New rugby league structure explained
The new structure of professional rugby league in England has been revealed.
From 2015 the 12 Super League clubs play each other twice, home and away, during the regular season plus one fixture at Magic Weekend (23 fixtures).
After playing 23 fixtures, the 24 Super League and Championship clubs will split into three groups – the Super 8s – based on league positions, the top eight will form the elite ‘Super 8’s,’ the middle eight will be the Qualifiers (bottom 4 of Super League and top 4 of the Championship) and the third eight will be the Championship Shield.
How will the Super 8s work?
Clubs will each play seven fixtures on a league basis.
Clubs which have performed strongest in their respective competitions in the regular season will be rewarded with four fixtures as follows: the top four Super League clubs will play four home matches; in the Qualifiers, the team finishing ninth and 10th in Super League and the top two teams from the Championship will have four home matches; and in the Championship Shield, clubs finishing the regular Championship season in 5th to 8th place will have four home fixtures.
In Super League the competing clubs will carry over the points and scoring records from the regular season into the Super 8s. The Qualifiers will start with zero points because the eight clubs are drawn from two different competitions.
What happens after clubs have played seven matches in the Super 8s?
The top four clubs in Super League will go into the semi-finals: 1st v 4th and 2nd v 3rd. The winners of those two matches will contest the Super League Grand Final. All eight Super League clubs are guaranteed top flight status for the following season.
In the Qualifiers, the top three clubs at the conclusion of the Super 8s are also guaranteed Super League status the following season. The 12th place in Super League for the following season will be determined by the Million Pound Game, a play-off between the 4th and 5th-placed clubs played at the home of the 4th-placed club.