The Dacia Magic Weekend finally returns to the Super League calendar this weekend. Here's the lowdown on our participation in the showpiece event over the years.

The Venue

This weekend sees a return to Newcastle’s St James Park, which will host its fifth Magic Weekend event. The first Magic held in the North East was back in 2015 and was held there subsequently for four seasons. It was scheduled to return in 2020 after a one year absence, however the event was cancelled due to Covid-19.

The first visit to St James Park saw the Wire take on St Helens. Warrington started strong and impressed in the first half thanks to tries from Stefan Ratchford, Ben Harrison and Ryan Atkins who gave the Wolves a 16-8 lead at the interval. St Helens’ defence stood firm in the second half however to keep Wire scoreless in the second 40. Adam Swift and Jordan Turner hit back for the Saints, who held on to their 20-16 victory.

2016 saw an entertaining clash as The Wolves took on Castleford Tigers. Wire struck first as Stefan Ratchford pounced on a knock inside the Warrington half and he raced over half the field to touch down. Kurt Gidley squirmed his way over to extend the lead. Warrington scored another long rang try after Matty Russell caught a high bomb inside his own 20 before breaking away and offloading to Ben Currie at the half hour mark. Castleford hit back twice before half time and Daryl Powell’s side produced a strong second half as Castleford surged to victory.

The third visit to Newcastle saw a third different opposition as The Wire took on Wigan. Shaun Wane’s side were the brighter of the two sides in the first half. Liam Marshall scored twice for Wigan as they took a 12-6 lead at the break. Marshall completed his hat-trick, Ratchford and Tom Lineham scored to narrow the gap to two points. Jack Hughes went over to put Warrington into a lead. However, Joe Burgess crossed in the final minute. George Williams' conversation attempt was missed which meant the sides shared the spoils with a 24-24 draw.

In the most recent trip to Newcastle, Warrington were matched up again against the Warriors. Ratchford crossed in the first half to make it a try in each of the four appearances at St James Park for the Wire number 1, as Wire trailed 14-12 at the break. However, they were unable to kick on and Wigan recorded a 38-10 victory.

A first victory at the iconic venue is the aim this Sunday against our local rivals, 3.15pm KO.

Dacia Magic Weekend Preview