Not quite sure what that has to do with watching your team at a showpiece event, but hey - I avoid talking to Wire fans wherever possible so maybe it's a language thing

its only once a year, and if a team plays thursday and monday, you've got a four day turnaround


as for the aussies, i know many of their elite have played in the trans tasman test on a friday night, and backed up for their club on the saturday afternoon, they dont whinge though

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Totally wrong , Nobody should be under any obligation to cheerlead and good for him for being honest- He's perfectly entitled to voice his opinion and yes given who he is the press will pick it up- the reason they are though is that its different from the never ending PR from Red Hall on the other side -

Id be surprised if if the RFL make as much as you perhaps think and the return for the clubs has been minimal given the amount of pressure theyre put under - and thats a direct quote to me from a Superleague club vice chairman.

Remember the clubs still have to pay out wages to all staff not just players. this is a loss leader for many of them - just what they dont need when theyre having to scrap for every penny in the market place .

and do tell us what is wrong with spending money on RL in Cumbria!!!! - i went to the recent Barrow v Wigan Cup tie - tremendous day out with great passion on display from all concerned - well worth investing in i would say

Reeled!

Far too easy the ald dire fans. Anyway it is your big day out of the season though. I'll never forget the victory parade after your defeat of Salford at MM a few years back. It was like you'd won the comp, Lap of honour and everything. Laughing Stock of RL i tell thee!

this is an extra game, if it wasnt happening the clubs wouldnt be getting any money from anywhere - they still have to pay employees throughout the year (I dont expect the kit man gets paid extra for turning up to work, even if he does have to go to Scotland).

SKY and other sponsors put a lot of money into the game because of this, Edinburgh is putting money into the game because of this...this is money that wouldnt be in the sport without this weekend.

Development in places like Cumbria is funded through ventures like these. Where do you think the money for the free challenge cup tickets for the game you attended in Barrow came from? It didnt come from within Cumbrian RL. Without that scheme there would probably have been about 3000 there.

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Edinburgh is putting money in as it expects to get a return on its investments - not out of charity - Dont you think Cardiff would have fought harder to keep the event if it was such a cash cow-

Development in cumbria is not funded from this as any money from this weekend is for Superleague - that was a direct answer from an RFL official- the free ticket scheme for the CC didnt apply to NL clubs - not in round 4 anyway Barrow didnt give tickets away to their own fans and they could have sold more comfortably.

and on your point of if it wasnt happening- then 7 of the clubs would be at home raising their own cash - as it is many of them are going to be with a home superleague match for 4 weeks - some will get a bit from their cup ties but a month without direct matchday income during the season is not good for any club

They'll make even less if people are put off going by the players.

This event needs time to grow. It makes money already, it could make LOTS of money if given a chance to develop.

RL is not wealthy enough to dismiss such opportunities - the RFL are making money and playing games out of the heartlands, win win.



Absolutely nothing - but to say the RFL are spending money on the Magic Weekend that could be spent on Cumbrian RL is, quite frankly, ludicrous.

I agree, wire take around 15 fans to each cup final, and if ( IF ) saints were to ever not make it into a final, I would say we would only take aroudn 13 or 14 fans. So i agree with you.

Quite honestly, I couldn't give a flying feck what James Graham thinks. For me it is the highlight of the season. All the Rugby League teams congregate together to create a good atmosphere. It may not be a Cup Final, but for the smaller clubs it is, and for that reason it creates a great buzz. 7 Rugby games in one weekend on the TV - Superb! To be there, it's even better.

I cannot wait for Saturday, this is my Christmas.

Totally agree, which is why moving it away from Cardiff was a c0ck up of epic proportions.

The local contingent was growing (decent following on both days from Celtic fans, even before the SL licence was awarded if I recall), it was superbly placed for RL fans to share a few beers and a bit of banter.


Edinburgh means beer tents outside the ground. Meh.

We should have kept the CC in Cardiff, but understand the commitment to Wembley.

There's no excuse for moving the Magic weekend though, and I'd be very surprised if attendances this weekend didn't back that up.

Edinburgh is a far nicer city IMO, and Cardiff after two years of exactly the same thing was feeling a little stale. I think this event possibly needs to be rotated on a two year basis. Maybe back to Cardiff in a couple of years.

The stadium is less that 2.5m from the city centre, so a quick bus journey gets you into all the pubs and restaurants. I certanly don't see it as a 'c0ck up of epic proportions'.

I wouldn't have bothered going to Cardiff again, whereas I am really excited about this weekend.

In Cardiff, Game A finishes and there's time for a quick scoot to a pub to share a couple of beers with a great crowd. Back in time for the majority of Game B. If the second half isn't so great, shoot out again for a mingle, before Game C.

At Murrayfield? Forget it, when you're in your in.

They moved it from Cardiff just as it was starting to take root, both for travelling fans and more importantly local fans. There's a huge potential for RL in South Wales and if you've been to one of these weekends, or one of the CC finals there, it's hard to ignore. It's epitomised by a local bloke offering to buy the Saints shirt off my back (clearly, the internet hasn't made the Valleys yet!) but there needs to be some stability to allow the event to develop.

We could move it every two years - Cardiff, Edinburgh, Dublin, Barcelona, Birmingham etc etc. It would hardly register an interest locally.

Or we could give it a home, and build on the foundations already laid in Cardiff.