The Ladbrokes Rugby League Challenge Cup seems to have nearly as many stages as the Tour de France nowadays. Football’s League Cup has been sanitised to favour Premier League teams and the FA Cup is in danger of going down the same route. I fear that the Challenge Cup is also following a trend that feels that top players need protecting from playing too many matches by ensuring those on the bottom rung of the ladder have to battle their way through five matches just to get a chance to compete.
The draw for the sixth round of the Challenge Cup has been made and it is only now that we see the names of the top Super League clubs in that hat. I know purists who hate the format nowadays. Is not the attraction of sudden-death rugby that lower league and semi-professional clubs get their chance to upset the aristocrats of the game? The seeding system means that hardly any clubs from League 1 and below will get an opportunity to play at a Super League ground. Poor old Whitehaven, for example, have struggled through several rounds and now have to undertake a trip to France to play the Catalan Dragons. I suspect there won’t be many Whitehaven fans with the spare cash to fund a round trip of more than 2000 miles!
2018 Ladbrokes Challenge Cup Sixth Round Draw
Hull Kingston Rovers v Wigan Warriors
Castleford Tigers v St Helens
Toronto Wolfpack v Warrington Wolves*
Leigh Centurions v Salford Red Devils
Featherstone Rovers v Hull FC
Catalans Dragons v Whitehaven RLFC
Widnes Vikings v Leeds Rhinos
Huddersfield Giants v Wakefield Trinity
Warrington Wolves were drawn away to Canada’s Toronto Wolfpack but the fixture has been switched to the Halliwell Jones Stadium and the Wolves are only 13/2 with Sportingbet to lift the trophy at Wembley. Warrington won the Challenge Cup three times between 2009 and 2012 and were beaten finalists in 2016.
Hull FC have been the most successful club of recent times and are only a best 6/1 to record a third straight win in the competition. The Airlie Birds are away to Championship side Featherstone Rovers in the sixth round but that shouldn’t present too many problems for Lee Radford’s team, who would then be just two matches away from another visit to Wembley.
Last year’s beaten finalists Wigan Warriors are the general 9/2 favourites to win a record 20th Challenge Cup but the Cherry and Whites will not have an easy time of it against Hull FC’s city rivals Hull KR, who are formidable opposition at Craven Park. That said, Rovers have only won the Challenge Cup once in their history, though have been beaten finalists six times. The Robins are 100/1 to win the tournament this year with one leading bookmaker. St Helens, 12-times winners, are a best 11/2 but could unstuck in round six against Castleford Tigers at The Jungle.
Challenge Cup Current Best Odds
Wigan Warriors 9/2, St Helens 11/2, Hull Fc and Leeds Rhinos 6/1, Castleford Tigers and Warrington Wolves 13/2, Wakefield Trinity 16/1, Huddersfield Giants 33/1, Salford City Reds 40/1, Catalan Dragons 50/1, Widnes Vikings 66/1, Hull KR and Leigh Centurions 100/1, Featherstone Rovers 150/1, Toronto Wolfpack 250/1, Whitehaven 1000/1 (odds correct at 10.30am April 25)
