Peter Smith’s Inside Rugby League - Clubs show why they matter to their communities in dark times

It’s a fair question. Rugby league, any sport, is not more imporant than life or death, whatever the legendary Liverpool FC football manager Bill Shankley may have thought.

There are far more important and worrying things going on in the world right now than how rugby league clubs are managing to cope with the Covid-19 shutdown.

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Even so, a lot of people will be spending time fretting about the effect coronavirus is going to have on their favourite team or player - and that’s one of the positives of spectator sport. It provides something to get worked up about - within reason of course - and a diversion from what’s really significant.

In the wider scheme of things, it might not really matter whether Leeds Rhinos beat St Helens or not, but for anyone who has spent all week stressing over a sick relative, job concerns or how to pay the bills, rugby league offers 80 minutes each week when all that can be forgotten.

Probably most people could do with a distraction like that now. Sadly, rugby league - and sport in general - doesn’t exist in its own bubble, it is part of the real world and is affected by the same issues as everyone else.

When the game was shut down at all levels 10 days ago there was never any real prospect of it resuming on April 3. Following this week’s statement from Rugby Football League chief executive Ralph Rimmer we now know the suspension will go on “considerably longer” that that.

Already, less than two weeks on from the latest round of matches, the question is not so much when the sport will return, but if.

At this stage it would still be possible to complete a full 29-round campaign, but that becomes less likely with every passing week.

Scrapping the six extra ‘loop’ fixtures, when sides meet for a third time, is an obvious option, but once the lockdown goes beyond a couple of months, other measures will be needed.

This year’s Challenge Cup final was due to be played in mid-July, a month earlier than usual.

There are still three rounds to play before then, including semi-finals in June, so the knockout competition is also in peril.

Assuming rugby league does resume at some stage this year, extending the season is almost inevitable. Some clubs, including Rhinos, already have two games in hand and in Catalans’ case it is three.

The fact the competition features teams from France and Canada complicates matters further as those governments may apply different rules to the UK authorities.

Australia’s NRL was suspended at the start of this week, immediately after a round of matches played behind closed doors. The suggestion is the season there will go on into November and December, which would wipe out the scheduled Ashes series - another huge financial blow to the RFL.

But does all this really matter, when lives are at stake?

Rugby league is not an essential industry, it is not worth risking anyone’s health for - though, realistically, players do that every week.

But even so, thousands of people depend on the game for their livelihood. That’s not only players and coaches, but also those who work behind the scenes, casual matchday staff, people employed in pubs and takeways close to grounds, media, wholesalers, manufacturers. It is a long list.

Rugby league may not be the biggest sport, but many of its clubs are at the heart of their community. Imagine Featherstone or Castleford without it. Since the shutdown, clubs have stepped up to the plate.

Leeds and Wakefield Trinity are among those who have been ringing round elderly or vulnerable supporters, to check on their welfare or just for a chat.

That is an essential function and it shows the code in its best light. With the country more or less housebound, players have been setting an example on social media, with videos and messages about how they are coping with self-isolation.

There are numerous examples of clubs doing real good during difficult times. So does rugby league really matter at a time like this? No, but plenty of people care anyway.