WAKEFIELD will renew their acquaintance with Featherstone on Good Friday – and they hope to show they’ve learned the lessons from their shock Challenge Cup defeat.
The neighbours met competitively for the first time in more than 25 years earlier this month, with hosts Rovers winning in a mud bath via a golden-point extra-time try.
They don’t have to wait quite as long for the next meeting, as the rivals do it all again at the Millennium Stadium in one of six Championship matches on Good Friday.
Trinity coach Daryl Powell says the cup-tie served as a good warning to the big-spending Championship favourites.
“The Featherstone game showed that if you are off in any way, you’re going to get beaten. You can’t afford it,” he told League Express.
“Most of the Championship clubs are littered with players who have been in Super League. Some have played right at the top level. There are talented players.
“Barrow showed the other week (in an 1895 Cup quarter-final) that (teams) will take the odds to it.
“They’ll play expansive, expressive football, and do stuff that teams probably wouldn’t normally do, so you see things that are a little out of the ordinary and you have to deal with them.
“It’s those sorts of lessons we’re learning pretty quickly in this competition.
“Then we played Featherstone on the worst pitch I’ve seen since I played. I felt they were really good on the day. They were more motivated than us and they deserved to win the game.
“They’ve got good players. Gadwin Springer was outstanding – I’ve coached him in the past (at Castleford) – he got after our players with and without the ball and he got too much out of us. (Thomas) Lacans controlled the game.
“The biggest lesson you can get for playing in poor conditions is when and how you kick the ball. We decided not to kick the ball in the first half and we just invited pressure on ourselves.
“There were quite a few (lessons) in that game but ultimately if you’re not at your best you’ve a chance of getting beaten, so be at your best. Don’t under-prepare mentally against any team in this competition.
“The challenge for us is that being full-time and being one of the best teams in the comp, you can’t expect that that’s going to do the job for you. You have to do the job yourself.
“You have to prepare. You have to respect the game, otherwise you’re asking for trouble.”
The Featherstone-Wakefield game (kick-off 6pm) is one of three all-West Yorkshire clashes on Good Friday, with Dewsbury hosting Batley (5pm) and Bradford welcoming Halifax (7.30pm).
Earlier, Widnes coach Allan Coleman takes on his former side Swinton (2pm), Whitehaven host Barrow for Cumbrian bragging rights and Doncaster meet Sheffield in the league for the first time since 2015 (both 3pm).
York and Toulouse complete the second round of Championship fixtures on Easter Sunday (3pm).
