Despite previous statements putting the 1895 Cup Final at risk of not being played amid a fixture clash, Widnes Vikings have shared a statement to confirm that new arrangements have been made for their final game of the Championship season against Sheffield Eagles.
Widnes beat Rochdale in June to progress to the 1895 Cup Final, where they will meet London Broncos, but the game was placed into doubt amid fixture congestion.
The 1895 Cup Final will take place on August’s Bank Holiday Monday, on the 31st of the month, but the Vikings were set to face Sheffield Eagles in the final game of the Championship regular season on Sunday the 30th.
That was clearly an untenable situation and Widnes even threatened to pull out of the game, given the fact they had been unable to rearrange fixtures whilst London had.
Widnes Vikings chairman Stuart Murphy confirmed that when speaking on the Forge Podcast in late July, stating: “As it stands now, [London] will play on August 23, and they don’t have another game until they play us on the 31st, and then they will play the rearranged fixture the following week. They’ve got what, nine clear days, 10 clear days to do that.
“As it stands at the minute, we would play Workington on the 23rd, Sheffield on the 27th and the 1895 Cup Final on the 31st, and that is 100% not acceptable.”
Murphy also said: “If the league ends up more important to us, we won’t play the final. We’ve thrown it the other way, if the league, it ends up that you can’t change position in the league, then we’ll just field whatever strength side we need to for Sheffield to make sure that we’ve got a competitive squad for the 1895 Cup.”
Widnes have now confirmed that an agreement has been secured but that agreement will still see the Vikings play on the 23rd, 27th and 31st, as Murphy had feared.
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Widnes Vikings commit to 1895 Cup Final despite four-day turnaround
That still gives them just a three-day turnaround heading into the 1895 Cup Final, as a club statement announced: “Widnes Vikings can confirm our Round 26 game away at Sheffield Eagles will now take place on Thursday 27 August at 7:30pm.
“The game was set to take place on the August 30, but has been rescheduled due to the Vikings’ participation in the 1895 Cup Final.”
Importantly, chairman Stuart Murphy would go on to confirm that ‘dispensations’ has been agreed, with that potentially proving pivotal in the Vikings coming to this agreement.
Widnes also know that wins in their next two league games – away at Halifax and home to Workington – will move them to 34 points and with a points difference of potentially over 400, meaning that they would finish ahead of Barrow Raiders and be assured of a top six finish.
The Vikings are currently sixth, two points behind Barrow who have played two games more, but the lure of finishing inside the top four is a major boost in the current play-off system. Widnes may have to sacrifice that by playing a weakened team in this rearranged game against Sheffield, though chairman Stuart Murphy thanked all parties involved in reaching the agreement.
He said: “This has been a very complex situation to resolve, involving more than 10 meetings and ongoing monitoring of fixtures to reach this outcome.
“We have now managed to agree dispensations on the relevant items relating to the final between all of the clubs involved.
“We would like to place on record our thanks to Mark Hannigan of Sheffield Eagles and Gary Hetherington of London Broncos, along with Robert Hicks of the RFL and Rhodri Jones of RL Commercial, for the time and effort they have given throughout this process.
“Halton Borough Council have also been extremely accommodating, allowing us to make changes to training days and times where necessary, we are grateful for their support and flexibility throughout the process.
“We understand the frustration this has caused to our supporters, but we simply felt the need to stand our ground on these matters. Thank you for your patience.”
Our Betfred Championship Round 26 clash with Sheffield Eagles will now take place on the 27th August.
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— Widnes Vikings (@WidnesRL) August 13, 2026
