The evenings are growing lighter (yes, I know the mornings are still depressingly dark, but I'm trying to strike an upbeat note here), and in exactly one month's time we'll be reflecting on the first four matches of the 16th Super League season.

Joel Monaghan will have made his Warrington debut against Huddersfield in the first match of the Magic Weekend, and doubtless been given a warm Welsh welcome. Trent Robinson's new-look Catalans Dragons will have taken on another team with a new coach, Harlequins, and either Castleford or Wakefield will have claimed an early victory in their battle for a Super League licence – although the more alarming rumblings about Trinity's latest financial problems suggest they may do well even to make it to the kick-off in Cardiff.

Finally on that first Saturday, it's Wigan v St Helens in a repeat of last October's Grand final, and although it has emerged that the champions will launch their title defence without Brett Finch as well as Pat Richards, Michael Maguire's fiercely-drilled machine must still be warm favourites to gain revenge for the derby defeats they have suffered in their previous three appearances at the Millennium Stadium.

There's still much water to flow under the bridge between now and mid-February – an analogy which will prompt most of the readers of this column to think of the battle facing the people of Brisbane, Ipswich, Toowoomba and other settlements of Queensland where rugby league means so much to so many. The photograph that has been circulating on Twitter, of the Wally Lewis statue outside Lang Park with goggles and snorkel attached, confirms that it will take more than a flood to wash away Queenslanders' sense of humour, but this is obviously serious, and in some cases tragic, stuff, and plans are already in place for British rugby league to make some financial contribution to the recovery.

Back to the forthcoming Super League season, and rather than a premature preview of the season, for the first blog of 2011 here's a brief resume of each club's ins and outs since the end of 2010 – and a rating of their transfer dealings to provoke some debate. Happy New Year.

Wigan – The team who needed to do the least, with so many young players capable of continuing the development they showed under Michael Maguire in 2010, seemed to have recruited brilliantly, offloading a couple of under-performing big earners in Phil Bailey and Feka Paleaaesina, and replacing them with three class acts from Melbourne who the Storm had to release after their salary cap scam was exposed. Jeff Lima and Ryan Hoffmann will make their pack even more formidable, but the recurrence of Finch's neck injury could leave Wigan short on schemers, especially with Piggy Riddell back in Sydney with the Roosters. 8/10.

St Helens – Yet another potentially tricky transitional year for Saints, with the retirement of Keiron Cunningham and the move from Knowsley Road to a temporary base in Widnes while their new stadium is being built suggesting they will do well to reach a fifth consecutive Grand Final, never mind to finally secure another title at Old Trafford. They've made three significant signings, hoping that Michael Shenton can cross the Pennines as successfully as Paul Newlove did at the start of the Super League era, and that Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook can become the genuine Cockney superstar the code has long coveted. But Josh Perry, a tough Aussie forward who had a spirited scuffle with Jamie Peacock in the 2009 World Club Challenge, is still recovering from a broken leg, so like Finch, he will miss the Cardiff derby. Cunningham is irreplaceable, Matt Gidley also a major loss, and Maurie Fa'asavalu, Bryn Hargreaves and Jake Emmitt will also be missed. 7/10.

Warrington – Monaghan is a high-pedigree (sorry, cheap shot) signing, who will certainly have plenty to prove if he can put his off-field humiliation behind him, and will hopefully relish teaming up with elder brother Michael. But the Wolves' key signing could still be Brett Hodgson – the 2009 Man of Steel. No significant losses, with Monaghan replacing the excellent Chris Hicks. 9/10.

Leeds – Ben Cross, the prop who has joined the Rhinos from Newcastle, is exactly the sort of no-nonsense front-rower they needed to ease the burden on Kylie Leuluai, especially with Peacock missing for almost half the season following his knee reconstruction. Weller Hauraki could also make an impact from the second-row. But with no other major signings, Danny McGuire also out for a while, and Scott Donald, Greg Eastwood and Matt Diskin gone, they could be a bit thin early on – although the return of Ben Jones-Bishop from Harlequins and Kallum Watkins from long-term injury provides two exciting backline options for new coach Brian McDermott. 7/10.

Huddersfield – Perhaps on the basis that Hodgson is irreplaceable, coach Nathan Brown hasn't bothered trying, instead promising Scott Grix a chance at full-back. Luke O'Donnell promises to form a bloodcurdling second-row partnership with David Fa'alogo, if they can both stay fit, and Brown is still on the look-out for a centre – possibly Jamie Simpson from South Sydney. But the Giants will be relying on the continued development of their talented British core if they are to challenge again. 5/10.

Hull FC – Another club whose 2011 squad is not yet complete, as they aim to find a replacement for Shaun Berrigan at short notice, with the piratic Crusaders' half-back Jarrod Sammut appearing the most likely option at this stage. After signing a trio of old-stagers (Sean Long, Craig Fitzgibbon and Mark O'Meley) for 2010, they've gone for younger recruits this winter, and the England coach Steve McNamara will hope that Will Sharp and Joe Westerman kick on at the KC. 7/10.

Hull KR – Willie or won't he? Get a visa, that is, with Big Willie Mason still awaiting the necessary paperwork to confirm his long-awaited move to the Super League, even after discovering a new drinking partner in the Prime Minister of Tonga. Mason will be terrific value if and when he makes it, but Blake Green, a former Canterbury half-back who will resume his Australian Schoolboys partnership with Michael Dobson, could be more influential if Rovers are to reach the major final they covet. 7/10.

Crusaders – Though relieved to be starting a second season in Wrexham, after the unsettling spell in administration they endured late in 2010, the Welsh club have inevitably suffered some significant losses which leaves Iestyn Harris's squad slightly thinner than the one Brian Noble steered to the play-offs. Hauraki is a major loss, Nick Youngquest will also be missed, and the continued speculation over Sammut is unsettling. Harris has signed three former Bradford team-mates in Stuart Reardon, Paul Johnson and the under-rated Richard Moore to reduce the reliance on overseas players, and is looking to the long-term by promoting more young Welshmen. But that could mean some short-term pain. 4/10.

Castleford – It's good to see Danny Orr back at Wheldon Road – or the Probiz Coliseum, as we're now supposed to call it after a decade getting used to the Jungle – and Terry Matterson has made a clutch of other useful signings in Emmitt, Youngquest and Richie Mathers. But the former Melbourne centre Willie Isa is an unknown quantity over here, and it's hard to see Nick Fozzard or Martin Aspinwall being anything more than extra bodies. Meanwhile Westerman and Shenton will be sorely missed. 6/10.

Bradford – The most active off-season movers and shakers, with this week's signing of Kyle Briggs from Featherstone taking the total of new faces to 11, and Matt Orford the eighth of last year's senior squad to move out. New coach Mick Potter looks to have wheeled and dealed pretty shrewdly – Hargreaves, Diskin and Olivier Elima are solid, and Briggs could turn out to be an inspired signing. But their ability to climb beyond the lower reaches of the top eight would seem to depend on the attacking potency of Shad Royston and Patrick Ah Van, both unknown quantities at this level. 7/10.

Wakefield Trinity – As things stand, Wakefield are not much weaker than they were at the end of last season, as John Kear has eked out his threadbare budget to offer chances to talented young players with points to prove such as Paul Johnson, Chris Dean, Stuart Howarth and Kevin Penny. But Kear will know that Trinity needed to strengthen significantly to arrest the steep decline they suffered in 2010 following the triple loss of Shane Tronc, Danny Brough and Terry Newton early in the season, whereas instead they have lost other key men in Moore, Damien Blanch and Tevita Leo-Latu. And who knows what's going to happen next at Belle Vue. 4/10.

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Salford – Just two signings behind Bradford, and one of their nine is on a different level to anyone arriving at Odsal – Luke Patten, the former Canterbury full-back who has been described by knowledgeable Australian judges as the best addition to the Super League scene for 2011. Most of the others are overseas players with plenty of miles on the clock, and although Paleaaesina, Bailey and Vinnie Anderson won't be missed at either Wigan or Warrington, they should make the City Reds much more competitive. Stephen Wild and Chris Nero are also proven performers, and although Leo-Latu's failure to gain a visa was a blow, they look strong enough to challenge for the play-offs in the last season at the Willows. 7/10.

Harlequins – Would appear to be more financially secure than Wakefield, but with little more clout when it comes to signing players, meaning that despite the loss of such key men as Orr, McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Jones-Bishop and Sharp, the unknown new coach Rob Powell has only been able to sign a couple of low-profile Australians in Chris Bailey and Nick Kouparitsas, plus loaning fringe forwards from Leeds and Hull. 3/10.

Catalans Dragons – Probably running a cheaper squad than the one that finished last in 2010, but it looks so much better, with Elima the only damaging departure. Steve Menzies remains a class act at 37, and will be missed by Bradford, and Blanch and Ian Henderson also know their way around the Super League. Jason Baitieri has the same feel for the game in France as Robinson, the new coach, and should help his former Sydney Roosters team-mate Lopeni Paea to settle, while Scott Dureau and especially Ben Farrar have good reputations. Could be the biggest improvers. 9/10.