Oh well we will get rid of years of heritage and a showpiece competition because you don't get it, which if you're an Aussie you won't.

CCup games have never been big crowd pullers until the Semi Finals.

The reason SL games are fuller is pretty obvious - season tickets. Also I'm assuming the kids still get in for free/cheap at away games if they have a season ticket.

Not rocket science is it.

Get in free.....but also get in free to Challenge Cup games until the Quarter Finals.

But not the mums and dads and there is the crunch - perhaps a discount for season ticket holders might attract a few.

Wigan had one....it didn't

To be honest the only way to tackle it positivly is for the RFL to set prices for each round and perhaps incorporate discounts into that for season ticket holders.

Paid £12 at Fax to watch Scorpions on Saturday and £15 at Wigan on Sunday for Crusaders which in truth was a bit much but worth it for that try at the end.

£10 all in for the round just gone, perhaps £15 (perhaps £12 season ticket holders) for the others pre-semi might not be a bad way to go.

I was at the grand national, couldn't believe it when I saw they were playing this match on the same day as the national and the FA cup semi
Idiotic decision.

It's not just RL / Challenge Cup that's suffering with this, the FA Cup attendances in the 3rd - 5th Rounds rounds have been much lower for the than they use to be too.

What surprses me though is that clubs don't just selectively close areas of the ground to ensure that the full sides are opposite the main camera positions, as showing empty terraces can't be beneficial to attacting sponsors/advertisers etc.

The Widnes fan that went to FA Cup Semi Final or The Grand National fair enough, the ones who boycotted are an embarrassment to our club. Did us no favours what so ever.

I was working so couldn't go.

all these numpties on about a Boycott - get real. Its not asif its only the last couple of weeks we've been bad. We've had hammerings from Hull KR, Salford and huddersfield and turned up in great numbers against London at home.

We've been getting hammered, its a saturday night, lots of people have plans on the weekend and it was on TV. Not to mention people at aintree, Wembley and other arrangements. We dont have a home game now until the 20th May against Catalans but mark my words, even if we get beat in every game running up to it we will turn out in numbers.

Although it was a great effort from our boys, nobody and I mean nobody in widnes expected us to get close. Combine this with a TV Tea time kick with £22 on the gate just after a hammering from Bradford crowds were always going to fall.

The same happened at Warrington away, in years gone by, we would fill that end no bother for a SL fixture. We'd been getting hammered and it was on TV which resulted in us not filling the stand. We need another good couple of performances to attract some of our crowd back but I'm sure 99% of our stronghold members will be at the Catalan game.

well said mate

Widnes are very poorly supported. It's as simple as that!

I remember their promotion play off in 2007 at Headingley and they barely turned out for a game as important as that for the club. On that day there wern't any other distractions taking place and hence no excuses to give. So no surprise about them not showing up for a cup game.

Grobs, that is a little harsh. Their support isn't poor imo.


£22? Was that really the price? Awful.

Rubbish and if look at the other cup games they where poor attendances.Wigan got 4000 and was not on tv,Grandnational or a Derby.By the third year in Superleague I bet the average attendances will be higher.Anyway not many teams in the Championship have high attendances.Only Wigan,Leeds,Hull,Warrington,Saints and Catalans have high attendances.Bradford got a lot of high attendances due to cheap tickets.Now look at them in debt.

You mean the game against Castleford? The one where they reached the final a week before we did, were allocated the whole of the south stand and we were given the terracing behind the sticks and filled it?

What did you expect ? For Widnes, anything other than the wooden spoon will represent a good first season back in the top flight.
As fans, we all want our team to do well, but the reality is down to pound notes and the ability to spend up to the cap (plus, at some clubs, spouse earnings etc)
Season 2 will be better and by season 3, you may have a truly competetive side.
Get real and get behind your team.

quite right

and the big advantage is you have a sugar daddy who will do his utmost to make it happen - think yourselves really lucky...