This past week the RFL announced the Magic Weekend fixtures for 2014 and they've gone with a repeat of 2013's match ups, just in a different schedule. As you may well know, the fixtures are:
Saturday May 17
12.30 - London Broncos v Catalan Dragons
2.45 - Widnes Vikings v Salford Red Devils
5.00 - Hull Kingston Rovers v Hull FC
7.15 - Wigan Warriors v Leeds Rhinos
Sunday May 18
12.30 - Wakefield Trinity Wildcats v Castleford Tigers
2.45 - Huddersfield Giants v Bradford Bulls
5.00 - Warrington Wolves v St Helens
Tom has had a chance to look over these fixtures and the Magic concept. Here are his thoughts:
It would be fair to say that the fixtures threw up no real surprises. The question they raise, however, is one of parity.
Over the course of a full season everyone plays twice and the wheat is separated from the chaff, but what if that separation comes from only one or two league points? On these margins championships and relegations are decided.
Is it fair on teams battling for playoff spots, home advantage and to avoid relegation to be playing a team either significantly better than them whilst their rivals square off against relegation fodder?
One of the fixtures I'm looking forward to most is Wigan/Leeds. I see two well matched sides, both with strong packs, gifted halves and prolific finishers out wide. It has the makings of a cracker with two vital points on the line in the race to finish as high up the league as possible. Saints and Warrington are in a similar position.
This hands a real advantage to one, very notable, top five team. And imagine the relief Paul Anderson at Huddersfield must have felt to find that his charges will again square off against the Bulls, a team they obliterated the last time Rugby League came to The Etihad. Now, the Bulls could beat the Giants, but I don't think many at Red Hall would stake their own money on such an upset. In reality the Giants are presented with a clandestine opportunity to pull two points ahead of/back from at least two of their most serious rivals in one fell swoop.
The common cry is that over a season the cream rises to the top and that a one off fixture should not have such a big effect on overall standings. So what of the teams that aren't the cream. What of London, Wakefield, Castleford and my own beloved Bulls? Most pundits agree that they, along with Widnes will be the candidates to start 2015 in the second level. For these teams two points are a valuable commodity, harder earned and highly prized.
Over the last four season the bottom three of the Super League has looked like this:
Three of the last four years have seen the bottom teams separated, without RFL sanctions, by no more than four points. Crucially, 12th and 13th placed teams were separated by two or one points on each occasion from 2010 to 2012 - three seasons where one result could have made the world of difference if we had a relegation battle.
It is my opinion that the fixtures at Magic this year hand an advantage to some whilst randomly punishing others. So what's the answer?
In the early incarnations of Millennium Magic the RFL strove to give us derby matches across the board. These brought in punters but still handed out advantageous fixtures to some.
A seeding system, based on last seasons final league place seems fairer to me. Admittedly teams make changes in the off season, but the motivation to improve ones playing staff is the same for each team. If this were in place today we could look forward to a programme of matches that better reflect the current standings and ambitions of the entire league:
Giants v Wolves
Rhinos v Warriors
Saints v Hull FC
Catalans v Hull KR
Bradford v Widnes
Wakefield v Castleford
Salford v London
But Tom, you may cry, Salford should be a much improved team this year, how is that fair on poor old London? And you'd be quite right. The Magic Weekend is virtually impossible to keep fair to all. It's not meant to be. The RFL don't care about that.
It's money in the bank, advertising revenue and a chance to show other sports how progressive and avant garde we are. It's a mid season jewel-in-the-crown designed to tickle the fancy of casual rugby league observers, once the football season is virtually over for most.
At the stadium itself, my experience is that people tend to watch primarily their own team and then amuse themselves in and around the ground whilst the others play. It's a good day out, but it's not particularly intense.
Surely as fans of the sport we would be interested in something more intense? Something with a bit of fire in its belly? Something that might benefit our international game? Something we could provide that would be unique in British sport? Something like State of Origin.
Yorkshire v Lancashire!
Now don't all shout at once. Just let it marinate for a while.
If the World Cup showed us anything it is that we are closer than we have been in sometime to Australia and New Zealand. However, they still have the advantage thanks largely to the talent pool, popularity of the sport, money and, importantly, experience.
A large part of that experience comes from exposing players to high intensity, representative rugby. They have a meaningful mid-season international and, crucially, State of Origin. To say that this competition doesn't influence the development of some of the sports greats would be foolish.
The RFL have taken steps in the last couple of years to emulate this without undermining its policy of furthering the game away from the M62 corridor, but honestly, can anyone say that the Exiles experiment was a success? First time round it provided a challenge to an undercooked England team. Second time round the RFL failed to push hard enough with the two game series in 2012, before reverting to the one-off ahead of the World Cup last year. There are currently no plans to hold an Exiles match this season.
Properly promoted and organised, a reboot of the Yorks/Lancs competition could be massive, and we don't have to look to hard for a model to follow. The bloody Aussies have been doing it right for years!
The simple fact is that Yorkshire and Lancashire provide almost exclusively all of England RL's players. These players need to be challenged in a high intensity atmosphere in order to prepare for matches against NZ and AUS. A Yorks/Lancs match SPLITS that talent pool and gives 34 of our best the chance to play in a cauldron of intensity. It also give the fans, or the vast majority of them, something really exciting to look forward to mid season.
As a one off match, fans have shown that they can put a serious number of bodies in Wembley. As a series, why not go for The Australian model and have games one and three in Yorkshire and game two in Lancashire, switching that around the next year?
What about Catalan and Broncos fans? I agree that this idea flies in their face a little and goes somewhat against the idea of developing rugby league away from t'North. Well, I have two possible answers for you. A draw takes place to decide whether the Yorkshire or Lancashire team is able to select players who fall into the category of French Born or Non-Origin-County Born. Alternatively, the competition is a three team round robin with a final: Yorkshire/Lancashire/Non Rose Born?
Marketed properly, on the back of the World Cup we could soon have a monster on our hands, and ultimately a successful origin series would do more to promote our highly competitive, never say die sport.
A showpiece event like Magic Weekend does little to further our great game. In fact images of a two thirds empty Etihad Stadium do it damage to my mind. Our own kind of Origin Series gives England RL chance to look at twice as many players in a competitive arena, it gives the main nucleus of fans something to get really excited about, and would surely sell out if properly marketed. The RFL have an opportunity to make this change and in its wake introduce a raft of benefits to Rugby League in England.
By the way, Yorkshire are reigning champions.
Technically.
For what its worth, Mark's thoughts are a little different. Here's what he says:
Magic Weekend should be an open draw, ensuring equality of opportunity, if not match ups. I'd have a draw at the start of the season to pick who plays what day, then a few weeks before I'd have a second draw for the match ups.
Having experienced the occasion and it's almost unique nature in the British sporting calendar, I think it has its virtues, but it has to develop as being the event rather than just another weekly round. Kind of like the NFL Wembley games. Fans come to the event, the teams on show are almost secondary to the occasion. I'd want Magic to be seen that way. Its important because points are at stake, but its exciting because anyone could be drawn against anyone.
However, I too would axe the spectacle to make way for a representative showcase. Having attended the last Lancashire-Yorkshire fixture at a miserably wet Odsal, I know we owe them one as a starter. Also, Tom is right, it gets more players rep experience.
I'd not go with a shoehorn approach to players born outside the M62 corridor though. I'd pad the schedule out with games such as Cumbria v The South and/or Wales v France. Have a three game origin series for sure, but have that last game on a weekend with these other fixtures. You could put the varsity game that weekend and amateur roses match ups too. Representative Magic. Its where I would take it.
So there you have our thoughts. We would love to hear what you think as well, really get the debate going. Here are some messages we've had already:
Michael Donnelly (@mikeldonnelly): Underwhelming, and a bit of an erratic schedule. Still, getting to see seven games in two days is always exciting.
Andy Barden (@Electric_gig): Neutral fans want to see Derbys if you are not watching your side play at the time. Good event when attending but watching it on tv is not quite the same.
