2025 AB Sundecks 1895 Cup

A revamped 1895 Cup gets underway in early February.

22 clubs from the Championship and League 1 competitions will be taking part, with the best two clubs to face off at Wembley on Challenge Cup Final day on Saturday 7 June.

In a change from the 2024 format, League 1 clubs will kick the tournament off over two preliminary rounds, with the best four of those clubs joining 12 Championship clubs (like the Challenge Cup, Toulouse has opted out) in the first Round proper.

The eight winners from the first round will then take part in the Quarter Finals, those winners then proceeding to the Semi Finals before the best two meet at Wembley in June.

Fixtures

Preliminary Round 1

Saturday 1 February

Rochdale Horneets 64 (T. Ashton 4, M. Flanagan 3, L. Juma 3, G. McNally, D. Meadows tries; M. Flanagan 8 goals) defeated Cornwall RLFC 12 (H. Aaronson, C. Abbott tries; A. Rusling 2 goals) at Mayfield Sports Centre, Rochdale.
Kickoff: 3:00 PM. Halftime: Rochdale 32-0. Penalties: Rochdale 13-1. Referee: Luke Bland.
Rochdale: McNally, Juma, Flanagan, Ashton, Nixon; Hollidge, Else; Brannan, O'Donnell, Nelmes, Meadows, Straugheir, Whittel. Int: Burton, Dayes, Baker, Taira.
Cornwall: Llewellyn, Symons, Trerise, Aaronson, Abbott; Conroy, Rusling; Rhodes, Lloyd, Boots, Weetman, Simpson, Jenkins. Int: Leney, McConnell, Simpson, Cummings.

Sunday 2 February

Midlands 52 (T. Corion 2, M. Hanley 2, R. Oakes 2, T. Horner, J. Sweeting, T. Wilkinson tries; J. Sweeting 8 goals) defeated Whitehaven 24 (B. Brennan, M. Lewthwaite, E. Nixon, J. Weatherill tries; J. Weatherill 3, K. Tyrer goals) at Alexander Stadium, Birmingham.
Kickoff: 2:00 PM. Halftime: Midlands 28-6. Penalties: 3-all. Referee: Adam Williams.
Midlands: Horner, Hanley, Johnson, Oakes, Corion; Sweeting, Medforth; Morris, Roden, Bowring, Wilkinson, Willis, Wood. Int: Barcoe, Moran, Silk, Kenga.
Whitehaven: Bickerdike, Burns, Egan, Todd, Weatherill; Tyrer, Newbegin; Brennan, Collins, Garner, Lewthwaite, Nixon, Kellett. Int: Blinkhorn, Chambers, Farren, Turnbull.

North Wales 60 (J. Gibson 2, J. Holmes 2, S. Wilde 2, J. Baldwin, O. Brookes, J. Eaves, M. Reid, L. Roby, J. Spedding tries; J. Gibson 3, L. Roby 3 goals) defeated Newcastle 0 at Crow Trees, Newcastle.
Kickoff: 3:00 PM. Halftime: North Wales 30-0. Penalties: North Wales 7-3. Referee: Andy Sweet.
Newcastle: Donaghy, Bradley, Hansen, Rennison, Dickinson; Yeomans, Shaw; Skelton, Lintin, Stoker, Taylor, Birch, Price. Int: Rolls, Handy, Parker, Bate.
North Wales: Roby, Holmes, Reid, Spedding, Brookes; Hughes, Gibson; Houghton, Baldwin, Cooper, Ellis, Wilde, Jones. Int: Eaves, Oakley, Davies, Barratt..

Preliminary Round 2

Sunday 16 February

Goole Vikings 26 (J. Shaul 3, J. Guzdek, T. Halliday tries; R. Dean 3 goals) defeated North Wales Crusaders 18 (P. Ah Van, J. Eaves, S. Wilde tries; J. Gibson 3 goals) at Victoria Pleasure Grounds, Goole.
Kickoff: 3:00 PM. Halftime: Goole 12-10. Penalties: North Wales 5-4. Referee: Luke Bland. Crowd: 526.
Goole: Shaul, Halliday, Guzdek, Shaw, Wacokecoke; Harman, Dean; Coventry, Ellis, Tennison, Ferres, Minns, Craig. Int: Holdstock, Ogunwole, Rutland, Wright.
North Wales: Roby, Ah Van, Taylor, Reid, Brookes; Hughes, Gibson; Cooper, Eaves, Houghton, Oakley, Wilde, Davies. Int: Evans, Barratt, Costello, Holmes.

Keighley Cougars 7 (B. Holroyd try; I. Farrell goal; I. Farrell field goal) defeated Midlands Hurricanes 6 (C. Cullimore try; S. Medforth goal) at Cougar Park, Keighley.
Kickoff: 3:00 PM. Halftime: Keighley 4-0. Penalties: Keighley 8-5. Referee: Adam Williams. 
Keighley: Pickersgill, Walkley, Smith, Sa'u, Holroyd; Farrell, Sammut; McKler, Flanagan, Hatton, Ryder, Lanskey, Parker. Int: Bowes, Schofield, Aliyu, Hartley.
Midlands: Chrimes, Hartley, Johnson, Oakes, Wilkinson; Medforth, McLelland; Kenga, Newboult, Morris, Wilkinson, Willis, Hobson. Int: Sweeting, Cullimore, Green, Moran.

Rochdale Hornets 18 (L. Nelmes, D. Straugheir, B. Will tries; M. Flanagan 3 goals) defeated Swinton Lions 16 (D. Abram, E. Anderson, A. Lynch tries; D. Abram 2 goals) at Crown Oil Arena, Rochdale.
Kickoff: 3:00 PM. Halftime: Swinton 10-6. Penalties: Rochdale 12-8. Referee: Aaryn Belafonte. 
Rochdale: McNally, Will, Ashton, Dalton-Harrop, Forber; Flanagan, Else; Killan, Burton, Nelmes, Meadows, Straugheir, Whittel. Int: Punchard, Andrade, Dayes, Brannan.
Swinton: Roberts, Anderson, Higham, Lynch, Sergent; Briers, Abram; Sidlow, Hartill, Walker, Rodden, Cox, Beardsworth. Int: Roby, Lynch, Trent-Duffy, Shingler.

Dewsbury Rams 18 (D. Coates, L. Collinson, J. Field tries; J. Hookem 3 goals) defeated Workington Town 10 (J. Carter, W. Evans tries; J. Carter goal) at Fibrus Community Stadium, Workington.
Kickoff: 3:00 PM. Halftime: Dewsbury 12-0. Penalties: Dewsbury 5-4. Referee: Tara Jones. 
Workington: Walker-Taylor, Eccleston, Fulton, Evans, Helleur-atiga; Carter, Walker; Farrer, Phillips, Scholey, Howlett, Barnes, Archer. Int: Lupton, Bradley, Ainley, Reid.
Dewsbury: McShane, Brierley, Jordan, Senior, Delaney; Coates, Hookem; Boardman, McShane, Tomlinson, Tomlinson, Summers, Collinson. Int: Day, Field, Briggs, Ferguson.

Round 1

Saturday 1 March

London 26 (A. Walker 2, L. Bienek, L. Polselli, M. Stock tries; C. Hellec 3 goals) defeated Dewsbury 16 (T. Brierley, L. Copland, G. Senior tries; J. Hookem 2 goals) at New River Stadium.
Kickoff: 3:00 PM. Halftime: London 26-0. Penalties: Dewsbury 4-3. Referee: Aaryn Belafonte.
London: Walker, Thewlis, Hellec, Small, Tindall; Polselli, O'Beirne; McDermott, Davies, Bienek, Lovell, Mason, Stock. Int: Worthington, Adebiyi, Ryan, Kerr.
Dewsbury: Walker, Brierley, Jordan, Senior, Copland; Coates, Hookem; Field, McShane, Tomlinson, Tomlinson, Summers, Collinson. Int: Shaw, Walker, Everett, Boardman.

Sunday 2 March

Bradford 16 (M. Souter 2, M. Gee tries; J. Meadows 2 goals) defeated Batley 12 (D. Manning, J. Render tries; J. Woods 2 goals) at Fox's Biscuits Stadium.
Kickoff: 2:00 PM. Halftime: Bradford 10-2. Penalties: Batley 10-7. Referee: Scott Mikalauskas. 
Batley: Rourke, Kear, Greensmith, Burton, Render; White, Woods; Flynn, Leak, Brown (C), Arundel, Manning, Moore. Int: Smith, Parsons, Ward, Blake.
Bradford: Holmes, Armitage, Gill, Blake, Okunbor; Keyes, Meadows; Lawrence (C), Souter, Scurr, Gee, Fulton, Donaldson. Int: Lilley, Bayliss-Brow, Pele, Michael.

Featherstone 52 (C. Aekins 3, J. Hatton 2, W. Jubb, D. Olpherts, C. Webb, J. Williams tries; C. Turner 8 goals) defeated Keighley 12 (I. Farrell, B. Holroyd tries; J. Miller 2 goals) at Millennium Stadium.
Kickoff: 2:00 PM. Halftime: Featherstone 36-12. Penalties: 5-all. Referee: Marcus Griffiths. 
Featherstone: Aekins, Olpherts, O'Connor, Hatton, Gale; Turner, Addy (C); Beckett, Jubb, Stevens, Day, Akauola, Webb. Int: Jones, Hardcastle, Williams, Vuniyayawa.
Keighley: Pickersgill, Walkley, Smith, Sa'u (C), Holroyd; Farrell, Miller; Schofield, Flanagan, Parker, Bentley, Whitehead, Green. Int: Whitford, Aliyu, McKler, Hartley, Dean.

Barrow 34 (C. Teare 2, A. Bulman, T. Ritson, K. Rothwell tries; B. Walker 7 goals) defeated Goole 16 (B. Dent, J. Guzdek, M. Wacokecoke tries; R. Dean 2 goals) at Victoria Pleasure Grounds.
Kickoff: 3:00 PM. Halftime: Barrow 14-6. Penalties: Barrow 12-7. Referee: Cameron Worsley. 
Goole: Shaw, Hodder, Guzdek, Wacokecoke, Tchamambe; Harman, Dean; Coventry, Ellis, Tennison, Dawson, Taulapapa, Craig. Int: Dent, Ellis, Ogunwole, Wallace.
Barrow: Cresswell, Bulman, Broadbent, Teare, Ritson; Walker, Johnston; Walker, Smith, Brown, Greenwood, Robson, King. Int: Bishop, Toal, Pye, Rothwell.

Widnes 28 (M. Roberts 2, M. Fleming, M. Fozard, R. Williams tries; T. Gilmore 4 goals) defeated Hunslet 26 (L. Hanneghan 3, N. Booth, M. Turner tries; M. Beharrell 3 goals) at South Leeds Stadium.
Kickoff: 3:00 PM. Halftime: Hunslet 20-12. Penalties: 2-all. Referee: Denton Arnold. Crowd: 562.
Hunslet: Jowitt, Turner, Booth, Eden, Scurr; Hanneghan, Beharrell (C); Campbell, Whitmore, Larroyer, Welham, Levy, Fishwick. Int: Hallas, Syme, O'Hanlon, Deakin.
Widnes: Hodkinson, Williams, Fleming, Roberts, Butt; Patton, Gilmore; Murray, Fozard, Reilly, Lloyd (C), Langtree, Lannon. Int: Lyons, Gregson, Bennion, Wood.

Oldham 58 (D. Craven 2, I. Thornley 2, T. Chapelhow, K. Dixon, O. Farnworth, P. Laulu-Togaga'e, P. Moran, J. Sambou tries; K. Dixon 9 goals) defeated Rochdale 6 (D. Nixon try; L. Hollidge goal) at Boundary Park.
Kickoff: 3:00 PM. Halftime: Oldham 16-6. Penalties: Oldham 7-6. Referee: James Vella. Crowd: 1,057.
Oldham: Laulu-Togaga'e, Johnson, Thornley, Sambou, Dixon; Craven, Dean; Dudson, Wildie, Baxter, Ashurst, Forster, Milner. Int: Moran, Hirst, Chapelhow, Farnworth.
Rochdale: McNally, Nixon, Juma, Will, Forber; Punchard, Hollidge; Brannan, Burton, Nelmes, Meadows, Straugheir (C), Whittel. Int: Dayes, Andrade, Killan, Taira.

Sheffield 50 (K. Welham 3, T. Gwaze 2, C. Aston, J. Glover, C. Johnson tries; C. Aston 9 goals) defeated Doncaster 18 (J. Bowden, H. Horne, P. Pauli tries; C. Robinson 3 goals) at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Stadium.
Kickoff: 3:00 PM. Halftime: Sheffield 20-12. Penalties: Sheffield 10-4. Referee: Matthew Lynn. Crowd: 648.
Sheffield: Walker, Jones-Bishop, Welham, Glover, Millar; Aston, Smith; Broadbent, Johnson, Dickinson, Bower, Foster, Gwaze. Int: Battye, Hodgson, Bussey, Peachey.
Doncaster: Gebbie, Horne, Lyne (C), Hey, Faraimo; Johnston, Robinson; Bowden, Burns, Matagi, Jones, Sutcliffe, Knowles. Int: Smeaton, McConnell, Pauli, Boas.

York 32 (K. Buchanan, S. Cook, J. Dee, L. Edwards, T. Pemberton, J. Potter tries; L. Harris 2, P. McShane 2 goals) defeated Halifax 20 (O. Dagnall, J. Hansen, L. Jouffret, J. Saltonstall tries; L. Jouffret 2 goals) at LNER Community Stadium.
Kickoff: 3:00 PM. Halftime: York 22-4. Penalties: Halifax 5-4. Referee: Ryan Cox. 
York: Potter, Buchanan, Field, Dee, Edwards; Hingano, Harris (C); Martin, McShane, Thompson, Reynolds, Bailey, Cook. Int: Santi, Pemberton, Teanby, Clark.
Halifax: Jouffret, Tibbs, Dagnall, Hurrell, Saltonstall; Whitby, Hansen; Dixon, Inman (C), Calcott, McComb, Graham, Tangata. Int: O'Brien, Hird, Fairbank, Restall.

Quarter Finals

Sunday 6 April

8 winners from Round 1, four matches
Drawn Sunday 2 March

Featherstone Rovers v London Broncos
Venue: Millennium Stadium. Kickoff 3:00PM

Bradford Bulls v Sheffield Eagles
Venue: Bartercard Odsal Stadium. Kickoff 3:00PM

York Knights v Widnes Vikings
Venue: LNER Community Stadium. Kickoff 3:00PM

Oldham v Barrow Raiders
Venue: Boundary Park. Kickoff 3:00PM

Semi Finals

May 17/18

4 winners from Quarter Finals, two matches

Final

Saturday 7 June

Semi Final winners
Venue: Wembley Stadium