Warrington Wolves talking points before Magic Weekend 2024

With both sides needing to avoid a slip-up as they pursue their respective goals, it is a crucial game in both teams’ seasons.

Will it be a third Wire win over the Rhinos of 2024? Or will Leeds make full use of being on home turf?

Our Wire reporter Matt Turner picks out five key pre-match talking points below…

The best way to round off a mouth-watering day

The opening day of Magic Weekend is believed to be close to a sell-out, which will be music to the ears of Super League’s executives after the decision to move to Elland Road was met with almost universal disapproval.

It will have been what they were hoping for when lining up the fixtures, and the trio of Saturday matches all have plenty on them.

Wigan vs St Helens needs no extra hype while Leeds fans were always going to make full use of effectively being given home advantage – more on that later – but even London vs Hull FC feels like a big game in the race to avoid the wooden spoon.

But Wire vs Leeds to round the action off in a game that both sides need to win? Yes please…

Warrington and Leeds will bring the curtain down on the first day of Magic Weekend (Image: John Clifton/SWpix.com)

The toughest game of Wire’s run-in?

Of the six games Warrington have left of the regular season, there is a fair case for saying this is the toughest of the lot.

Naturally, people will point to the home game against St Helens next month – always a tough game regardless of form – but all things considered, this seems a trickier proposition at present.

If Wire are to make the top two, they simply cannot afford to slip up and the same is true of Leeds, who are trying desperately to gatecrash the play-off spots.

Add in the location and likely make-up of the crowd – again, more on that to come – and Sam Burgess’ side will certainly have their hands full.

If they can come through the game, however, they can attack the remaining five matches knowing their play-off spot is all-but mathematically secure.

Healthy squad means selection headaches

Having given a few of his front-line first-team players a rest for the win at London, Burgess will select from a pretty healthy squad for this game.

If it remains the case that all of George Williams, Josh Thewlis, Ben Currie, Matty Nicholson and Luke Yates will come back into contention, it certainly brings about some headaches for the head coach but ones he will no doubt be happy to have.

And if Lachlan Fitzgibbon is deemed fit to make his return from injury, that would be another plate for Burgess to spin.

The Wire boss has labelled Yates “a nailed-on starter” since he arrived while John Bateman seemingly has to be involved somewhere, so how will things be shuffled around?

Matty Nicholson is among the players set to come back into the side having been rested against London Broncos (Image: Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com)

The worst possible draw?

Time to address the elephant in the room – in effect, this is an extra away match for The Wire.

Magic Weekend is supposed to constitute the 12 Super League teams facing off on the same neutral ground and while that remains the case for five of the six matches, it is not for this one.

Someone had to be the unlucky one to face Leeds in their home city in front of a likely partisan crowd, and Warrington drew the short straw.

The indications are that, as expected, Leeds fans will comfortably outnumber any other set of supporters and given their dire need of a victory, the Rhinos will be hoping to jump on the back of the atmosphere it will create.

However, the game is played on the pitch and not in the stands and if Warrington can make light of the noise around them, a win would feel much sweeter than usual.

Wire to face a third iteration of Leeds Rhinos

Saturday will be the third time Wire and Leeds have crossed paths this year, and Burgess’ boys will meet the Rhinos at the third different stage of their season.

Back in Round Seven, Warrington visited Headingley with Leeds very much in the Rohan Smith era and came away with a 34-8 victory despite the absence of a few key men.

Then last month, Smith had gone and Brad Arthur – fresh off the plane from Australia – was limited to a watching brief as Wire won 30-18 at The Halliwell Jones Stadium.

Now, Arthur’s influence on the side appears to be growing – evidenced by their 30-4 hammering of Wigan at the weekend – so will the result be different?

Wire have beaten Leeds home and away this year, including a 30-18 Round 17 win at The Halliwell Jones Stadium last month (Image: Olly Hassell/SWpix.com)