Quote ="SEB"You are Bobby Fulton and I claim my £5.
I had another top weekend, really enjoyed it. I'm afraid RL has a very high proportion of moaners amongst it's fanbase. Edinburgh has to be one of the best cities in the UK to spend a weekend in - absolutely loads to do and see there (as long as you are prepared to put a tiny bit of effort in and don't expect to be spoon fed). No it's not a quick hour's drive along the M62 - but that's the whole point! It's somewhere many RL people don't visit very often if at all and so a weekend away is justified. I certainly wouldn't consider spending a weekend somewhere like Manchester or Leeds or Birmingham.
The matches themselves - as I expected - were not as predictable as everyone thought and as usual the games deemed "least attractive" were the most interesting. The supposed top game, Wigan v Hudds was dull in the 1st half and one sided in the 2nd. Most games though had good entertaiment.
The point people often make about the stadium location - well again I don't see the problem. OK, yes it's not in the centre so you can't just pop in and out of the stadium but this doesn't have to be a major drawback. It really isn't that far to walk and a taxi isn't too expensive between a few of you.
The only two big criticisms I have are: the weather and marketing. I think it should be played slightly later in the year - maybe the second May bank holiday - to have a better chance of decent temperatures and less chance of rain. And yet again there was zero promotion of the event in the city, surely a bit of effort there could have attracted more locals to attend.
Anyone who hasn't been to any of the events, I would urge you to give it a go (if we are lucky enough to get another one) - we can be very self defeating at times. People moan that it doesn't look very good because the crowds are poor so don't bother = downward spiral.
I hope the Magic Weekend stays and more people give it a chance next year. I would like a change from Edinburgh - just for a bit of variety, as I don't have many complaints about it as a venue - maybe a different date and alot more promotion.
But let's not throw away a good idea too soon. Look at State of Origin...'"
At last. I thought I was on my own....