Championship play-offs: Oldham suffer shock loss as week two line-up locked in
Widnes Vikings head coach Allan Coleman arrives ahead of a game - Image credit: Widnes Vikings
London Broncos will play Doncaster in their opening Championship play-off fixture next week, after the Dons and Widnes both progressed through their first matches.
A complicated and complex ten-team Championship play-off system began this weekend, with two teams eliminated from the race to be crowned champions, ahead of the entry of the top two of the Broncos and Newcastle Thunder next week.
It means that there are eight teams left standing in the race after the opening week.
Two teams eliminated from Championship play-offs
Perhaps unsurprisingly, it is the teams that finished ninth and tenth who have been ruled out of the run-in from here on out after losing their games at the weekend.
Whitehaven were beaten 36-4 by Midlands Hurricanes while Batley Bulldogs narrow went down to Sheffield Eagles, with Craig Lingard’s side progressing to another eliminator next week alongside Haven.
They will travel to the losers of the two qualifier games from this weekend: Oldham and Barrow Raiders.
Oldham suffered a shock loss at home to Widnes Vikings to ensure they needed to use their second lifeline in the play-offs, with the Vikings progressing through to a qualifying final game next week.
And Barrow are also in the same position after being hammered 72-0 by the Dons in South Yorkshire.
London’s opponents confirmed
The Broncos know one win will see them straight through to the Grand Final, and they will host Doncaster in the capital next weekend after the Dons were victorious.
The losers of that game gets a second chance next week against one of the victorious eliminator teams, while Newcastle will host Widnes with the same outcome on the line for the Thunder and the Vikings.
It’s complex, but two teams have now gone and there are eight left in the running to be crowned Championship champions.
Championship play-off results: week one
- Qualifying semi-final: Oldham 24-30 Widnes Vikings
- Qualifying semi-final: Doncaster 72-0 Barrow Raiders
- Eliminator semi-final: Sheffield 25-18 Batley Bulldogs – Batley eliminated
- Eliminator semi-final: Midlands Hurricanes 36-4 Whitehaven – Whitehaven eliminated
Championship play-offs: week two
- Qualifying final: London Broncos v Doncaster
- Qualifying final: Newcastle Thunder v Widnes Vikings
- Eliminator final: Oldham v Midlands Hurricanes
- Eliminator final: Barrow Raiders v Sheffield Eagles
Losers of eliminator finals are eliminated.
