They came away empty handed after an incredible fight back against Catalans saw them beaten in Golden Point, and then they followed it up with an appropriately determined performance against Saints in the Mose Masoe round.
7th: Leeds Rhinos
The Rhinos have had a slightly underwhelming start to the 2021 season. They started the season with a decent enough victory over Wakefield, but their loss to Castleford on Friday won’t have filled many people at Leeds with a huge amount of confidence.
6th: Warrington Wolves
Warrington bounced back from their poor opening game against Castleford with a comfortable victory over Leigh. It is too early on to predict which version of Warrington we will see for the season ahead, but consistency will certainly be key.
5th: Catalans Dragons
Catalans got away with letting Hull KR back into the game in round one as they won the game by just one point. They did follow this up with a stronger performance against Huddersfield and looked in control for pretty much the entire game.
4th: Wigan Warriors
2nd: St. Helens
As expected, Saints have picked up two wins in two games with relative ease. Although they have only faced Hull KR and Salford, it seems very little has changed at Saints other than personnel, as they showed control and high quality throughout both fixtures.
1st: Hull F.C
It’s been a dream start to the season for the black-and-whites. Josh Reynolds has been fantastic and has helped Sneyd return to form with his arrival. Their defence has been relentless and they’ve conceded just 14 points as a result, it is now a question of whether they can keep up these performances.
