NO MAGIC FORMULA FOR 17

IT’S full steam ahead for Brisbane’s second rugby league team, but there’s a tiny pebble in the shoe of those about to take the giant leap forward: Magic Round.

The annual celebration of every team going to Suncorp Stadium for eight games of football is perfect when you have 16 teams, but not 17 as may be the case in 2023.

Deciding which team misses the party and has the bye could be a ticklish issue.

Surely it couldn’t be one of the four Queensland teams, otherwise it would defeat the purpose of having a Brisbanebased round.

The temptation is to say the name should be randomly chosen, but what if the premiers, say the Storm, were plucked out of a hat?

And if you chose a battling team like the Wests-tigers, you’d be accused of kicking the club while they are down.