Bank holiday weekend is a bad time to hold it. The number of floating / neutral fans I get along to the final has dipped dramatically as it is a weekend for family.

Have it on a normal weekend and have regular season games over the August bank holiday.

Apart from the rail chaos this weekend, which has made it painful for many fans travelling down.
It's time to stop making excuses and promote the event way, way better than we do.

The BBC with it's "lego" style graphic does nothing to promote the Final or the game in general.
We have a sport, played by some of the greatest athletes on the planet, full of power ,pace and skill.
We have rivalries between clubs going back over 100 years and one of the oldest cup competitions in any sport but, there is just nothing out there to entice new people to want to attend.
Of course, since the GF was introduced and we moved to summer rugby, the final act of the season is no longer the challenge cup final and this is probably the main reason for falling interest but, at a time when millions of people can be "persuaded" to watch random people on a cookery show, being put in the jungle or taking part in ballroom dancing, it shouldn't be beyond the realm to sell out a cup final - no matter which two sides are playing and if the crowd numbers are poor this time around, with 2 of the top 5 clubs in the country, plus the 1895 final etc then, it would be terrible for the sport.

There just isn't the amount of neutrals anymore to boost the crowd to 80,000+. It used to be our sports big day out, it doesn't feel like that anymore. I know of 5 pubs in warrington that used to run a coach to Wembley no matter who was in the final. None of them do it anymore.

But why should it be down to the BBC to promote it ? IMO the challenge cup final sells itself, apart from last years obvious fail with Catalan getting to the final can anyone think of a drastically poor attendance or viewing figures for the final?

I reckon tomorrow will be the lowest following from Warrington for any of our recent finals (2009 onwards). I'm going but I don't want to and I'm not looking forward to it in the slightest.

Have a word with yourself - your team in is the cup final at Wembley on a summer's day with a chance of a big trophy, but you're not looking forward to it?

Lighten up mate! Plenty would swap places this weekend.

Yes I would for one the miserable git

It definitely felt as good as that in 2009. Now though with six major final defeats in a row behind us and a seventh on the way tomorrow it's kinda lost it's magic.

Form and past performance doesn't matter you could play your best game of the season and we play like we did against the Catalans semi final last season. Its who turns up on the day and wants it the most.

Go whenever you can. I little thought in 1975 that it would be 15 years before we'd get to the final again. Or in 1990 that it would 19 more years. We've had a very good run but in a sudden- death comp it only takes a few years being drawn away to Leeds ( normal Leeds) Saints or Wigan away in the first round and another gap opens.

It is also Leeds and Creamfields festivals on bank holiday weekend, which are slap bang in the middle of our heartlands and get about 100k each, even of only a few hundred of our Teenagers and 20somethings are going there rather than Wembley it still has an effect.

Could always do something else with the league games up North on Bank Holiday in August like an on the road round, double headers in bigger grounds etc, SKY would be up for back to back games that keeps the TV audience watching

Just looking back through the attendence history.

Throughout the late 80's and 90' a sun 80k attendance was standard.

Even the memorable saints bradford clashes at the start of superleague were 75-78k, for the last fixtures at the old stadium.


It only really crept over the 80k+ figure on the return to Wembley and I wonder how many of those years included the club Wembley seats.

If it hits over 70k it will be a good attendance.

Late 80’s early 90’s Wembley went fully all seated which was phased in over 3-4 years capacity reduced to just under 80k up untill rebuild so most finals up to around 98-99 where just about sell outs. Sheffield Wigan was probably first poor attended final as it was perceived as a walk over for Wigan.

So we play the CC final on August BH weekend. Is this through choice by the clubs & RFL ;a quirk of fate ; or has it been foisted on us because no other sport is interested in this weekend & the BBC has nothing else planned ?

Well I've just got on the train so here goes absolutely nothing.