Draws made for 1895 Cup quarter-finals and semi-finals with Wembley in sight
The draws for the 1895 Cup quarter-finals and semi-finals has been made, with eight clubs vying for a trip to Wembley in June.
Seven Championship clubs – Sheffield Eagles, Batley Bulldogs, Bradford Bulls, Swinton Lions, York, Wakefield Trinity and Barrow Raiders – and League 1 side Oldham are the remaining clubs left in the 2024 instalment of the competition having earned a spot in the knockouts via the group stage.
York, the best-performing team to finish 2nd in a group, progressed through along with the seven group winners and went into the hat for today’s draws, which were hosted live on BBC Radio Cumbria at Workington Town‘s Fibrus Community Stadium following today’s final round of group games.
Workington lost out 28-22 to Cumbrian rivals Whitehaven, but the two sides went into today’s clash knowing their chances of progression were incredibly slim, with Championship side Barrow already securing their spot at the top of Group 1.
The Raiders and Swinton were the only two clubs who had already booked their places in the quarter-finals as winners of Groups 1 and 6 respectively ahead of this afternoon’s action, with today’s last few group games confirming which other six teams would join them in the last eight.
Championship big-hitters Bradford held off a late comeback from neighbours Keighley Cougars to win 26-18, clinching top spot in their group, earning a home tie against Swinton at Odsal.
Elsewhere, Wakefield hammered Newcastle Thunder 110-0 to win Group 3. They will host Barrow in the quarter-finals.
Meanwhile, Oldham – the only League 1 team left in the competition – will now travel to York in the quarters after beating Rochdale Hornets 38-12 at Boundary Park this afternoon to seal top billing in their respective group.
Sheffield, who beat Midlands Hurricanes today to seal top spot in Group 7, will host Batley in the quarter-finals, with the latter having defeated Hunslet today.
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1895 Cup Quarter-Final draw
The quarter-finals of the 1895 Cup will be played on Sunday, March 3, with kick-off times to be confirmed in due course.
Sheffield Eagles v Batley Bulldogs
Bradford Bulls v Swinton Lions
York v Oldham
Wakefield Trinity v Barrow Raiders
1895 Cup Semi-Final draw
To aid teams with scheduling and planning, the draw for the semi-finals of the competition was made immediately after the quarter-final edition.
Of course, due to that, it’s not yet known which teams have progressed – or will progress – through the four quarter-final ties.
Accordingly, the two semi-final ties were drawn in an ‘either/or’ format as below.
These ties will be played on Sunday, May 12. Again, full details will be confirmed nearer the time once the quarter-final clashes have been played out.
Bradford Bulls OR Swinton Lions v Wakefield Trinity OR Barrow Raiders
York OR Oldham v Sheffield Eagles OR Batley Bulldogs
The 1895 Cup final (5:45pm) is part of a Finals Day triple-header at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, June 8, alongside the finals of the Women’s Challenge Cup (11:45am) and Men’s Challenge Cup (3pm).
Plus, there will be the traditional Year 7 Boys’ Champion Schools final at 10am.
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