I reckon it was likelier than not (4/7) before the draw that Leeds, Saints and Wigan would all avoid each other. What other 'plum ties' could have been drawn?

Crap, not going.

saints wire.

they dont put small time bottom of the table clubs against the big boys in this game.

No...they put Trophy winners in it instead against teams that dont win owt.

As for the fixtures....thats me with a case of beer and the telly for the w/end.

Well, the RFL have taken a good concept and killed it. This crowd will be woeful. I'm actually consdiering not going now because only 2 games vaguely intrigue me.

If it's still going next year, bring back the feckin' derbies, just mix 'em up a bit every year. This draw may kill of TMW.

What's up boys , getting bored with things

, how can that be the case , SDL is getting better year on year , Eddie and Stevo say so

How can you "mix up" a derby fixture played at a neutral venue?

You could have Saints v Wigan or Saints v Warrington both would probably have similar appeal. Not as easy to do for all teams though as the only derby for the Hull teams is each other but there should be some way to get much more appealing fixtures thats for sure.

Think he means Rovers should let Hull win for a change

Surelly all SL fixtures should be appealing ?

I'm presuming the RFL considered the impact of this draw, which was far from freakishly unkind, before they made it. Surely they didn't just hope something would turn up to save their back sides.

What would have been wrong with 1 v 2, 3 v 4 etc? Saints-Leeds, Wigan-Catalans, Hudds-Hull KR, Cas-Wakey, Bulls-Wire, Quins-Hull, Salford-Celtic?

Yes but they will insist on expansion

Should they? Should all Premiership fixtures be appealing as well? Because last time I checked, not many are that bothered about games such as Hull City vs Wigan Athletic.

"Not many bothered", but there were still 20,000+ in attendance for that one game.

I can see them returning to Derbies in the near future. The weekend is the perfect opportunity for a third derby game now that the league has expanded

Basically what I was getting at.

Saints vs Wigan / Wire vs Salford
Wigan vs Wire / Saints vs Salford
Wire vs Saints / Wigan vs Salford

Leeds vs Bradford / Wakefield vs Castleford
Leeds vs Castleford / Bradford vs Huddersfield
Huddersfield vs Wakefield / Bradford vs Castleford
Castleford vs Huddersfield / Leeds vs Wakefield
Leeds vs Huddersfield / Bradford vs Wakefield

Quins vs Crusaders
Quins vs Catalans
Crusaders vs Catalans

Hull FC vs Hull KR (well, nothing else left)

Basically mix them up. Whoever is left from the expansion clubs ans West Yorkshire clubs to play each other. Guaranteed interest in the fixtures then with some variety.

Some are more appealing than others though!

Do other derbies have a cup they can play for? The two Hull teams play for the Clive Sullivan cup in the pre season friendly, they could play for this at the magic weekend, gives a bit more to play for and bragging rights.

Leeds-Hull FC?

It's a RL showpiece event. Just read the negative reponses above and elsewhere, yet again the RFL/SL go all out to embarass the sport. Still there should be plenty of reduced price tickets for sale just prior to the event when they realise the attendance is going to drop again for the 3rd year running.

Yes. But most of these comments are coming from posters who've slagged off every Magic Weekend from the beginning: when it was derbies they were moaning about one more derby at a neutral venue, when they wanted to see derbies at their grounds; now its a draw, they're moaning about the fixtures and how derbies would be better. When it was in Cardiff they moaned about Cardiff, when it moved to Edinburgh they moaned about Edinburgh and wanted it moved back to Cardiff

While there are things that can be done to improve Magic Weekend, some people are simply 'agin it' and will be convinced its a failure no matter what happens.

Probably

Laxative will sort it.