Super League set to bring in ‘Captain’s Challenge’ as Phil Bentham contacts NRL

Ahead of the 2024 Super League season, it was announced that every game would be televised, and each one would use a video referee. This was a major step forward for the competition. It also rectified unfairness, with a disparity in decision making, depending on whether a game was televised or not.

Now, incoming referee’s chief, Phil Bentham, has announced that the RFL is considering rolling out the Captain’s Challenge. Regular NRL viewers will be familiar with the concept of the Captain’s Challenge. Under this system, the captain of each side is able to challenge decisions made by the referee during a game. However, each side is only allowed one unsuccessful challenge per match.

Super League Captain’s Challenge for 2025?

Bentham, speaking to an RFL media briefing, explained why a Super League Captain’s Challenge has not been adopted in the UK sooner. He cited the decision not to use video referees at every Super League game as a key factor.

“Yeah, lots of players, lots of coaches think it’s a great idea. We could never do it because we didn’t feel with two video refs and four games without a video ref it would be a fair playing field.

“If you can imagine a last minute try on a game that’s not on TV and that captain couldn’t challenge that call, that’s not fair in the league. We’re not in that situation anymore.”

Asked whether the idea was being considered for 2025, Bentham responded positively.

“Yeah, it’s certainly something that I’m working with the NRL just to get their feel on it.”

Captain’s Challenge not universally popular

However, the Captain;s Challenge has not been universally accepted in Australia. Critics believe it has been used tactically by teams in certain situations. Others argue that it has led to an increase in dissent towards refereed. Bentham is working closely with NRL counterparts to ensure the system is applied correctly. He stated:

“There’s a few critics on it over there, so we don’t want to bring something in that suddenly they drop, because internationally it looks foolish doesn’t it?

“So we need to work with them and try and come to an agreement on so that the international game actually looks like both elite competitions.”