Broadcast picks made for Challenge Cup Fourth Round with details of all eight ties locked in
The Challenge Cup trophy in situ at Hull FC's MKM Stadium ahead of a game in 2023 - Alamy
A clash of two Championship heavyweights in Bradford Bulls and Widnes Vikings heads up the broadcast picks for the Fourth Round of the Challenge Cup, with League 1 outfit Oldham’s trip to Swinton Lions also chosen to be shown live.
Between them, Bradford (five) and Widnes (seven) have lifted the Challenge Cup seven times, with each also runners-up in the competition on six occasions.
Over the weekend, the Bulls beat League 1 side North Wales Crusaders 48-2 at Odsal in Round 3, while the Vikings got the better of Championship new boys Doncaster, 50-16 winners on home soil at the DCBL Stadium.
The pair’s Round 4 clash will be shown live on BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport Online on Sunday, February 25. Coverage starts at 12.20pm, with kick-off scheduled for 10 minutes later.
Later in the day, ‘The Sportsman’ will then show Oldham‘s clash at Swinton with a 6pm kick-off scheduled.
It’ll also be a meeting of two former Challenge Cup winners at Heywood Road, with the Roughyeds and Lions each lifting the trophy three times in their history.
This year, Swinton comfortably beat community outfit West Hull in Round 3, with Oldham pulling off a shock as they knocked Championship outfit Barrow Raiders out away from home.
Sean Long’s side had to come from 10-4 down at the break in Cumbria, scoring 18 unanswered second half points to set up this trip to Swinton.
Broadcast picks made for Challenge Cup Fourth Round with details of all eight ties locked in
As well as the two ties selected for live broadcast, the other six clashes in Round 4 have also seen their respective details confirmed this afternoon, with a full run down below.
York Acorn v Wath Brow Hornets – Saturday, February 24 (2pm)
Halifax Panthers (Championship) v Hammersmith Hills Hoists (Southern Conference League) – Saturday, February 24 (5pm)
Bradford Bulls (Championship) v Widnes Vikings (Championship) – Sunday, February 25 (12.30pm – Live on BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport Online)
Batley Bulldogs (Championship) v Rochdale Hornets (League 1) – Sunday, February 25 (2pm)
Wakefield Trinity (Championship) v Hunslet ARLFC (National Conference League) – Sunday, February 25 (2pm)
Keighley Cougars (League 1) v Featherstone Rovers (Championship) – Sunday, February 25 (3pm)
York (Championship) v Sheffield Eagles (Championship) – Sunday, February 25 (3pm)
Swinton Lions (Championship) v Oldham (League 1) – Sunday, February 25 (6pm – Live on ‘The Sportsman’)
The winners of these eight ties will progress into Round 5, after which just four sides will remain. Those four will then be joined in Round 6 by the 12 Super League clubs.
In this afternoon’s press release confirming the latest broadcast picks, the RFL state that there has been a positive upturn in the Challenge Cup viewing figures so far this season.
The average BBC audience to this point is up 81% when compared to the numbers in 2023, while ‘The Sportsman’ have seen an increase of 22% on average from this time last year.