The underachievers and overachievers in Super League after first third of 2026

With 10 games of the Super League season complete, it’s fair to say some clubs have overachieved compared to their pre-season expectations, whilst others have significantly underperformed.

Leeds Rhinos lead the way at this stage, whilst Huddersfield Giants hold up the competition at the bottom.

Of course, all clubs will be in different stages in terms of rebuilds, long-term planning and whatnot, but that doesn’t mean to say they can’t be judged on what they have delivered so far, and for some it is well below what is required for the top flight.

On the flip side of that, some sides have exceeded expectations and have set down an early marker as to their trophy intentions for the rest of the season.

With that in mind, here is how we have assessed each team’s opening third of 2026 compared to what was said they would do in pre-season.

How Super League teams have performed in comparison to pre-season expectations

14th: Castleford Tigers

Significantly under-delivering, it was hoped that Ryan Carr would begin to make Castleford a lot more competitve after half a decade of poor campaigns.

It’s telling that, despite some very poor results, that this is best start to a season for the Tigers since Daryl Powell’s exit, so whilst improvement has come, some of the efforts from the West Yorkshire outfit pits them as the most underwhelming team in the competition.

13th: Huddersfield Giants

The Giants came into 2026 without any real expectations from the outisde, but internally the club are striving to reach a Grand Final or a Challenge Cup Final within three years, including this season.

Sat rock bottom of the league and out of the Cup, the Giants have already overseen a coaching change with Luke Robinson exiting and Jim Lenihan joining in the coming weeks, so whilst there was very little expectation on them at the start of the year, it’s mainly been a season to dismiss for Huddersfield so far.

12th: Hull FC

Another side who have had a coaching chance is FC, who will be under Andy Last for the rest of the year before Steve McNamara takes over in 2027.

After narrowly missing out on a play-off place last year, the new season hasn’t gone as planned and if results don’t begin to pick-up, the club will be on the verge of another wasted season before we even get to the half-way stage.

11th: Leigh Leopards

Like with many of the teams in Super League, Leigh have had their fair share of injuries, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t underperformed.

Had they not scraped through against Leeds in round one, Leigh would have had to wait until round six for their first win, and even that game they could have easily lost – claiming the victory over Toulouse in golden point.

Form has started to pick up for Adrian Lam’s side, and the club are still certain they can finish in the top two, but they are a way off it at this stage and that’s what puts them so low in this ranking.

10th: Wigan Warriors:

Losing four league games in a row, Wigan may still be in the top five but they have disappointed for a lot the season so far.

Bevan French being injured hasn’t helped them, but for a team so successful in the modern era, consecutive home losses to teams bottom of the league is far below the Cherry and Whites’ standard.

9th: Catalans Dragons

As we begin to get to teams that have gone par for the course, the first of those is Catalans, who have had a mixed start to the year yet remain in play-off contention.

Missing out on the six last year, Les Dracs will be desperate to get back to playing finals footy and with the team they assembled, they probably should be.

Beating Hull KR and Warrington, losses to Bradford and Hull FC, both away from home, is what is hurting them and it’s those games against teams in and around the six that they need to start getting on top of.

8th: Hull KR

The Robins should probably be higher given they are World Club Champions, but looking at Super League alone it’s been a bumpy start to their title defence.

Defeat at York and a thumping in Las Vegas for Rovers’ league campaign off to the worst possible start, and whilst they have managed to turn that around results like those were far from the standard we have known to become normal to Willie Peters’ side

=5th: Toulouse Olympique, York Knights and Bradford Bulls

All three promoted sides can be put together, and after each have won three games of the opening 10, that is a lot more than most people would have thought when the decision to move to 14 teams was made last year.

What’s more interesting though, is the fact that all three sides could have won more of that, and if they had done could be well with the running for a play-off spot.

It is far too early to predict who will make that final six, and injuries have hit all three teams, meaning they will need to dig deep for the final two thirds of the year, but after 10 games all three have exceeded expectations.

4th: Wakefield Trinity

After being the team that overacheived the most in 2025, Trinity have continued that trend into 2026, and currently sit in sixth after six wins from their opening 10.

They could arguably be higher in this list after the first eight rounds, but consecutive defeats to St Helens and Leeds have doubled as a reality check to Daryl Powell’s side, showing there is still plenty more work to be done.

That being said, another winning run of five games in a row wouldn’t go amiss, and that could put them back into the top four.

3rd: Leeds Rhinos

League leaders Leeds are currently the benchmark of the competition, and whilst their early season efforts have been impressive, with the squad and assets they have, top spot is something they should be in the mix for.

The Rhinos are now settled under Brad Arthur, and after 2025 ended so heart-breakingly, they will want to avenge that this season – in what could be Arthur’s last campaign at the club.

2nd: Warrington Wolves

Another team going exceptionally well this season are Warrington, who have delivered well above what they were said to do in pre-season.

Sam Burgess came into 2026 as one of Super League’s most under-pressure boss, but in a contract year he is performing very well, and is said to have started talks with the club’s higher-ups about a new deal.

1st: St Helens

Significantly outperforming their pre-season expectation as it stands are Saints, who currently sit joint top with Leeds, only separated by points difference.

Being high up in the league is a normality for the Red Vee, but this year it feels a lot more significant given they are in the early stages of a new head coach and have had so many injury troubles to deal with.

With respect to the likes of Salford and Leigh, Paul Rowley has never had a ‘top’ coaching role, in which he is the boss of a club that delivers success, but the early signs of 2026 suggest that he could be on his way to do just that.

However, if Rowley is to have success this year, it won’t be through the Challenge Cup after his side were dumped out of the competition by rivals Wigan at the semi-final stage.