From Cardiff to Edinburgh and major cities in between, there have been 18 Super League Magic Weekends. Warrington Guardian sports editor Mike Parsons has attended the majority and so ahead of the event's debut at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium on July 4-5 we’ve asked him to share with us his favourite Magic moments…
AT the turn of the century, if anybody had said that over the next 25 years Warrington Wolves would play rugby league at iconic stadia in Cardiff AND Edinburgh, Manchester, Newcastle, Leeds, and Liverpool, then I would have probably rolled about laughing.
But the arrival and success of the rugby league Magic Weekend concept has enabled The Wire and their fans – along with those of all other Super League clubs – to tick off playing and watching the sport in some of Britain’s most magnificent sporting arenas.
And that in itself has been very special.
Let’s be brutally honest, there’s no comparison to going from Castleford Tigers away one week to the Millennium Stadium in the Welsh capital the next!
But delving deeper, there have been some moments from those events up and down the country that have resided in my memory bank more than others.
And for somebody who can forget in a few seconds why they had gone to open the fridge door, that’s saying something.
Not all of my memories are of incredible acts on the field of play, some are of the brilliant role played by the Wire fans, too.
Sometimes it is strange what you remember and what you forget, but welcome to my world.
What did Wolfie do to deserve that?
The words ‘Magic Weekend’ always bring one particular moment back to my mind first.
Nobody could have scripted that the then Warrington head coach Steve Price would spear tackle Wolfie in front of the fans in the Kop end during the celebrations of the win against Wigan at Liverpool FC’s Anfield home in 2019.
Then for Wolfie to 'walk on, with hope in his heart' with his arms stretched out like a zombie while his head was facing the wrong way.
It still leaves me in hysterics every time I see the pictures and video footage.
There had been some playful rivalry developing that year between the mischievous mascot and coach but it remains a mystery why Pricey decided at that moment to reverse the mayhem and rip into everyone’s favourite furry mascot in such a manner.
Maybe a little push, even a playful air punch, but lifting him with a rugby tackle and dropping him on his head…beating Wigan at Anfield can make you do the craziest things!
Poor Wolfie. It must have been a shock.
Thankfully no stretcher was required, although when he appeared on social media in bandages and a sling the next day it was another very funny clip published by those clever digital marketing folk at The Halliwell Jones Stadium.
The Pricey powerslam!
U ok @wire_wolfie? 😅 pic.twitter.com/xiu88Fqqql— Warrington Wolves (@WarringtonRLFC) May 25, 2019
Austin sprinkles Magic dust
That same year at Anfield, there was a huge game-breaking moment that was unforgettable.
Special talents produce something out of nothing when a team needs it most.
That happened when half-back Blake Austin exploded straight through the middle of the Wigan defence from 40 metres to score a wonderful try in front of the gathered army of Wire fans who went ballistic.
It was a case of the former Canberra Raiders man showing why Warrington had made him a marquee signing and doing it on the biggest stage.
The game was locked at 8-8 at the time, but Austin’s power surge and then another memorable Toby King breakaway try took Warrington out of reach.
Morley the marauder
When it comes to other try memories, Adrian Morley’s effort against St Helens at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester in 2013 was wonderful to see and probably the best of his Wire career.
Better known for his explosive ball carries into the guts of defences and his bone-crunching tackling, that day’s 22-metre scoring dash in the last minute capped a wonderful 48-22 Wire win against the old enemy.
He got on the end of a break inside his own half by Micky Higham, wrong-footed one defender and reached the line before an attempted tackle by Mark Percival, who got swallowed up in the subsequent impressive pile-on by Moz’s teammates.
Over the years, the tale has developed descriptions of a 40, 50, and 60-metre try scored by Moz, possibly started by the great three-times Challenge Cup-winning captain himself!
If he says it was 60 metres, then it was 60 metres – you can argue with him if you want to, but I’ll let it ride!
A real shame the exact moment wasn't captured on photographers' cameras.
Phew, Thewlis!
All of my Magic memories seem to be of moments that were unexpected.
That was also the case in 2021 when Wigan were again the opponents, this time at St James’ Park in Newcastle.
To score a try from the first set with the ball is quite rare, even more so against Wigan, and even more so in such a high-profile contest.
But when Gareth Widdop’s awkward-looking kick was allowed to bounce by the Wigan defence, Josh Thewlis was rewarded for his chase when he got on the end of a favourable bounce and worked his magic to finish off in the corner in the 55th second.
In the circumstances, it was a surprise that the final score was the lowest of Warrington’s 18 Magic Weekend matches – but it was a happy four-hour journey home after the 10-6 win.
Magical Monaghan
Scoring five tries in a match is another rare feat, but it was extra special for Wire winger Joel Monaghan in 2012.
For it came in front of a massive Wire turnout at the Etihad Stadium on a day when Warrington’s highest Super League win against fierce rivals Widnes Vikings.
And overnight the 68-4 humbling of their derby rivals put Warrington top of the table.
Such was Monaghan’s sparkling five-star show, Matty Blythe’s hat-trick is sometimes forgotten.
The Wire choir
The atmosphere created at Magic Weekend by Wire fans is legendary, but it was the year of the Monaghan song and dance that topped the lot.
Pinching the tune of the Yaya Toure chant sung by Manchester City supporters, a primrose and blue twist was added for a version that rocked the Etihad in 2013.
The Wire’s star Australian brothers Michael and Joel Monaghan were the subjects of the infectious melody and dance performed in unison by thousands of Warrington fans throughout much of the big win against Saints - and for a long time before and after the game too.
Loved it!
Warrington fans were even singing the song on the terraces again earlier this season when I thought it was brilliant that it showed a pair of Wire heroes living on the other side of the world that their time in primrose and blue had not been forgotten.
So good the first time, they did it twice
If smashing 40-plus points past Saints in 2013 wasn’t enough, they did it again in 2014.
And even sweeter, The Wire’s win prevented Saints from going top of the Super League table.
It showed, on their day, what Warrington could do in the post-Lee Briers and Adrian Morley era.
And after having had such a poor sequence of results against Saints in Super League’s earlier years, this felt a little bit like being in heaven.
Currently nine in a row feels good too, though.
Ninety metres from the kick-off
Another unforgettable try was scored by The Wire’s emergency stand-off Vinnie Anderson at the first Magic Weekend in Cardiff in 2007.
From a re-start, winger Richie Barnett took the ball in and from a risky offload 10 metres from his own line, New Zealander Vinnie Anderson surged through a gap and showed stunning speed for a regular back-rower to complete a wonderful 90-metre try in what ended up being a 50-18 destruction of Salford.
His half-back partner Lee Briers produced one of his memorable masterclass displays that day – short passes, long balls, dummies, grubber kicks off the woodwork, interceptions, everything he did turned to gold.
The first and the best
For my all-round favourite Magic Weekend occasion, I can’t look past that first one at the Millennium Stadium.
That was a time when The Wire were promising to become something special after so long in the doldrums, there was a buzz about the team and club, and optimism was high among fans - but they hadn’t had a big occasion to celebrate, like a Challenge Cup or Grand Final since 1990.
So Warrington fans poured into the Welsh capital in their thousands.
Before the game, everywhere you looked outside the stadium there were Wire jerseys and the barmy army created such a carnival atmosphere inside and outside the ground.
A 40-foot Warrington Wolves barmy army Wolfie flag was unfurled outside The City Arms pub in the shadows of the stadium, and it was just one of those amazing sights not to be forgotten for those who were there.
Those several hours on the streets of Cardiff pre-match were wonderful and it was only when the game got going and everyone was inside the stadium that you could really see the huge numbers of Wire fans in attendance.
It felt pretty much a done deal that Magic was here to stay after that opener.
Back from the dead
I fondly remember the thrilling comeback against Huddersfield Giants when Magic Weekend returned to Cardiff in 2008.
They were trailing 22-6 after an awful first half but were a different side in the second period and a late try from none other than Lee Briers sealed the 36-34 success.
Heading into Toon
The trips to Newcastle were good fun, in the main.
Some of my memorable moments understandably also come from a reporting perspective.
We were recording a video live on Facebook from the Angel of the North statue on our way into Toonland when our treasured former colleague Mike Boden dropped the camera and everything went blank for those watching.
Eagle-eyed observers were quickly posting comments like ‘He’s dropped the camera, ha ha ha’ followed by dozens, if not hundreds, of laughing emojis.
A bit embarrassing really at the time, but quite funny now and you don’t forget those little hiccups.
I guess it shows you're only human, things like that keep you humble with a desire to try and improve next time.
The Warrington 68ers
To rack up 68 points twice in Magic Weekend matches is pretty memorable, to be honest.
The second time, featuring Joel Monaghan’s five tries against Widnes, has already been mentioned.
But there’s one top dog at Warrington Wolves who’d probably prefer I’d forgotten the first time, in 2010, in the hope that I don’t keep mentioning it from time to time.
Current chief executive Karl Fitzpatrick was at full-back for a Salford side that could not live with Tony Smith’s team on that occasion at Murrayfield, Edinburgh, that day.
I recall Lee Briers and Richie Myler pulling the strings brilliantly in the 68-16 display.
Stand-off Briers, in fact, scored his 100th Wire Super League try in that success.
More to come
Record ticket sales for Magic Weekend at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium on the Liverpool waterfront this Saturday and Sunday would almost certainly mean there are more memorable moments to come.
For the first time at one of these events, The Wire will be playing Leigh Leopards.
With The Wire being depleted of 11 of their starters and selecting a youthful side, any kind of win would be an astonishing result and become cherished in the memory banks for many years to come.
Fingers are crossed.
Share