Yep, lets scrap a competition which gets 70,000+ attendees for the final, because Rugby League gets that all the time, just look at that huge crowd for England vs Aus at the weekend.

One thing RL desperately needs above all else is some way to keep it in the public eye, Sky TV doesn't really do much for that as it is mostly preaching to the converted, the Challenge Cup certainly does because like everything else shown on terrestrial, you are talking an audience in the millions rather in the hundreds of thousands.

Another thing is that the whole thing about TGG, that is, the family atmosphere, the wonderful behavior of the fans, the ability of the players to knock lumps off each other then shake hands and smile when the whistle blows, this is the sort of thing that we should want the country and the world to know about, we are proud of it but what's the use if it is just our secret, it's a rare chance for folks that know nothing much at all about our game, to see and experience, even if only on the telly. the publicity must be worth millions.

And the CC Final being on a Saturday afternoon broadcast to the nation does give the Final, and on the back of that the game itself, a push up in status.

And last of all the Final is without any doubt a tradition now, and keeping it in the protected list means that a rugby league event is viewed as being of national importance. Whereas knocking it off means it is no longer seen as anything much.

I reckon we ought to try to get the recommendation rejected. Only a decent amount of public opinion can do that and if there isn't any objection then it will probably just be rubberstamped despite the protests of the RFL on the basis that nobody gives a sh?t.

There are a couple of petitions been started against the decision and if you agree then it'll only take a minute to sign up:

[urlhttp://petitions.number10.gov.uk/RLChallengeCup/[/url

Bump.
Well said that man, everyone should sign this

Did you hurt your neck watching the whole point fly over your head?

How many of those people who attend the Challenge Cup final aren't already fans of the game? They will attend whether the final is on BBC, Sky, ESPN or wherever.

One of the arguments for keeping the Challenge Cup in a crowded fixture calendar is that it provides exposure to a national, free to air audience that the game doesn't otherwise have.

Take away that exposure, and the position of the competition weakens enormously IMO.

It really does.

Also IMHO (although I am not saying that the arguments for and against weren't complex) the RFL's decision to allow a switch of the Final from it's hallowed May spot to later in the year sent out the wrong signals about how importantly the RFL itself perceives the comp., and may have had a lot to do with the recommendation.

But still the day of the Final is our one true day of national TV exposure, and what a fantastic press it invariably gives us.

Even media that might want to, can't ignore a packed Wembley Stadium.