New date for Challenge final?

THE Rugby Football League are in talks to move the Challenge Cup final forward by two months. The sport’s showcase fixture attracted a crowd of just 50,672 at Wembley on Saturday as French side Catalans Dragons — led by Remi Casty (right) — made history by defeating Warrington 2014 to become the first non-English team to lift the famous trophy. Such a poor attendance, and growing fears that the fixture is being neglected, has sparked bosses into action. While it is too late to change the date for next year’s final, 2020 and beyond could see the fixture played in June, with talks in ‘the initial stages’. The presence of Perpignan-based Dragons in the final impacted on the gate, which was the lowest for a Wembley final since 1937. A venue change has been mooted but the RFL, who declined to comment, are keen to keep the fixture at Wembley, where an agreement is in place until 2027.