Westenra, who boasts the fastest selling debut album from a classical artist, will lead the crowd with her rendition of the traditional cup final anthem ‘Abide With Me’ before performing the national anthem ‘God Save the Queen’.
QUEENSBURY-based Black Dyke Band and The ACM Gospel Choir will perform two sets before the game begins.
The Bradford-area Black Dyke Band are the most successful contesting band on the planet having won the European Championships 11 times, the British Open no fewer than 29 times and the National Championships of Great Britain 21 times.
FEW fans are going to greater lengths to attend the 2009 Carnegie Challenge Cup Final between Huddersfield Giants and Warrington Wolves than Gavin Thomason.
While his friends and family prepare to head down the M6 for the showdown on Saturday, Gavin will be en route on the first leg of a 7,000-mile round trip to Wembley.
A lifelong Warrington supporter Gavin, 29, will don his primrose and blue jersey at 10,000 feet above the Atlantic before the plane begins its descent for Heathrow Airport on the 3,500-mile journey from Bermuda.
A NATIONAL cup competition had always been the aim of the club who eventually formed the Northern Union, but the rugby union authorities refused to sanction a nationwide tournament, fearing that this would lead to professionalism.
After the schism of 1895, rubber stamped in the George Hotel, Huddersfield, the northern clubs were free to go-ahead and instigated the Northern Rugby Football Union Challenge Cup.
In 1896 Fattorini's of Bradford were commissioned to manufacture the Challenge Cup trophy at a cost of just £60. Fattorini's also supplied three-guineas winners' medals then valued at thirty shillings.
