Super League XIV

The 2009 Super League season (known as the Engage Super League XIV for sponsorship reasons) is the 14th season of rugby league since the Super League format was introduced in 1996.[3] Fourteen teams competed for the Minor Premiership over 27 rounds (including the Magic Weekend at Murrayfield Stadium) after which, the highest finishing teams entered the play-offs to compete for a place in the Grand Final and a chance to win the Super League Trophy. The previous Top six play-offs are extended to eight teams.

Super League XIV
Leeds Rhinos celebrating after the Grand Final
LeagueSuper League
Duration27 Rounds (Followed by four round play-offs)
Teams14
Highest attendance30,122
Magic Weekend Day 2(3 May)
Lowest attendance1,988
Celtic Crusaders vs Huddersfield Giants (5 Sep)
Attendance1,799,413
(average 8,864)
Broadcast partners Sky Sports Nine Network
2009 Season
Champions Leeds Rhinos
4th Super League title
7th English title
League Leaders Leeds Rhinos
Man of Steel Brett Hodgson[1]
Top point-scorer(s) Pat Richards (252)
Top try-scorer(s) Ryan Hall[2] (29)

Salford City Reds and Crusaders join the twelve teams from Super League XIII, following the implementation of a licensing system.[4] Additionally, it was the Crusaders' first ever Super League season.[5] The Catalans Dragons played at least one game in Barcelona, Spain, to try to expand their fan base in Catalonia region.[6]

The season officially kicked off on 6 February, at 20:00 GMT, with a Leeds Rhinos defeat of the Celtic Crusaders.[7] It came to a conclusion with Leeds Rhinos beating St. Helens in the Super League Grand Final on 10 October.[8] All clubs also participated in the 2009 Challenge Cup tournament.

Teams

Super League XIV saw the introduction of a licensed Super League. Under this new system, promotion and relegation between Super League and National League One was abolished, and 14 teams were granted licences subject to certain criteria. All twelve teams from Super League XIII were given places, as well as former Super League team Salford City Reds and Crusaders, for whom it was their début season in top-flight European rugby league.

Geographically, the vast majority of teams in Super League are based in the north of England, four teams – Warrington, St. Helens, Salford and Wigan – to the west of the Pennines in Cheshire, Greater Manchester and Merseyside, and seven teams to the east in Yorkshire – Huddersfield, Bradford, Wakefield Trinity, Leeds, Castleford, Hull F.C. and Hull Kingston Rovers. Catalans Dragons are the only team outside of the United Kingdom, Crusaders are the only team in Wales, and Harlequins are the only team to be based in a capital city (London).

The locations of the teams that will contest Super League XIV.
Team Stadium Capacity City/Area
Bradford Bulls (2009 season) Grattan Stadium, Odsal 27,000 Bradford, West Yorkshire
Castleford Tigers (2009 season) The Jungle 11,750 Castleford, West Yorkshire
Catalans Dragons (2009 season) Stade Gilbert Brutus 10,000 Perpignan, Pyrénées-Orientales, France
Crusaders (2009 season) Brewery Field 12,000 Bridgend, Glamorgan, Wales
Harlequins (2009 season) Twickenham Stoop 12,700 Twickenham, London
Huddersfield Giants (2009 season) Galpharm Stadium 24,544 Huddersfield, West Yorkshire
Hull F.C. (2009 season) Kingston Communications Stadium 25,404 Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire
Hull Kingston Rovers (2009 season) "New" Craven Park 9,471 Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire
Leeds Rhinos (2009 season) Headingley Carnegie Stadium 22,250 Leeds, West Yorkshire
Salford City Reds (2009 season) The Willows 11,363 Salford, Greater Manchester
St Helens R.F.C. (2009 season) The GPW Recruitment Stadium 17,500 St Helens, Merseyside
Wakefield Trinity Wildcats (2009 season) Belle Vue 12,600 Wakefield, West Yorkshire
Warrington Wolves (2009 season) Halliwell Jones Stadium 14,206 Warrington, Cheshire
Wigan Warriors (2009 season) DW Stadium 25,138 Wigan, Greater Manchester
Reigning champions Promoted via licence

Rule changes

Changes to the play-off system:

  • This season an eight-team play-off system was introduced to replace the previous six-team system.
  • One feature of this system, known as "Club Call", is that the highest ranked team from the regular season table winning a match in the first week of the play-offs will be able to select their opponents for their next game in Week Three.[9] This selection opportunity is only possible for teams finishing in the top three during the regular season to achieve.[9]

Table
Main article: 2009 Super League season results
Super League XIV
Pos. Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts
1 Leeds Rhinos 272106805453+35242
2 St. Helens 271908733466+26738
3 Huddersfield Giants 271809690416+27436
4 Hull KR 271719650516+13435
5 Wakefield Trinity Wildcats 2716011685609+7632
6 Wigan Warriors 2715012659551+10830
7 Castleford Tigers 2714013645702–5728
8 Catalans Dragons 2713014613660–4726
9 Bradford Bulls 2712114653668–1525
10 Warrington Wolves 2712015649705–5624
11 Harlequins RL 2711016591691–10022
12 Hull FC 2710017502623–12120
13 Salford City Reds 277020456754–29814
14 Celtic Crusaders 273024357874–5176
  Teams qualifying for the Play-offs

Source: superleague.co.uk.
Classification: 1st on competition points; 2nd on match points difference.
Competition points: for win = 2; for draw = 1; for loss = 0.

Play-offs
Further information: 2009 Super League season results § Play-offs, and Super League play-offs

The play-offs commence following the conclusion of 27 round regular season and involve the eight sides finishing highest. The play-offs open on Friday 18 September, with the Week 1 fixtures being completed over the weekend.[9]

A media conference is scheduled for Sunday 27 September following the conclusion of Week 2's preliminary semi-finals the day before.[9] During the conference the highest ranked winning team from the qualifying play-offs in Week 1 will in announce which team they have chosen to play in Week 3, the next week.[9]

The play-offs will conclude with the 2009 Super League Grand Final on 10 October.[9]

  Qualifying / Elimination play-offs Preliminary semi-finals Qualifying semi-finals Grand Final
                                         
  QPO1:    
1   Leeds Rhinos 44  
4   Hull Kingston Rovers 8     PSF1:    
              Huddersfield Giants 6    
EPO1:           Catalans Dragons 16       QSF1: Leeds selected Catalans[10]
5   Wakefield Trinity Wildcats 16             Leeds Rhinos 27  
8   Catalans Dragons 25             Catalans Dragons 20     GF: 10 October, Old Trafford
          Leeds Rhinos 18
  EPO2:       QSF2:         St. Helens 10
6   Wigan Warriors 18           St. Helens 14  
7   Castleford Tigers 12     PSF2:           Wigan Warriors 10  
        Hull Kingston Rovers 16    
QPO2:           Wigan Warriors 30    
2   St. Helens 15    
3   Huddersfield Giants 2    
   
Key:          Losing team progressing      Winning team progressing      Winning team's progression chosen

Week 1. Qualifying/Elimination play-offs: Fixtures decided by regular reason finishing positions. Higher ranked teams play lower ranked teams. Higher ranked teams receive home ground advantage.
Week 2. Preliminary semi-finals: Fixtures decided by regular season finishing positions. Higher ranked teams play lower ranked teams. Higher ranked teams receive home ground advantage.
Week 3. Qualifying semi-finals: Winners of Qualifying play-offs play winners of Qualifying semi-finals. Fixtures decided by Club Call. Winners of Qualifying play-offs receive home ground advantage.

Club Statistics
FLP Team PTS TRS GLS DGLS MET CAR TACK OFFL ATKI RFDH TACKB MTAC CBRE FOTW KIGP MGLS MITAC ERR PEN RCAR YCAR
1Leeds8491481273380075536811138627387484610421998506323233821503
2St Helens748142884406245800870829129775090410881826504565637116901
3Wigan707130931381645402859539729982385011911734555474834719005
4Wakefield7011181125356255191803824439393172410141431581343529619812
5Huddersfield698121107037761542892823613249447289361695573232637323803
6Hull KR6741181002379545469906319833279370312341409630303335117202
7Catalans65812088236555517586272482767506179091387524404035525301
8Castleford65711793336128545777862833579107429831483537373832520604
9Bradford6531111033351095299795736528076274310191483460323236020103
10Warrington649118881363555069785532528070675211151532472373836717301
11Harlequins591102911355905350861829431580867910251264549202231917111
12Hull5028679035322513981373593367727389721194556222430214001
13Salford460807003097248498827320258638575861987571191926922314
14Celtic Crusaders357635213022250018397311249747511962940554161734020403

Notable moments
  • Friday 6 February - The season kicks off at Headingley, with the defending champions Leeds Rhinos taking on Super League newcomers Crusaders. Leeds eventually win the game 28-6.
  • Sunday 15 February - The first draw of the season is played out at the Grattan Stadium, as Bradford Bulls and Hull Kingston Rovers draw 13-13.
  • Friday 27 February - The first game in the season to be decided by a single point is won by Hull Kingston Rovers, who beat St. Helens 19 – 20 away from home.
  • Saturday 7 March - St. Helens win 4-0 at Crusaders RL in the lowest scoring match in the Super League history.
  • Friday 20 March - Hull FC and Leeds both lose, breaking the two remaining 100% records in the league.
  • Sunday 22 March - Wakefield's match away at Celtic is postponed due to the death of Leon Walker in the corresponding reserves fixture earlier in the day.
  • Sunday 19 April - St Helens become the first team to score 60 points or more in a single game, against Castleford.
  • Friday 24-Sunday 26 April - The top four teams in the league before this round; St Helens, Leeds, Huddersfield and Wakefield, all lose their fixtures.
  • Sunday 26 April - Chris Hicks scores a hat-trick for the second successive weekend, this time against Huddersfield.
  • Saturday 2-Sunday 3 May - The Magic Weekend fixtures, held over the May Day bank holiday weekend at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh attract an aggregate attendance of approximately 60,000 attendees over the two days. Over 6,000 of these were estimated to be Scottish.[11]
  • Sunday 17 May - Celtic beat Bradford to win their first ever Super League match, ending an 11-match losing sequence.
  • Saturday 23 May - Celtic host Catalans in the first ever Super League match not to feature an English side.
  • Saturday 20 June - Catalans Dragons host the first Super League game to take place in Spain, at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, the venue for the 1992 Summer Olympics.
  • Friday 3 July - David Howell of Harlequins becomes the first player of the season to be sent off, in Quins' match against Wigan at the JJB.
  • Saturday 4 July - Keith Senior, who holds the record for most Super League appearances, plays and scores in his 500th professional match.[12]

Awards

Awards were presented for outstanding contributions and efforts to players and clubs:[1]

Disciplinary record

The following table lists all incidents that were reviewed by the Rugby Football League during Super League XIV, which were later deemed "guilty" and resulted in disciplinary action. The offenses were graded, depending on severity, in alphabetical order, "A" being less severe than "B".

Name of Player Rnd Offense Grade Suspension Fine Source
Chev Walker 1 Striking C 1 match £300 Report
Michael McIlorum 2 Dangerous throw C 1 match £200 Report
Jamal Fakir 2 High tackle C 1 match £300 Report
Ben Westwood 2 High tackle D 5 matches £300 Report
Maurie Fa'asavalu 4 "Chicken wing" C 1 match £300 Report
Keith Mason 7 Striking C None £300 Report
Ian Sibbitt 10 High tackle C 1 match £300 Report
Darrell Griffin 17 Grapple tackle C None £300 Report
Jamal Fakir 17 High tackle C 2 matches £300 Report

Operational rules

Salary cap:

  • For the 2009 season, Super League clubs agreed to operate within a £1.7 million salary cap for their 25 first tier players.[13]

The 'club trained player rule' entered its second year and made a planned adjustment:[14]

  • Clubs would be required to include a minimum of six players, an increase from five players, who have come through their academy or are under 21 years old in their 25-player first team squads.[14] Clubs were required to have eleven United Kingdom-trained players, an increase from ten, and no more than eight overseas-trained players, a decrease from ten.[14]

Media

Television

2009 was the first of a new three-year broadcasting agreement between the RFL and BSkyB for Sky Sports to screen matches exclusively live within the United Kingdom.[15] The deal for the 2009, 2010 and 2011 season was worth in excess of £50 million, with media speculation that each Super League club would receive £0.9-£1.2 million in 2009.[13][16]

Sky Sports' continued coverage in the UK sees two live matches broadcast each week - one on Friday Night at 7:30pm and another at 6pm on Saturdays. Regular commentators are Eddie Hemmings and Mike Stephenson with summarisers including Phil Clarke, Barrie McDermott and Terry O'Connor. Highlights are shown on Boots N' All which is shown on Sky Sports and is rebroadcast on the Internet.

BBC Sport broadcast a highlights programme called the Super League Show, usually presented by Harry Gration. The BBC have elected to broadcast this only to the North West, Yorkshire & North Midlands, North East & Cumbria, and East Yorkshire & Lincolnshire regions on a Sunday. A national repeat is broadcast overnight during the week, the BBC Director of Sport, Richard Moseley, commented that this move was in response to the growing popularity and awareness of the sport, and the large number of requests from people who want to watch it elsewhere in the UK. End of season play-offs are shown across the whole country in a highlights package. Super League Show is available for streaming or downloaded using the BBC iPlayer in the UK.

Orange Sport TV in France shows every Catalans Dragons home match live and also some other matches which are broadcast in the UK live on Sky.

Internationally Super League is shown live on Showtime Sports (Middle East), Sky Sport (New Zealand), NTV+ (Russia), SportKlub (Eastern Europe) and Setanta Sports (USA and Canada) show Super League matches live or delayed each week.

2009 was the first of a three-year deal in which the Nine Network in Australia will show up to 70 live games from Super League over the season.[17][18]

Radio

Super League XIV is covered extensively by BBC Local Radio:

  • BBC Radio Manchester cover Wigan, Salford and Warrington.
  • BBC Radio Humberside cover Hull KR and Hull FC.
  • BBC Radio Leeds cover Bradford, Leeds, Castleford, Wakefield and Huddersfield.
  • BBC Radio Merseyside (AM/DAB only) cover St Helens and Warrington.

The competition is also covered on commercial radio coverage:

  • BCB 106.6 (Bradford Community Broadcasting) cover Bradford Bulls home and away.
  • Radio Aire cover Leeds Rhinos.
  • KCFM Hull cover Hull KR and Hull.
  • Radio Marseillette covers every Catalans Dragons Home Match (in French).
  • Radio France Bleu Roussillon covers every Catalans Dragons Away Match (in French).
  • Yorkshire Radio cover all Yorkshire clubs and have one commentary per round which is not covered by either BBC or SKY.

All Super League commentaries on any station are available via the particular stations on-line streaming.

Internet

ESPN360 has worldwide broadband rights.

Starting from Thursday 9 April 2009, all of the matches shown on Sky Sports will also be available live online via Livestation everywhere in the world excluding the US, Puerto Rico, UK, Ireland, France, Monaco, Australia and New Zealand. List of Super League games available on Livestation.com

In the United Kingdom, BBC London 94.9, BBC Radio Wales and Radio Warrington cover Harlequins, Celtic Crusaders (home games) and Warrington (home games) respectively.

References
  1. "Man of Steel on SLTV". Super League. 2009-10-06. Archived from the original on 2012-08-25. Retrieved 2009-10-06.
  2. Super League. "Super League statistics: 2009 Tries". Super League. Retrieved 2009-09-28.
  3. "engage extends Super League deal". engagesl.com. Engage Mutual Assurance. Archived from the original on 2011-07-10. Retrieved 2009-04-20.
  4. "Crusaders & Salford win licences". BBC Sport. 2008-07-22. Retrieved 2009-04-20.
  5. Burke, David (2008-07-22). "Celtic Crusaders became first team in Wales to join Engage Super League". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 2009-04-20.
  6. "Warrington Wolves' 2009 Super League fixtures include trip to Barcelona". The Warrington Guardian. Retrieved 2009-04-20.
  7. "Leeds 28-6 Celtic Crusaders". BBC Sport. 2009-02-06. Retrieved 2009-04-20.
  8. "engage Super League Grand Final 2009" (PDF). therfl.co.uk. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 2009-04-20.
  9. Super League (2009-09-09). "All to play for as Super League gears up for Club Call". Super League. Archived from the original on 2012-08-25. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
  10. Super League (2009-09-27). "Rhinos line up Dragons". Super League. Archived from the original on 2010-09-26. Retrieved 2009-09-28.
  11. "RFL hail magic weekend". skysports.com. Sky Sports. 2009-05-03. Retrieved 2009-05-04.
  12. "Hull 30-43 Leeds". news.bbc.co.uk. 2009-07-04. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  13. James Chapelard (2008-07-28). "Licence is Wilkinson's reward for years of support". Crain's Manchester Business. Archived from the original on 2010-08-07. Retrieved 2009-07-26.
  14. Super League. "Competition structure". Super League. Archived from the original on 2010-01-11. Retrieved 2009-07-24.
  15. Sky Sports (2007-11-26). "Super League deal". Sky Sports. Retrieved 2009-07-26.
  16. John Ledger (2007-11-27). "Super League cashes in". Sky Sports. Retrieved 2009-07-26.
  17. engage Super League (Press Release) (2008-11-15). "Channel Nine to show English Super League and Challenge Cup". RLeague.com. Archived from the original on 2014-10-16. Retrieved 2008-11-16.
  18. SportBusiness (2008-11-17). "Channel Nine inks RFL deals". SportsBusiness. Archived from the original on 2010-05-26. Retrieved 2009-07-26.
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