I can understand him looking after his players but on both counts he is wrong.

Sam's team mates should protect him and the officials should deal with what they see.

McIllorum deserved sending off, he was late high and I think it was intentional, not to hurt but to let the player know he was there. I don't think there is an argument for him miss timing it from the VT evidence, full on head shot.

If Saun thinks any different then he is deluded.

I think the pretense that it was spreading the game has been given up now. What it is is a massive fully-televised event that probably earns Sky loads in advertising, so it is very unlikely to be dropped even if we wanted it to.

Scrap the Magic Weekend in its current format.
Reduce SL to 12 teams playing each other home and away then splitting into top six and bottom six for a further 10 games each. Top of the league after 32 games are champions.
Re-arrange the Challenge Cup so that the 12 SL clubs and the remaining 4 'non-SL' clubs all meet over one weekend at one venue, similar to the current SL Magic Weekend.

All clubs get to play 32 games. No farcical extra fixture. End of the season consists of huge game after huge game which is ideal for Sky. Best team over the whole season are champions, not the team that can string 4 or 5 wins together at the end. The Challenge Cup gets a massive weekend event.

I understand the need to perhaps revamp the competition but offered my suggestion on MW as a tweak on the current system till a more appealing radical solution can be found.

I think that your league system has merit, but, I'm not sure about the cup. I know that it is a romantic notion but everyone should have a chance of winning it.

Batley, Hunslet or Doncaster have no chance whatsoever of reaching Wembley and contesting a final, but under the system I described they all have the chance of reaching the last 16 and playing Leeds, Wigan or ourselves in the Millenium Stadium, Etihad, etc. Surely a massive incentive for Championship clubs to do well in the cup, plus they could draw Widnes and get to play in the last eight too.

That may be so, but, you are loading the dice in favour of a reduced SL entry by effectively delaying it. Also at 12SL v 4 none SL the likelyhood of say Leigh, using this year's run progressing to the Quarters is diminished> they might have fancied a go at London for a place in the semis if the draw had been kind?