Barrie McDermott’s Super League round three preview and storylines: Roy Keane as a loose forward, contenders emerge, and Las Vegas baby! | Rugby League Newsnews24

With Super League 2025 now in full swing, Sky Sports Rugby League’s Barrie McDermott dissects the main talking points – and previews the storylines to follow for round three…

Round two of Super League 2025 delivered dominant performances, tight battles, and plenty of talking points that show why the competition looks like it could be as topsy-turvy as ever.

The round started with an absolute cracker of a contest between Wakefield Trinity and Hull KR, with the Robins just edging it. It was a tight contest that could have gone either way but 20-year-old Oliver Pratt stood out for Wakefield with an impressive performance.

Wigan then delivered a dominant performance, laying down an early-season marker. Hull FC faced a tough reality check, though there were signs of potential for the Black and Whites.

Now onto their Vegas opponents, Warrington. Sam Burgess’s side came away with a hard-fought win that showcased grit and resilience. Warrington did just enough, while the Catalans’ spine still isn’t clicking. They now face a challenging task away at Leigh this week.

We saw a more familiar-looking Salford side on Saturday afternoon and they started well and even struck first. A nasty head clash for Leeds Rhinos’ Brodie Croft was a concern; hopefully he recovers quickly. Leeds secured the win, and Salford will be expected to improve in the coming weeks.

Saturday evening then ended with another ruthless performance from St Helens, adding another high-scoring game to their record.

Closing out round three, we saw an impressive ground-out win for the Leopards in front of 8,500 passionate fans. David Armstrong showcased real talent for Adrian Lam’s side.

While we are only two rounds in, there are some key storylines that are starting to unfold:

1) Saints, Warrington, and Leigh are already emerging as serious contenders

2) Catalans and Huddersfield are still ironing out combinations and searching for their first win

3) Wakefield and Leigh have produced early surprises, shaking things up

So, how will these storylines affect round three? Well, before we look at that, we HAVE to talk about Las Vegas!

Las Vegas meet rugby league!

I thought it was brilliant when Roy Keane and the Super Sunday team were wishing the game and the sport well. I’m of the same vintage as Roy Keane and there was very much a mutual respect between all rugby league players and all footballers of that generation.

We would occasionally bump into the footballers and in Oldham, Paul Scholes and I would have great conversations while watching our daughters play netball. There was a lot of respect and Roy Keane is one of those players who would have made a really good rugby league player.

Keano would have been a real force, a good loose forward or even a centre. He’d have been good with the ball but he’d have been brutal in defence. He’d have been one of those players who would really enjoy the physicality of our sport. I know he’s a big fan and tunes in regularly to Sky Sports to watch Super League.

Micah Richards would make a decent front rower too!

It’s a magnificent opportunity for our sport and what it will do is it will bring new eyes, new appreciation. The American audience is one that Rugby League in general would love to have a piece of and if we can piggyback on the coattails of the NRL then I’m fine with that.

I’m also a believer that if the NRL and Super League can sit down around the table and work out a strategy of working together and us tapping into their expertise and us learning from the things that they’ve done well over in Australia then I’m all for that.

I hope that Sam Burgess gets his visa sorted. It is a little bit of a sideshow and I hope it doesn’t derail Warrington’s preparation because we need a competitive game. I’ve been through similar – turns out, the paperwork is more painful than my ‘colourful past’ that caused it.

We want to show first of all the new audience which is the Americans and also the worldwide audience, but we want to show the NRL eyes and ears that we’ve got to come up to as well and not to undervalue and devalue what Super League can bring to the table so that we get some invites for next year.

I’d love to see the Rhinos go next year with the crowd base and the fan base. For me that’s the next lot of teams to be invited over if that happens again.

I’ll stake my claim early here- Brian Carney won’t be getting his suitcase on the aeroplane, I’m staking a claim for my place on the aeroplane too!

I joke, but Brian Carney is the perfect man to go over and represent the Super League. Obviously I’m biased here because he’s my friend but I think he’s a magnificent broadcaster. I think he has the right personality to go over there and match it in the comedy stakes, match it in the knowledge and understanding of the game and obviously his competence and professionalism as a broadcaster.

What can we expect from round three?

Hull KR vs Salford Red Devils, Thursday February 27 (Sky Sports+, 8pm)

Mikey Lewis showed how important he is within that Hull KR team and how his character and his natural aggressive nature helps him dominate the game and he dominates your thoughts whilst you’re in that, while you’re watching that game. With his injury, if he is out for a significant amount of time, that could cause Hull KR some real damage for their campaign.

It was a more familiar team sheet for Salford who came up a little bit short against Leeds. Hull KR even without Lewis should have enough.

Huddersfield Giants vs Hull FC, Friday February 28 (Sky Sports+, 8pm)

Huddersfield, while they’ve played well against Warrington and Leigh, haven’t got any points on the board but you can see that they’re competitive, they’re going to be competitive. Hull FC, they were badly beaten against Wigan but were magnificent in the open game against Catalan. I’d say that’s going to be an engaging encounter.

Leigh Leopards vs Catalans Dragons, Friday February 28 (Sky Sports Action, 7.30pm)

Leigh Leopards always put on a great match day experience the entertainment on and off is always worth watching but they welcome Catalans Dragons who desperately need a win. Steve McNamara, as he is every year, will have some questions rumbling in the background. The question is about the spine.

I don’t think they are far off in the forwards, the forwards seem to be doing the job, but the spine just hasn’t quite clicked yet. Luke Keary is an exceptional player with all his wealth and experience but he’s not afforded the luxury of being able to nod and wink at players around him as he hasn’t forged those intuitive links and relationships yet.

That makes it a real 50-50 game for me. The Leopards will start as favourites but I’m convinced the Dragons are going to click at some point and they’re going to get a win soon. I’m not sure it will be this week but that’s what makes it a must-watch on Friday night.

Wakefield Trinity vs St Helens, Saturday March 1 (Sky Sports+, 2.30pm)

St Helens have picked up points and won twice. They have battered Salford and they’ve beat Castleford. So, they’re racking up points there. They look like a good team together for the points scored and Tristan Sailor is a great player to watch.

But Wakefield are no easy beats – I have been really impressed with what I’ve seen from Wakefield. Daryl Powell has done what Daryl Powell does, which is put a team together, make them competitive and give them that self-belief.

Wigan Warriors vs Warrington Wolves, Saturday March 1 (Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Action, 8.30pm)

I say this is a 50-50 game if all things are square. If the Sam Burgess visa situation still rumbles on, I’m leaning towards Wigan.

I just hope it’s a competitive game that everybody enjoys with everything we love about rugby league in it.

Leeds Rhinos vs Castleford Tigers, Sunday March 2 (Sky Sports+, 3pm)

Leeds got their first win last week but I wouldn’t say they look convincing just yet Crofts injury is a worry. It’s another big West Yorkshire derby Castleford Tigers love nothing better than coming to Headingley just like Wakefield did in round one hopefully the Rhinos now know what to expect from near neighbours.

They will be fully fired up and one of their all-time greats Danny McGuire is returning as a head coach of Castleford Tigers. These things always make it a thrilling spectacle and you just know it is all set for a Castleford win, but we’ll wait and see.

Rugby League Las Vegas Festival 2025 – Saturday March 1 live on Sky Sports

• Betfred Super League – Wigan Warriors v Warrington Wolves (9.30pm GMT)
• NRL – Canberra Raiders v New Zealand Warriors (12am)
• Test Match – Australian Jillaroos vs England Women (2am)
• NRL – Penrith Panthers vs Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks (4.30am)

Sky Sports will again show every game of the Super League live this season – including two matches in each round exclusively live, with the remaining four matches each week shown on Sky Sports+