1 week Ago
BRADFORD Bulls have been drawn away to the Batley Bulldogs in the last-16 of the 1895 Cup. The Odsal outfit have struggled at Mount Pleasant down the years, notably losing a play-off quarter-final there in 2021, while they slid to a poor defeat there in the league last year. Bulls romped to a 42-6 win there in 2023 on the way to finishing third in the Betfred Championship, so will look to channel memories of that day again.
Brian Noble’s side will make the short journey over to Batley on the weekend of March 1/2 for that tie. If Bulls win that to get into the last-eight, and make it to the Betfred Challenge Cup quarter-final too, those two games are set to clash, with the dates for both on the first weekend of April. Bradford are hopeful of moving their 1895 quarter-final to their Championship bye weekend of April 12/13, rather than to a midweek, but that would depend on whether their opponent had a league game on that date too.
Keighley Cougars already knew they would be hosting Midlands Hurricanes or Whitehaven in the last-32 of the 1895 Cup on the weekend of February 15/16, but they face a tough ask if they can get through that tie. They have been drawn away to Featherstone Rovers in the last-16, having last faced the Flatcappers in last year’s Challenge Cup fourth round, where they fell to a heavy 58-14 defeat. FULL AB SUNDECKS 1895 CUP LAST-16 DRAW: Batley v Bradford Sheffield v Doncaster Hunslet v Widnes London v Workington/Dewsbury York v Halifax Goole/Newcastle/North Wales v Barrow Featherstone v Keighley/Midlands/Whitehaven Oldham v Rochdale/Cornwall/Swinton Leigh Leopards chairman Derek Beaumont conducted the draw, alongside his wife Laura, with the pair of them heading up competition sponsors AB Sundecks.
It formed part of the RFL’s Championship and League 1 season launch, which took place at Oldham’s Boundary Park. The ground will host Championship rugby league this season, after Oldham won the League 1 title last season..
