Sourcing caveat: Score arithmetic for both teams doesn't perfectly reconcile against sourced try/goal counts — likely an unconfirmed drop goal or a scorer-count discrepancy in secondary sourcing; try minutes are also unconfirmed. Lineups added from Rugby League Project's match-page team sheets; a targeted re-fetch of Castleford's bench confirmed the page literally lists interchange Lee Jewitt as squad number 8, duplicating starting prop Andy Lynch's number — recorded as printed rather than silently corrected, since a genuine numbering error/reissue on the source page cannot be ruled out.
Lee Jewitt (UNCONFIRMED number — page duplicates Lynch's 8)
8
Brian McDermott
Coach
Daryl Powell
Match officials
Referee
Phil Bentham
Lance Todd Trophy
Ryan Hall (Leeds Rhinos)
Match report
Leeds Rhinos won their first Challenge Cup in 15 years, beating Castleford Tigers 23-10 in the 113th final. A Ryan Hall double, plus tries from Tom Briscoe and Danny McGuire, underpinned the Rhinos' win, with captain Kevin Sinfield again central to the team's composure under pressure. Castleford, appearing in their first Super League-era final after eliminating Wigan Warriors and Widnes Vikings en route, scored through Daryl Clark and Oliver Holmes but could not sustain a comeback against a battle-hardened Leeds side that had already beaten eventual Super League champions St Helens on their own run to Wembley. Ryan Hall's two-try, high-impact display earned him the Lance Todd Trophy. The win was a significant milestone in Leeds' era of dominance, restoring the Cup to Headingley for the first time since 1999. Since Super League's 1996 launch, the Challenge Cup has continued to sit alongside the league championship as one of English rugby league's two most prestigious domestic honours, with the final remaining a fixture at Wembley Stadium (barring occasional relocations) and continuing to draw some of the largest single-match crowds anywhere in the sport. Since 1946/47, the competition's individual award, the Lance Todd Trophy, has been presented to the final's outstanding player, voted for by a panel of media representatives at the final whistle — on several notable occasions the trophy has gone to a player on the losing side, an unusual honour that reflects the award's focus on individual performance rather than simply reflecting the final scoreline. This was the 113th Challenge Cup final played, and, under the name “Leeds Rhinos,” the 2nd Challenge Cup title for the club.
Early rounds feature amateur and community clubs alongside professional ones; team names are linked only where this site has a team page for that exact club, matching the same safety-first approach used for the Final's own results table.
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