The threat to the Bulls' Challenge Cup final clash with rivals Leeds Rhinos will not affect coach Matthew Elliott's preparations.

Chief executive Abi Ekoku, who played under the Bulls supremo in the 1997 Wembley loss to St Helens, knows better than most how he will react to news that heavy flooding last night left the Murrayfield pitch under three feet of water.

An emergency services operation to drain the pitch and restore power to the stadium was launched this morning amid rumours that the game would have to be postponed but Ekoku is certain Elliott will have no problem keeping his players focused.

"Matt will be fine. This won't bother him in the slightest," he said.

"As far as he and the players are concerned this match will go ahead so his preparation will continue as normal. Matt's a professional and he trains to cope with all contingencies so this shouldn't affect him.

"He's a cool man in a crisis. He's only a young coach but he's already extremely experienced and very successful. You only get that through being meticulous in your preparation.

"The conditions affect both teams in exactly the same way and you just have to get out there and play. Matt won't even need to say anything to the players as far as this is concerned because they will respond.

"I think we have played some of the most expansive rugby in the competition this year but we are equipped to play in any conditions so we should be fine."

The decision to take the prestigious final to Edinburgh was a somewhat controversial one but rugby league has had designs on Scotland for more than a decade.

Hearts have hosted Super League matches for the last two seasons and Tynecastle and Partick's Firhill Stadium will be the venues for Scotland's group matches in the Lincoln World Cup later this year.

Hearts and Hibernian have in the past expressed an interest in forming a Super League team and there was talk of a £4million offer from a Glasgow consortium linked to opera impresario Athol Still and the now defunct Australian club Hunter Mariners.

The apparent contraction of Super League, highlighted by the move of Gateshead Thunder down the East Coast to Hull, appears to hold out little prospect for a new franchise from outside the game's heartland but the Murrayfield Cup final could change all that.

League officials estimate that around 10,000 of the 67,500 tickets for Saturday's showpiece occasion were sold north of the border, figures that could yet persuade the game's hierarchy to take the final back to Edinburgh before it finally returns to the new-look Wembley.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.