The new-look NRLW competition kicks off this weekend with the expanded ten-team league marking a fresh dawn for the women's game.

As a host of the sport's biggest names swap teams and the playing field arguably more level than ever before it promises to be the most unpredictable season yet from the moment the Titans and Cowboys get things started on Saturday afternoon.

To sort the contenders from the pretenders and sift through the sport's biggest issues, here's the five key talking points ahead of the 2023 NRLW season.

1) Has there been too much expansion too soon?

With four new teams joining the league for this year on top of the two who were added for the first of the 2022 campaigns, the NRLW has now more than doubled in size in just over two seasons.

The NRL was slow to pull the trigger on expansion in the competition's early years, wisely recognising that adding too many teams too quickly would dilute the quality of the product.

A close-run competition and a standard of play which has improved year-on-year has been a real strength of the women's game but now both those things will be put to the ultimate test.

Blowout results and struggling teams always happen, but if a league expands too far too quickly it can be a error which takes years to repair.

The NRL has bet big there's enough players to fill out the four new sides. We'll soon find out if that's right.

2) Can the NRLW's voice be heard?

The dual-season NRLW structure of 2022 gave us a fascinating look into scheduling for the women's competition.

The first season, played from February to April, began several weeks before the men's competition and culminated in a standalone grand final at Redcliffe.

With the league-inclined public salivating for action after the long summer, ratings and interest in the women's game were stronger than ever before and gave the competition the jump-start it needed after the pandemic put it on the shelf for almost 18 months.

The second season ran from late August to early October with the grand final being played as a double-header with the men's.

While the decider was a stirring one and the big stage feel added to the prestige of the match, the regular season was somewhat overshadowed by the men's competition which ran at the same time.

A return to a late summer/early autumn season seems unlikely — the NRL appears loathe to abandon the prospect of the grand final double header — but with a longer season forcing the NRLW to overlap with the men's game for even longer, sustaining fan interest and not being drowned out shapes as a new challenge.

3) Which of the new clubs will be best?

Each of the four new sides has admirable elements when it comes to their rosters. 

Cronulla have hoovered up much of the St George Illawarra side who did so well in last year's two seasons, including former Dally M winner Emma Tonegato, while Canberra locked up Jillaroos mainstay Simaima Taufa, Wests Tigers landed experienced duo Kezie Apps and Botille Vette-Welsh and North Queensland lured English star Fran Goldthorp and Knights premiership winner Kirra Dibb to Townsville.

Having said that it's the Sharks and Raiders, who meet in the opening round, who look the likeliest of the newcomers.

Taufa isn't just Canberra's inaugural skipper, she forms an outstanding backrow alongside promising backrower Monalisa Soliola and English international Hollie-Mae Dodd while Kiwi mainstay Apii Nicholls and cunning playmaker Zehara Temara make the Raiders an intriguing darkhorse.

Tonegato is the Sharks' key signing — although her move to five-eighth is the kind of thing that could define or destroy their title hopes — but it's far from a one-woman team with Blues centre Tiana Penitani, sharp halfback Tayla Preston and former Australian sevens player Rhiannon Byers rounding out a strong squad.

4) How will the transfer merry-go-round change things

The addition of four new sides resulted in a contract free for all among the existing NRLW clubs in which just about everyone in the league was up for grabs.

As a result, just about everybody has had a serious squad revamp which makes the form guide all the more difficult to discern.

Defending premiers Newcastle will only have nine of the 17 players who won last year's grand final but will fancy their chances of going back-to-back with Jessie Southwell and Tamika Upton returning and Hannah Southwell making a comeback from a serious knee injury.

They'll feel the loss of Millie Boyle keenly with the former premiership captain moving south to join a Roosters squad that's added former Broncos five-eighth Tarryn Aiken, Dragons hooker Keeley Davis and barnstorming backrower Amber Hall. The Tricolours will also welcome back Corban Baxter after she missed last season due to pregnancy.

Jamie Soward's Dragons are light on star-power and will require another stirring effort from their coach if they're to make the finals while Parramatta have just six players from last year's losing grand final side returning.