loiner81 is a very sensitive soul isn't he?

That's me.



To be fair, when I quoted him the smiley he'd used showed up as : mrgreen : so I just assumed that, like every other Wigan fan roaming the earth, he was referring back to those years when Wigan bought every player available to win 6000 Challenge Cups on the bounce, making fans of all other clubs supposedly jealous, and Wigan homeless & having to cheat the salary cap to avoid relegation...

If we want the Challenge Cup to get bigger crowds we need to look at including 1 home game on each season ticket. If your team doesn't get a home tie that year, you get the "value" deducted from the following years season ticket.
As it is, Wembley will be full and the cup will always be the biggest showcase we have on FTA TV......so no panic!

didnt clubs try that a few seasons ago? i know home fans got free entry at the fourth round, cant remember if away fans did too, a few of the lower tier teams complained about losing out on shared gate receipts too

if we are going to do that then they need to be compensated for that fixture imo

What about Home fans get in on their ST (casuals pay on the gate) and the away club keeps the revenue from the tickets they pre-sell to their fans? Then there's an incentive for both clubs to market the games, with the home side re-engaging lost fans and the away side boosting their coffers?
It's not a perfect solution, but it's better than letting challenge cup attendances plummet.

Every season ticket holder got the 1st cup game for free. However a certain Mr Hethrington spat his dummy out when Leeds were drawn at home to Saints iirc and virtually everyone got in for free.

So all the other clubs spinelessly went along with him and voted to get rid of it? These decisions are voted on by all the SL clubs! Hetherington is by far the most experienced and successful of them but surely half the clubs don't just slavishly follow him.

All it takes is one chairman to refuse free entry as part of the season ticket for it to be stopped.

Re OP, not for me it hasn't. Just landed after travelling from Oz for the magic of the cup. Only game in the world I'd travel that far for!

The Challenge Cup is 1/2 things to win during a long season, I've never understood why any team or fan would diminish it. I'd say I attend half of the season to travel but when it's a CC game, i'll make an extra effort! It's the cup!!

Bluddy glory hunter



Welcome home, it's going to be great.

One or two more days at home, tops. Wish I could be there. I hope your monster journey pays off JB.

Cheers redbeard, win or lose it will have been worth the 20,000 miles and god knows how much money!

Super 8's needs to start on zero points as well to make it interesting.

Then what would be the point of doing well in the early part of the season? Teams would just coast in to the 8 and then peak for the games that matter. Leeds finished the first part of the season 11 points higher than Hull, why should they get their points taken off them.

Same problem applies to the new system just as much as the old: teams in 6th, 7th and 8th won't upset the applecart whether the points are zeroed or not.

I wouldn't go that far could maybe do 1st start with 4pts, 2nd=3pts etc. so top 4 have a bit of an advantage but are still catchable or highest ranked teams going into the eights get home advantage so league leader has 7 home games & 8th get none.

God no. The current system is almost perfect as it is. The top 8 is designed to find the elite, not allow mediocrity through first phase of the season. If hull cats wire feel they've too much ground to make up they should have thought about it in February!

The middle 8's gives you the kind of do or die, every minute matters drama that you want, leave the top 8 to remain as the way of finding the best team over the whole of the season

Another bit of brilliance from a Wigan fan.
What next, the Grand Final should be played at the DW?

He's a Hull KR supporter ...

.....and I don't think he'll appreciate flying all the way over from Australia to support his team only to be called a Wigan fan.

I'm sure he will be on soon to state his case

Or make the playoffs carry the slogan of every minute matters by having the playoffs start with 1 v 8 2 v 7 3 v 6 4 v 5.

Good detective work there. Maybe you could call it "brilliance"...?

My mistake, I've committed a serious sin!

Could swear a pie fan has the same avatar.