Ok, I'll try one. Home ground/city/region advantage applies in weeks 1 to 3 of finals. Assume the bold team wins.
Week 1
3 v 8 (Broncos v Eels)
4 v 7 (Knights v Raiders)
5 v 6 (Sea Eagles v Dragons)
1 & 2 BYE (Storm and Bulldogs)
Week 2
Rankings: (1)Storm, (2)Bulldogs, (3)Broncos, (4)Knights, (5)Sea Eagles, (6)Dragons
1 v 3rd Highest Winner W1 (Storm v Sea Eagles)
2 v 2nd Highest Winner W1 (Bulldogs v Knights)
Highest Winner W1 v Highest Loser W1 (Broncos v Dragons)
Week 3
Highest Winner W2 v Highest Loser W2 (Storm v Knights)
2nd Highest Winner W2 v 3rd Highest Winner W2 (Bulldogs v Broncos)
Week 4
Grand Final (Storm v Bulldogs)
Okay, now I'll chuck in some upsets to see what happens:
Week 1
3 v 8 (Broncos v Eels)
4 v 7 (Knights v Raiders)
5 v 6 (Sea Eagles v Dragons)
1 & 2 BYE (Storm and Bulldogs)
Week 2
Rankings: (1)Storm, (2)Bulldogs, (3)Knights, (4)Dragons, (5)Eels, (6)Broncos
1 v 3rd Highest Winner W1 (Storm v Eels)
2 v 2nd Highest Winner W1 (Bulldogs v Dragons)
Highest Winner W1 v Highest Loser W1 (Knights v Broncos)
Week 3
Highest Winner W2 v Highest Loser W2 (Storm v Bulldogs)
2nd Highest Winner W2 v 3rd Highest Winner W2 (Dragons v Broncos)
Week 4
Grand Final (Storm v Broncos)
PROS
- Teams 1 and 2 get a bye in week 1 of the finals rather than week 2 giving them a better run into the grand final qualifier
- Team 1 gets a second chance if they lose in week 2 (therefore the minor premiers are guaranteed to make the 3rd week of the finals)
- Team 2 gets a second chance if they lose in week 2 as long as team 1 doesn't get beaten
- There are three games for the first two weeks of the finals allowing a Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday games for those two weeks
CONS
- Team 2 can get knocked out in week 2 if they lose and Team 1 loses
- I am sure there are others - I put this together in about 10 minutes so haven't gone through all the scenarios