The top of Super League beckoned for either the Huddersfield Giants or St Helens as the two sides met at the John Smiths Stadium for a round two encounter which was the prelude for many to the World Club Challenge match between Wigan and Penrith which would take place later in the evening.

With Jake Connor sidelined due to concussion protocols, Tui Lolohea stepped into the Giants full-back spot while the visitors were without the services of Konrad Hurrell, and Waqa Blake after last week’s comfortable win over London Broncos.

St Helens were the favourites for the win with the Giants having been given a ten-point start on the handicap coupon but this early in the season it was a bit of a guessing game.

If the rumours are to be believed, both coaches in tonight’s round sixteen Super League fixture at Emerald Headingley were both sipping from a drink already served in the last chance saloon as ninth took on tenth in an uninspiring fixture with both sides starting to drift too far from the play-off spots to make their end of season inclusion a likelihood.

The Rhinos were slight favourites with the bookies, the Giants having been given a four-point start on the coupon but with losses to the bottom two sides in their last two outings it would be a brave man who put his fifty pence on a home victory.

The Rhinos have lost their last four on the bounce while the Giants have lost their last two.

A win for the Rhinos would put them back in the eighth place that they lost the previous night to Hull FC, a win by twenty-two or more would lift the Giants above the Rhinos and into ninth.

Warrington Wolves were eyeing a return to the top of Super League, for an hour at least, as they took on a struggling Huddersfield Giants side who themselves needed a win to go ahead of Hull FC in the 2023 league table.

The bookies had the Wolves as strong favourites for the win and had handicapped them by ten points the coupon despite them having lost on their last two outings.

The sides met way back in round two when the Wolves won by ten points in a close game, todays encounter promised to be a little more one-sided.

It was a warm afternoon as the two sides took to the field.

The final game of the Rivals round saw the Leeds Rhinos host the Huddersfield Giants as seventh played eighth for a place in the top six at the end of the weekend and as the competition reached the quarter point of the 2023 season.

A win would take the Rhinos above their opponents today, but a win by twenty-nine or more points would see them above Salford and into sixth.

A win by more than sixteen would see the Giants above St Helens and into fifth spot in the table while if they were to beat the Rhinos by thirty-three or more, they would send Leeds below Leigh in the table.

The bookies had installed the Rhinos as slight favourites but had only given the Giants a two-point start on the coupon.

The scene was set for a classic battle between two evenly matched sides.

Ian Watson returned to his old stomping ground as he took his ninth placed Huddersfield Giants to the AJ Bell as they looked for the win which would allow them to leapfrog the Salford Red Devils and move up into sixth spot in the table.

Paul Rowley´s Salford had a three from six start to the season and went into the game knowing  that a twelve point or more winning margin would elevate them to fifth in the table.

Both sides came into this game on the back of a loss as the bookies struggle to choose between them, making the Red Devils slight favourites.

Today's televised Friday night match – Huddersfield v Castleford at the former's John Smith's Stadium spent much of the day in doubt.

With heavy snow sweeping across the north of England, fans woke to warnings that the game might not take place as neither club nor stadium officials could reach the  ground.

The M62 over the Pennines - which Sky's outside broadcast team needed to cross after last night's Wigan v Catalans tussle - was blocked and littered with abandoned vehicles.

Fans were warned not to set off until there was an official announcement that the match was on, but that came well into the afternoon.

On paper an intriguing tussle between fourth placed Huddersfield Giants and a Hull KR side in seventh spot, was one of three rare Sunday afternoon fixtures in Super League as the home side looked for a spot in the top half of the table and the visitors had their eye on the top three, should the Dragons slip up at Castleford.

The Robins named Elliot Minchella in the starting thirteen and Greg Richards on the bench in the only two changes to the side which lost narrowly to Saints a fortnight ago, while Innes Senior and Matty Russell were both back in the starting line-up for the Giants The Giants were slight favourites with the bookies but there was very little to choose between the sides, the big betting money was going in the Giants favour but the punters seemed to have more faith in Huddersfield than the pundits.

Huddersfield Giants welcomed Hull FC to the John Smith’s Stadium, with a place in the Betfred Challenge Cup semi-finals at stake.

Both teams had won four and lost two of their preceding six games, with today’s winners joining Hull KR and St Helens at Leeds United’s Elland Road ground on 7 May,  alongside the winners of Sunday’s tie between Wakefield Trinity and Wigan Warriors.

It was third v eleventh at the John Smith's Stadium this afternoon as Huddersfield Giants welcomed the Tigers from Castleford.

The hosts hoped to continue the form that has seen them lose just one game of the four they’ve played so far.

The visitors record was the reverse, and they were seeking back-to-back wins to call a halt to the stuttering start of the ´New Cas Era´, made so much of in pre-season publicity.

Our pre-match Twitter Poll couldn´t choose between the two sides, despite the big difference in league positions.

The maths were simple for the Wigan Warriors.

A win would seal the minor premiership and send them into play-offs in pole position, an unthinkable loss would gift the minor premiership to arch-rivals St Helens and push Wigan into third spot and a play-off game against Hull FC next week.

The Wigan starting thirteen was the same as the one which beat St Helens to go top of the league last weekend the only change in the seventeen being George Burgess in for the suspended Joe Greenwood.

The bookies and pundits favoured a Wigan win but with nothing else to play for the neutrals were hoping that the Giants would give everything to spoil the Warriors’ party.

Huddersfield Giants’ Leroy Cudjoe marked his 300^th career appearance in this hastily arranged fixture against Warrington Wolves, brought forward from round 21 after Wire’s original opponents Salford were left with just 13 fit players – the Wolves were awarded a 24-0 victory for the records.

 

Castleford, who had been scheduled to play Huddersfield, have been stood down for two weeks after 13 positive Covid tests on Tuesday.

 

Both teams came into this East Yorkshire v West Yorkshire clash with three wins and three losses from their last six games, and sitting next to each other in the table: Huddersfield in sixth, Hull in seventh, having both played 14 games.

 

Both teams had a faint hope of making the top for play-offs and being an outside contender for this year’s title – but to do that they would need to win this and every other game of the season.

 

The Airlie Birds of Hull FC marked their return to post-Covid rugby action with a clear, if bruising, win over Huddersfield in a game which saw Marc Sneyd injured and leave the stadium on crutches while players from each team had to leave the game when they failed a head injury assessment after a crunching contact.

Hull came close to opening the scoring in the right corner a couple of times in the opening 10 minutes, but the Huddersfield defence held firm.

Nevertheless, it was the Black and Whites’ half back Albert Kelly who marked his 100th Super League game by dotting down under the sticks on 10 and a half minutes, with ever-reliable goalkicker Sneyd converting for a 6-0 lead.

It was sweltering in the south of France as Huddersfield Giants were in town for a mid-table clash with the Catalans Dragons where the prize was eighth place in the Super League table.

The Dragons were the tenants at kick off but after a poor season, the Giants had their eyes on moving in from their current ninth position.



The conditions would be draining and official water breaks were scheduled for player welfare.



The Giants appear to be turning a corner with three wins in their last five games but the Dragons are in all sorts of problems with just one win in their last eight matches.

Wigan Warriors are just 80 minutes from an appearance in the Super League Grand Final after brushing aside league leaders Huddersfield Giants 22-8 in the first round of the playoffs at the John Smith’s Stadium.



The Warriors overcame a shaky start after going behind through Danny Brough’s try but a brace from Josh Charnley put Wigan on their way to victory before Blake Green’s try put the result beyond doubt.

Huddersfield lifted the league leaders’ shield in style with a dominant 40-0 victory over Wakefield at the John Smith’s Stadium.



In front of a raucous crowd, Paul Anderson’s men lived up to their pre-match billing as odds on favourites as they took the Wildcats – who went into the game having lost pivotal playmaker Tim Smith to Salford just yesterday – to the cleaners.

Huddersfield’s giant pack of forwards set the platform for Lunt, Brough, Robinson and Grix to combine and unleash their pacy backline.

Huddersfield extended their lead at the top of the table with a hard earned victory over second placed Wigan in front of a bumper crowd at the DW Stadium.



The Giants came out on top of the battle of the top two in a ferocious clash as they stood up to Wigan’s big pack and displayed an expansive attacking game on the back of their forward dominance.

Joel Monaghan scored a try either side of half-time to help Warrington into the semi-finals of the Challenge Cup where they will face Hull.



Warrington started at a frightening pace chalking up a 20-0 lead by the 25 minute mark through Paul Wood, Trent Waterhouse, Micky Higham and Chris Briers.



The visitors scored twice before the break to spark a possible comeback but Monaghan scored his second and Lee Briers scored to put the game beyond doubt.

Huddersfield held off last season’s finalists, Leeds to progress into the quarter-finals of the Challenge Cup despite having a man sent off.



21 year-old centre, Joe Wardle scored a first half try to help his side establish a two try lead but knew his fate after sending three punches to the head of Carl Ablett.

Huddersfield romped to the top of the table as they dismantled basement dwellers Castleford at Wheldon Road.



On Grand National day, this game was a one-horse race from the 20th minute as Huddersfield had run in three tries to Castleford’s one and the Tigers found themselves down to 12 men.