The Rules:

• Each person predicts the results of every Super League match.
• Predicting the correct winner will get you 1 point.
• If the predictor’s scoreline has the same winning margin, then 4 points will be awarded (only if the predicted winning team is correct).
• Correctly predicting the exact score will win you an additional 5 points.
• Two bonus points will be awarded if the first try scorer is predicted correctly, whereas 1 point will be awarded if the selected player scores during the match.

Last Round’s Results:

• Warrington Wolves 18 – Catalans Dragons 16 (Nathan – 1, Ian – 3)
• Castleford Tigers 14 – York Knights 20 (Nathan – 0, Ian – 1)
• Leeds Rhinos 34 – Hull KR 8 (Nathan – 1, Ian – 1)
• Hull FC 16 – Wigan Warriors 20 (Nathan – 2, Ian – 1)
• Bradford Bulls 10 – St Helens 40 (Nathan – 0, Ian – 0)
• Toulouse Olympique XIII 16 – Leigh Leopards 40 (Nathan – 3, Ian – 3)
• Wakefield Trinity 29 – Huddersfield Giants 23 (Nathan – 3, Ian – 1)

Current Score: Nathan 131 – Ian 137

Well, the gap now stands at just six points as we go into the Magic Weekend fixtures. This past weekend few up a few performances that throw up some real food for thought, as I’m sure will show in our predictions. Just as a reminder, Nathan’s comments are in a normal typeface, whereas Ian’s are in bold.

Huddersfield’s performance against Wakefield gave me food for thought on the subject of the weekend’s first fixture. Although it might have turned out to be a losing effort at Belle Vue, the Giants showed a competitive edge in Wakefield that they’d lacked all season, and despite York being back in the winners’ column this past week, I think the Giants will carry their momentum over to Liverpool.

I have seen green shoots of improvement for the Giants under Jim Lenihan. They look more committed now, and a 3/4 line that includes Adam Swift and Jacob Gagai is going to threaten any side, so I think York will make them work, but ultimately, they will get over the top of them.

No great surprise here, I’ve gone for a Rovers derby win. I’ll drop a spoiler here for you: Ian’s gone for FC. I know, revolutionary predicting there. In all seriousness, this will be a tight contest, but I think Rovers will be stronger with the players they’ll have back (Litten, Burgess, maybe even Mourgue), despite what will undoubtedly be a spirited Hull side.

No surprise here that I’m erring on the Black & White side of the biggest, most bitter rivalry in Super League, but I have my reasons for tipping them for a first Hull Derby win since 2023, that being primarily that I believe their more likely to want this game and result more, which is often what this game comes down to, and bearing that in mind, the extra local element in the Airlie Birds’ squad potentially gives them that extra bit of necessary resolve when it’s really needed.

Leigh vs Warringtyon has the potential to be the sleeper hit of the weekend, in my opinion. Leigh are alternating between emulating their best performances from 2025 and falling far short of expectations, and Warrington aren’t exactly pulling up any trees recently. Ultimately, though, the difference is that Warrington have been finding a way to win, and Leigh aren’t, so I’m going for the Wolves to edge a tight contest.

They have some serious injuries, but I think Wire are a different proposition this season, and still have enough strike players to hurt an infuriatingly inconsistent Leopards outfit. It obviously won’t be a comfortable evening for the Wolves, but I think in Irwin and Hayes, they have two halves who can certainly counteract Messrs Cook and Lam on the other side and experience of players like Ben Currie, etc. can usually be relied on in a sticky situation.

The French derby is an interesting one. Catalans seem to be turning a corner under John Cartwright, whereas Toulouse have a tendency to pile the points on in the second half; they invariably ship many more than they score. It could be a high-scoring game, whether that translates as a big score one way or another or a close-fought battle, only time will tell.

I think this match has plenty of potential to be hugely entertaining, or the worst game of the whole weekend, depending on which version of each team turns up. I think a lot depends on the opening quarter, how fast both teams are out of the blocks! It’s no secret that the Dragons have resources that Toulouse don’t, but this local rivalry, which is geographically what this is, also has that element of the unknown and a fair bit of passion, which could tip this contest either way.

The first game of Sunday also has the potential to be a high-scoring affair. The Castleford Tigers side of 2026 remains a mystery to me; they’re almost impossible to consistently predict, because they’re so consistently inconsistent! I’m sure Wakefield won’t fancy another scare like they had this past weekend, so expect them to be out of the blocks fast and hit Castleford hard. They could well be out of sight by half-time.

I think, after the way they just beat Huddersfield, Trin will be absolutely bouncing into this weekend, and that, coupled with the Tigers’ home defeat to York, should see them home and dry against their closest rivals. Add to that the element of Daryl Powell and Jake Trueman against their former club, which certainly puts some extra spice into this fixture, while the Ryan Carr effect and previous impressive wins for the team from the OneBore Stadium keep this unpredictable match firmly in the melting pot, so don’t be surprised if my prediction is wrong again.

It’s hard to look past Leeds in the weekend’s penultimate fixture. The league leaders thoroughly dispatched Hull KR this past weekend, and no amount of passion from Bradford will bring them close to the Rhinos, in my opinion. Add to that the fact that Bradford are still without a few key players, and it makes for a worrying day for Bulls fans.

What can we say about the Rhinos at the moment that hasn’t already been said? They are in superlative form, so much so that even the champions were made to look like boys against men for the 2nd time this season on Friday night. I would previously have given the Bulls more of a chance in this game, but after capitulation at home against a misfiring Saints team on home soil, I really fear for them going into this game against the bang in-form Betfred Super League table-toppers, who just look in ruthless form at the moment, and will look to absolutely expose a team who are bound to be asking themselves some awkward questions after their thumping by St. Helens.

Finally, we have the case of Wigan vs Saints. If you’d have asked me a week ago which way this fixture would go, I wouldn’t have hesitated to say Wigamn, but this past weekend gave me pause for thought. Wigan only barely beat Hull FC, whereas Saints thumped Bradford, who I (and Ian) had backed to beat them. I still think Wigan will prevail, as they will be well-drilled and keen to put the memories of Good Friday to bed, but I don’t think it’ll be as clear-cut as I might have thought until recently.

I expect Wigan to be in a bullish mood after they scraped to a slightly controversial victory at the MKM Stadium, for the latest instalment of their bitterest rivalry. Saints will obviously be in a confident mood after they demolished Bradford, but I think the intensity of the game against Hull FC will have undoubtedly aided and abetted the Challenge Cup holders’ preparations for this, their most important local rivalry. I think it will start out with a real arm wrestle, but I expect Matty Peet’s Warriors to ultimately stamp their authority on the proceedings as this match once again tries, but fails to live up to the intensity of the stand-alone Hull Derby, although it should be worth watching, even without the Bill Leyland factor.

Nathan’s Picks:

• Huddersfield Giants 24 – York Knights 10. First try scorer: Jacob Gagai
• Hull KR 22 – Hull FC 12. First try scorer: Jez Litten
• Leigh Leopards 20 – Warrington Wolves 30. First try scorer: Matty Ashton
• Catalans Dragons 42 – Toulouse Olympique XIII 24. First try scorer: Solomona Faataape
• Wakefield Trinity 32 – Castleford Tigers 12. First try scorer: Josh Rourke
• Leeds Rhinos 36 – Bradford Bulls 6. First try scorer: Maika Sivo
• Wigan Warriors 32 – St Helens 20. First try scorer: Harry Smith

Ian’s Picks:

• Huddersfield Giants 24 – York Knights 12. First try scorer: George Flanagan
• Hull KR 14 – Hull FC 24. First try scorer: Tom Briscoe
• Leigh Leopards 18 – Warrington Wolves 26. First try scorer: Ben Currie
• Catalans Dragons 28 – Toulouse Olympique XIII 18. First try scorer: Tommy Makinson
• Wakefield Trinity 32 – Castleford Tigers 18. First try scorer: Jake Trueman
• Leeds Rhinos 48 – Bradford Bulls 12. First try scorer: Lachlan Miller
• Wigan Warriors 36 – St Helens 12. First try scorer: Zach Eckersley

Written by Nathan Major (site editor & Hull KR fan) and Ian Judson (site contributor & Hull FC fan)