The Rules:

• Each person predicts the results of every Super League match.
• Predicting the correct winner will get you 1 point.
• If the predictor’s scoreline has the same winning margin, then 4 points will be awarded (only if the predicted winning team is correct).
• Correctly predicting the exact score will win you an additional 5 points.
• Two bonus points will be awarded if the first try scorer is predicted correctly, whereas 1 point will be awarded if the selected player scores during the match.

Last Round’s Results:

• York Knights 20 – Hull FC 16 (Nathan – 0, Ian – 0)
• Huddersfield Giants 14 – Bradford Bulls 30 (Nathan – 2, Ian – 0)
• Wigan Warriors 30 – Warrington Wolves 18 (Nathan – 2, Ian – 1)
• Leigh Leopards 24 – Castleford Tigers 18 (Nathan – 2, Ian – 2)
• Hull KR 6 – Wakefield Trinity 20 (Nathan – 0, Ian – 1)
• Catalans Dragons 6 – Leeds Rhinos 28 (Nathan – 1, Ian – 2)
• St Helens 0 – Toulouse Olympique XIII 46 (Nathan – 0, Ian – 0)

Current Score: Nathan 144 – Ian 148

Oh, it’s getting close now! As we edge towards the business end of the season, not only is the race in Super League hotting up, but so too is this predictions contest, with just four points now separating Ian and myself.

Thursday’s game sees two teams coming off reasonably big wins against Huddersfield and Hull KR, respectively. I don’t think anyone can afford to sleep on Wakefield anymore; they have risen to the challenge on a few occasions so far this season, and I think they will continue to do so. I think they’re a good shout for a top four spot, and I think they’ll be too much for the Bulls here.

Trin will be on a high after completing a league double over Rovers, and no matter how good the Bulls have generally been at home this year, I still expect Daryl Powell’s side to have comfortably too much in the tank for them, even despite Kurt Haggerty’s side having claimed their first victory on the road against basement dwellers Huddersfield, to be fair, Trinity didn’t exactly look like world-beaters themselves at Craven Park, but then again, they didn’t have to!

Lightning can’t strike twice, surely? Huddersfield’s unlikely win against the Warriors seems like ancient history now, a halcyon memory, even, for a side that can’t buy a win. I think the Warriors will have the defeat back home at the hands of the league’s basement-dwellers on their minds for this game, and the only thing stopping me from predicting a higher scoreline is the number of key players Wigan will still have unavailable. They will still have more than enough to be too much for the woeful Giants, however.

Jim Lennihan must be absolutely terrified about what is coming at the Accu Stadium this week after his limp excuse for a team were so thoroughly beaten there by a Bradford team that had previously lost every single one of their away games, add into the mix that Matt Peet’s imperious Challenge Cup winners will feel that they owe them one after their shock home reversal against them and one could easily be forgiven for expecting the in-form Warriors to absolutely hit their hosts for a cricket score.

I am really at a loss about what is going wrong at St Helens. On paper, they’re a side that should be comfortably inside the top four, maybe even competing at the top; however, unfortunately for Paul Rowley’s men, they are made to play on grass. Catalans may not be dazzling anyone and are on the back of two losses, but I think they will be spurred on by Saints’ mauling at the hands of their fellow French side, Toulouse, yesterday, and pile the misery on Saints, and the pressure on Rowley.

Le Dracs would have taken a crumb of comfort from their home defeat against Leeds because they did at least make a contest of it and the Rhinos certainly had to work for their latest W. Saints on the other hand, I think the best statement I can make is ‘oh dear me’ and facing the other French team hot on the heels of their previous game just has banana skin rubber stamped all over it, so I expect John Cartwright’s side to get the job done here.

I find myself, once again, in a ‘head vs heart’ quandary about my own team. Yes, Rovers are on the back of a dire display against Wakey on Saturday, but there is still the optimism of having Arthur Mourgue very likely to make his return, as well as potentially Tom Amone and Dean Hadley to bulk up the pack. Meanwhile, Wire are on the back of a bruising 30-18 defeat against Wigan, in a scoreline which I thought flattered the Warriors. It’s a toss-up for me; when you factor in the key bodies Wire have missing too, it could go either way, and I’m not confident in picking a winner either way.

Two teams who both tasted defeat in their previous outings, but in very differing situations as Warrington were chased down by Wigan’s latest breed of young superstars in waiting, while Rovers looked absolutely clueless and with a distinctly blunt edge against a Wakefield team who didn’t need to get above 2nd gear to wipe out their previously proud home record, I get the feeling that this game could actually come down to which side makes the most errors and has the worst discipline, as opposed to the undoubted quality that both sides can boast.

Leigh is a team that varies wildly in terms of quality from week to week, but they seem to be pulling themselves together for a tilt at the top six. Hull FC, on the other hand, well, it’s been another long, old season for their beleaguered fans, currently sitting 13th in the table, with only Huddersfield’s abject awfulness keeping them from propping up the table. Hull do at least (sometimes) have some fight in them, and they won’t make it easy for the Leopards, but I think the Leythers run away with it in the last twenty minutes.

I know people will think I have taken leave of my senses by predicting a home win here, but here’s the method in my madness. I think this will be a targeted game for the Airlie Birds because, when all is said and done, Adrian Lam’s Leopards are one of those sides not far ahead of the Black & Whites. Added to that, they are at home where they have already beaten Leeds, and took Wigan all the way, and with a partisan crowd on their side, as well as a point to prove after a long turnaround from the debacle at York, this is just one of those types of games that we have all seen FC claim an unexpected victory in. You also have to take into account that they have 2 days extra recovery time on their opponents, and Leigh weren’t exactly what you would call convincing in their last outing as they scraped over the winning line against Castleford at the LSV.

Saturday’s last game is another tough one to call for me. Both teams come into the game in form, with TO winning their last two, and the Knights their last three. I can’t see there being much to separate the two teams, but home advantage should be enough for Toulouse to claim a third successive victory and move them further away from the foot of the table.

The battle of two newly promoted in-form teams could be a very interesting encounter, one which could go either way. I have picked a home win just because we all know how tough a trip to the South of France can be, but the Knights managed to overcome that same trip in the championship last year, so don’t be surprised if they can do it again.

Closing out the weekend is a clash between two sides with contrasting fortunes. On one hand, we have the Castleford Tigers, whose season has dribbled away to nothing after much ballyhoo over their new recruits and coach in the close season, and on the other, we have the Leeds Rhinos, who are waltzing their way to the League Leaders’ Shield, with only Wigan, and possibly Wakefield, able to trouble them. I’m going for another routine Rhinos win, as the Tigers’ disappointment continues to grow.

Cas may have taken Leigh to the closing stages at LSV, but this formidable Rhinos side is a whole different proposition. Brad Arthur’s side were comfortable winners in Perpignan, but not exactly what you would call convincing, and I think they’ll use this local derby to put another marker down against a very indifferent Tigers side who can be sublime one week, then ridiculous the next. If the home side gets off to a good start, they could certainly make a serious contest of it, especially on their unique pitch, but give Leeds enough rope, and they will hang Cas out to dry!

Nathan’s Picks:

• Bradford Bulls 10 – Wakefield Trinity 26. First try scorer: Cam Scott
• Huddersfield Giants 0 – Wigan Warriors 42. First try scorer: Jai Field
• St Helens 6 – Catalans Dragons 24. First try scorer: Solomona Faataape
• Warrington Wolves 16 – Hull KR 20. First try scorer: Arthur Mourgue
• Hull FC 10 – Leigh Leopards 30. First try scorer: Umyla Hanley
• Toulouse Olympique XIII 26 – York Knights 18. First try scorer: Olly Ashall-Bott
• Castleford Tigers 10 – Leeds Rhinos 26. First try scorer: Maika Sivo

Ian’s Picks:

• Bradford Bulls 12 – Wakefield Trinity 30. First try scorer: Tyson Smoothy
• Huddersfield Giants 6 – Wigan Warriors 60. First try scorer: Brad O’Neill
• St Helens 18 – Catalans Dragons 24. First try scorer: Charlie Staines
• Warrington Wolves 20 – Hull KR 12. First try scorer: Albert Hopoate
• Hull FC 24 – Leigh Leopards 14. First try scorer: Harvey Barron
• Toulouse Olympique XIII 24 – York Knights 20. First try scorer: Joe Cator
• Castleford Tigers 12 – Leeds Rhinos 42. First try scorer: Chris Hankinson

Written by Nathan Major (Site editor & Hull KR fan) and Ian Judson (Site contributor & Hull FC fan)