Super League New Year's resolutions: A goal for each Yorkshire club in 2024

Many New Year's resolutions are abandoned by the end of January but Super League clubs have more time to map out their ideal 2024 with the start of the new season still six weeks away.

Some sides will be looking to pick up where they left off in 2023, while for others the new year could not come soon enough.

For the Yorkshire clubs in Super League – a group that has lost a member following Wakefield Trinity's relegation – a collective improvement is required.

Hull KR were left flying the flag for the county on their way to a Challenge Cup final appearance and a fourth-place finish in the league.

The rest made up the bottom five in a season to forget for Leeds Rhinos, Huddersfield Giants, Hull FC, Castleford Tigers and Wakefield especially.

There is a good deal of scope for improvement as the 2024 campaign comes into view.

Here, The Yorkshire Post sets a New Year's resolution for each club.

Castleford Tigers: Rediscover bite at Jungle

With its small pitch and unwelcoming surroundings, Wheldon Road is a notoriously difficult assignment for visiting sides, as evidenced by a perfect record under Daryl Powell during the 2017 regular season.

Last year, however, Castleford suffered 10 defeats in front of their own fans.

A play-off challenge is a big ask for a team in the early stages of a rebuild but Craig Lingard's men have the chance to put pride back in the badge after a miserable 2023 campaign for the club.

The best way to do that and get the supporters back onside is to win more often than not on home soil and start to make Wheldon Road a fortress again.

Huddersfield Giants: Take right turn at crossroads

Ian Watson's side were talked about as serious contenders at the start of last season but flattered to deceive on their way to a sobering ninth-place finish.

Huddersfield were victims of their own success the previous year when they reached the Challenge Cup final and finished third, an outlier in a miserable recent Super League record.

The 2022 campaign is the only time the Giants have qualified for the play-offs in eight years and it feels like they are at a crossroads as they embark on a third season under Watson.

There is not the same focus and external pressure on Huddersfield but it would be difficult to see the Giants coming again if they fail to deliver this year.

Hull KR: Show they are here to stay in battle for honours

The Robins flew under the radar during the last pre-season but the spotlight is on Willie Peters' side as they aim to go one better than 2023 and end the club's long wait for major silverware.

How Rovers cope with that extra pressure and expectation will determine the success of their 2024 campaign.

If sides were guilty of taking the new-look Robins lightly last year, there is no danger of it happening again.

KR have one of the best teams in the competition on paper and talented players in reserve but that is not always enough, as Huddersfield discovered in 2023.

The challenge for Peters will be keeping everyone happy and hungry in pursuit of a common goal.

Hull FC: Buck worrying trend

The Black and Whites have slid down the Super League table since their last play-off appearance in 2020, with finishes of eighth, ninth and 10th leaving Tony Smith's side out of the top-six conversation.

A sustained challenge would represent an improvement but to do that they must shake a worrying habit.

Hull have capitulated in five of the previous six seasons, ending the last campaign with six straight defeats.

The club have reacted to another hugely disappointing season by adding size and exuberance to Smith's squad.

Smith will be looking for signs of improvement from the start but the Black and Whites must finish strongly if they are to move forward.

Leeds Rhinos: Achieve top-four finish

The beauty of the play-off system is that a team can win the title from anywhere in the top six.

However, where a club finishes from season to season says more about their long-term health.

In that regard, the Rhinos have been nowhere near their lofty standards in recent times.

It is now six seasons since the eight-time champions last finished in the top four, in sharp contrast to Wigan Warriors and St Helens who have not missed out once between them during the same period.

It is not the be-all and end-all – as Rohan Smith's side showed when they reached the Grand Final in 2022 – but serves as a symbol of their decline.

A top-four finish would send a message to the rest of Super League and set the Rhinos up for another Old Trafford assault.