Ladbrokes Challenge Cup Round 4 preview: Dewsbury Rams v Newcastle Thunder

For Dewsbury Rams the Cup tie against Newcastle Thunder will be their third game in a week.

They bounced back from a defeat at Halifax to record a 31-18 win at Workington on Wednesday. 

“It’s going to be a hard week and a real test for us,” coach Glenn Morrison said.

“They are an extremely good and strong side. We played them in a pre-season friendly and I sent our second team and they dealt with them pretty easily. Stan (Stanley Gene) has them playing a good game, we can’t afford to take them lightly.

“Being an Aussie, when you think of English rugby, you think of the Challenge Cup, you want lower league teams playing the top teams, that’s the magic of it.

Newcastle coach Stanley Gene believes that the Challenge Cup provides the perfect opportunity for his Kingstone Press League 1 side to pit themselves against the best in the sport.

“I was very pleased with our performance against York on Sunday, they are a class team with some former Super League players so I thought we did really well,” said Gene.

“We are a different team to last season and I believe we are capable of progressing in this competition, it would mean a lot to us to get through to the next round.

“The Challenge Cup is a chance for all teams of all different levels to have a crack. It is a competition that means a lot to me and I know that it would mean a lot to the club to progress.

“Dewsbury have class all over the park, it is going to be a huge challenge for us but it’s the Challenge Cup and anything can happen.”