 Sinfield says there has to be more to Super League than the battle to win the Grand Final |
Leeds captain Kevin Sinfield has called on the Rugby Football League to think hard about the consequences of doing away with relegation from Super League. The RFL has put forward proposals to end relegation and promotion by 2009, but Sinfield is worried no relegation will rob the league of excitement.
"The great thing about sport is competition - relegation is intrinsic to that," Sinfield told BBC Sport.
"What's the incentive for a team that's 11th towards the end of the year?"
Sinfield, who conceded there were sound financial reasons for the proposals, drew a parallel with the recent four-way battle against relegation in football's Premiership. "Chelsea had won it a few weeks ago, so without relegation, where would the spark and excitement come from?," he said.
"There wouldn't be any because all the teams at the bottom would be sitting pretty, and no-one's got anything to play for.
"At the moment every team has to play to the death in every game - players' livelihoods are at stake.
"If you take away relegation, you're running the risk of a competition that only generates interest in the top five or six teams." 
MMIX
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