i was discussing this the other day, my dad and i came up with and idea that would have 3 games over the afternoon/evening.
game 1 : League 1 state of origin match, lancs v yorks
game 2 : championship SOO match
game 3 : International Origin match

I thought this was a top idea, every speccy could have an interest in each match as you dont have to know any of the players in the match to support your county/area.

I'd prefer to drop this than the Magic Weekend. A festival weekend of rugby is a great concept and one I'd hate to lose... Saying that I like the Exiles idea too. It's not ideal, but Wednesday nights would probably be best for the clubs & players but not necessarily the fans.
Maybe this is an argument for getting rid of a couple of teams from the league? That would create a couple of free weekends and it's quite clear from the squad selections in this years game, and a lot of the results so far this year that the talent is not evenly spread among the clubs. Who to get rid of is a tough call, but I don't think we have the strength in depth in this country to support a 14 team league.

Maybe next season the Magic weekend should be excluded and replaced by a day of International RL? The RFL could showpiece two games (as Ian Millward has often hinted at), inc the England v Exiles at a decent Northern stadium - maybe in Manchester or Liverpool. Advertise it as much as possible particularly within the chosen city, ensuring it doesn't clash with the Premier League football season, and you could end up attracting a very healthy crowd. Playing it on a Saturday would be my choice too.

And as people have pointed out, it needs to be a stand alone fixture, of which it will be, should it replace Magic.

I'd question whether a mid-season International is beneficial at all.

I'd much rather see England play two warm-up games on the two weekends prior to the Four Nations (opponents dependent on where the tournament is held).

It was clear how dis-jointed England were last Friday night and they'll gain zero momentum from it when they next get together in the autumn.

I always ask whether I can see an innovation like the Exiles game still being around in five years time; this is one I categorise as extremely doubtful.

If McNamara has to justify the full-time position he could practice pronouncing his tees.
For example, qual-a-eh.
(I know this doesn't have an effect on team performance but I feel better for having a whinge about it.)

Good idea.