[uEntertainment rating... [/u
Wigan V Hull CC Final in 2013 = Absolutely dire.
Wigan V Hull CC Final in 1985 = Very Entertaining!

[uQuality rating...[/u
Wigan V Hull CC Final in 2013 = Dreadful.
Wigan V Hull CC Final in 1985 = Superlative!

[uLance Todd Trophy Winner...[/u
Wigan V Hull CC Final in 2013 = Erm..... whatever.
Wigan V Hull CC Final in 1985 = Brett Kenny!

30 years ago we had one showpiece event at a major ground. This year we have fixtures at Man City x 1, Man Utd x 2, Wembley x 2, Millennium Stadium x 1.

We can't stop fans picking and choosing which big game they want to attend.

I'm not sure what your point is...

Absolutely typical of RL fans. No one does moaning as well....

Now is it me or does this not add up



8 months old in 1986+ going to CC final for 20 years= 2006

2013-10 years not going to CC final= 2006... no I get 2003

Agreed.

Beats turd-polishing instead though.

Yes but the 70s and the 80s were really poor times for rugby league - so william will tell you, its suits his argument to be selective!!!

You are correct, I stopped going on the trip in 2003 but went one off in 2006. Remembered half way through writing that but forgot to amend the second figure!

A suggestion? Both Wigan and Hull are normally among the larger contributors of neutral fans when they are not playing in the final. When we are the contenders, the other teams don't fill the gaps as well. I certainly couldn't criticise either club for numbers today, great turn out from both.

Only 79,000? Wow, that's like, got to be the lowest attendance in Challenge Cup history, surely? Shame on all those fans who watched it on telly red seat spotting eh?

When I was a kid in the 1980/90s going to Wembley was like this 'new exciting world' . I rarely went to other parts of the country (or abroad) and I would imagine it would been a ritual for thousands of RL fans from the north. There was no London team in the top division then, no trips to the South of France and no Grand Final. The Challenge Cup was the only chance for a 'big day out'.

This year I have been to London 15 times, France x2 Edinburgh x 2, Denmark, Sweden, USA, Italy, Dubai, Hong Kong.... (blah, blah) you get the picture.

The Challenge Cup final does not mean the same to kids growing up as it did in my generation. It is important yes, but we live very different lives now. We also have World Cup games at OT, Wembley, Cardiff etc, as well as the GF It is a much harder sell to an audience that is all to quick to pour scorn on RL (while professing to love it at the same time).

Look we all know the attendances are selective. Anyone want to check en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Challenge_Cup The average attendance for the final is 58733.90 So that 33% above the average for the final. If you take the average from when it moved to Wembley. The that is 70745.66. So for a Wembley final it's 10% above average. Like I said we can all pick our stats. If you take the average for a final in the years of SL. That comes in at 74141.56 So today's final is 5% up for the challenge cup in the super league years. Basically on any reasonable measure over a period of time, rather than picking exceptional one off years. Today's attendance was a good attendance. For those who follow the stock market do not go to William Eve for your figures as picking out one year to compare with another, gives you no guidance at all. You should look over a 10 year or further time frame.

Look we all know the attendances are selective. Anyone want to check en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Challenge_Cup The average attendance for the final is 58733.90 So that 33% above the average for the final. If you take the average from when it moved to Wembley. The that is 70745.66. So for a Wembley final it's 10% above average. Like I said we can all pick our stats. If you take the average for a final in the years of SL. That comes in at 74141.56 So today's final is 5% up for the challenge cup in the super league years. Basically on any reasonable measure over a period of time, rather than picking exceptional one off years. Today's attendance was a good attendance. For those who follow the stock market do not go to William Eve for your figures as picking out one year to compare with another, gives you no guidance at all. You should look over a 10 year or further time frame.

Embarrassingly awful game and questionable attendance being defended by the current generation of Super League-era turd polishers.

No surprises there.

I see you leap to personal attacks when your numbers are put under greater scrutiny.

Does anyone seriously believe there were over 78,000 in attendance at Wembley today?

Seriously?

I'm surprised that you didn't count the empty seats and do the maths

Will the club wembey seats be counted if they shown up or not?

The Wembley "Ring of Indifference" wasn't the main problem today. It was the huge swathes of empty seats elsewhere that were the problem. Many of those must have been counted too!

78,000+ in attendance? Yeah, right

Spot on. The world has changed.

William has liked to compare 1985 to this year, so here it is:

1984/85 Premiership Trophy Final - 15,518
84/85 Lancashire Cup Final - 26,074
84/85 Yorkshire Cup Final - 25,237
84/85 John Player Trophy Final - 25,326
84/85 Challenge Cup Final - 97,801

Total - 189,956

2013 World Club Challenge - 20,400
2013 Magic Weekend - 30,793 & 31,249
2013 Challenge Cup Final - 78,137
2013 Grand Final - ? but assume its roughly similar to last season, say 70,000

Total - 230,579

So an extra 40,000 people attending big RFL club events this year than in 1984/85.

The average attendance for Division 1 in 1984/85 was 4,751 compared to even Williams calculation of the current 2013 average of 8,500.
The club with the highest average attendance in 1984/85 was Wigan with 10,784, compared to Leeds currently with 15,165.
The club with the lowest average attendance in 1984/85 was Workington with 907, compared to London currently with 2,213.

[uTranslation[/u:
1984/85 season = 191,956/5 games = 38,391 average
2013 season = 230,579/10 games = 23,058 average
% decrease = -39.94%

Let's make it simple
1984/85 - three major finals attendances (99,801,15,518, 25,326) total 140,645 average 46,881

2013 - three major events WCC, CC & GF (20,400, 78,137, 70,000) total 168,537 average 56,179

Increase in average for 2013 19.8%!!

Those pre SL days were so great, you can make the stats say anything if you are as selective as you. The 99,801 will have also been a made up number - I see you omitted to discuss the general attendances, does that not suit your argument? Maybe it was just RL was in a decline in the 1980's is that it?

That's very poor William, it really is. You'd find a lot more sympathy to your core argument if you didn't do this sort of silliness.
I, and I'm sure many people, agree with you on several areas, especially the Internationals, but its when you try this stuff that you lose support. Your attendances thread is a great example.

The Rugby league world is so upset about Wigan winning their 19th Challenge Cup that they have resorted to doing stats like our very own Phil Clarke.

So you weren't comparing total attendances at 10 fixtures in 2013 with total attendances at 5 fixtures in 1985?

Still ignoring the league attendances I see - why is that I wonder?