1) Navy set sail for Batley and history
It’s been a headline-grabbing run to the fourth round of the Challenge Cup for the Navy, who have overcome Bridgend Blue Bulls and York Acorn either side of an inter-Forces defeat of the Army to make this stage.
They have equalled the record for the best run by a Forces team, after the Army did the same in 2020 before bowing out to Rochdale Hornets.
The Navy now also travel to professional opposition and face Batley Bulldogs, no strangers to history in the sport and this competition; the first ever Challenge Cup winners, and the oldest ground in Rugby League at Mount Pleasant.
The odds will be stacked against them facing one of the Championship’s best outfits but if there is one great place for a slice of history if they could take the outright Forces record by reaching the fifth round, it would be there, in front of the BBC cameras too.
2) Where could the upsets come?
If the Navy cannot produce something special then maybe the last remaining community side in the competition, Hunslet Club Parkside, can cause a major shock and turn over Sheffield Eagles.
The NCL side have already knocked out one league outfit, securing an excellent victory on the road at London Skolars in the previous round, and also have home advantage, albeit playing at Hunslet’s South Leeds Stadium instead of their own ground.
Meanwhile, two League 1 sides will face Championship opposition, with Doncaster welcoming Whitehaven and Rochdale Hornets hosting a Barrow Raiders team who have started the season exceptionally with three wins from three.
Doncaster have had to grind out two wins over amateur sides and Rochdale, after beating Midlands, had to do likewise to account for Lock Lane. Both have home advantage but will the fact the second-tier sides are now nicely into their season mean they are the sharper and better-prepared?
3) Halves key to heavyweight clash
Perhaps the tie of the round is the final one as Leigh Centurions host high-flying Widnes Vikings, for whom it is the the biggest test yet of their Championship promotion credentials despite it not even being a Championship match.
That said, it will have such a feel to it with Premier Sports televising in their Monday night slot, and both clubs should get a strong backing at the Leigh Sports Village.
Both clubs have had comfortable wins on Premier in the last couple of weeks, Leigh against Bradford Bulls and then Widnes at Dewsbury Rams, and both are being led well this season by halfback pairings which will be key if playing in the cup.
The Centurions’ Joe Mellor brought out his box of kicking tricks at York last week and lines up with the ever-dangerous Ben Reynolds, while Joe Lyons was superb at Dewsbury and has the experienced Matty Smith alongside him returning to strong form this season.
4) Chance to rediscover old glories
Of the clubs currently in the Challenge Cup ahead of the entrance of Super League sides in round six, the two most recent finalists in the competition are Bradford Bulls (beating Leeds at Cardiff in 2003) and London Broncos (losing to the Rhinos at Wembley in 1999).
The two go head-to-head this weekend at the Broncos’ new Wimbledon home and while neither are likely to be playing at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in this year’s final, a cup run can always bring some cheer and a temporary glow of former glories.
Bradford know that all too well, having knocked out old adversaries Leeds on a memorable day at Odsal less than three years ago, and they’ll want to navigate the next couple of rounds and have a crack at one of the big boys.
They should see off London, who have started the season with four defeats from four after going part-time and appear to be in serious bother at the bottom of the Championship, not to mention a shell of the club of old.
5) Ambitious clubs can gain attention
York City Knights and Newcastle Thunder are two names often preceded by the adjective ‘ambitious’ in news articles, with fair reason after the latest changes at both in recent times.
York are now under new ownership, with Australian businessman Clint Goodchild taking control from Jon Flatman, while Newcastle are operating with a full-time squad for the first time this season.
With promotion looking unlikely for this year – the Knights rebuilding after a disastrous recruitment drive the previous year, and Thunder opting to develop a young group of players – the Challenge Cup appears the platform to show that ambition.
With the chance to enter the national conscience with a strong cup run and ties against the established giants of the game, both should want victory over the other on Sunday – live on The Sportsman – to be the start of good things.
Fixtures
Saturday 26 February
North Wales Crusaders v Hunslet, 2.30pm (at Paton Field, Caldy RUFC)
Sunday 27 February
Batley Bulldogs v Royal Navy, 1pm (live on BBC Sport)
Doncaster v Whitehaven, 2pm
Hunslet Club Parkside v Sheffield Eagles, 2pm (at South Leeds Stadium)
Workington Town v Dewsbury Rams, 2pm
Halifax Panthers v Featherstone Rovers, 3pm
London Broncos v Bradford Bulls, 3pm
Rochdale Hornets v Barrow Raiders, 3pm
York City Knights v Newcastle Thunder, 3pm (live on The Sportsman)
Monday 28 February
Leigh Centurions v Widnes Vikings, 7.45 (live on Premier Sports)
