Televised Championship match switches stadiums just a few hours before kick-off
Picture by John Clifton/SWpix.com
The televised Monday night rugby league Championship clash between Batley Bulldogs and Barrow Raiders will no longer be played at Mount Pleasant.
The game, which is being shown live on ViaPlay Sports (7.45pm kick-off), will now be played at Dewsbury’s Flair Stadium due to floodlight issues at Batley’s home ground.
The decision to switch venue was only made at lunch time, though there is only 2.5 miles between Batley’s ground and their derby rivals Dewsbury.
An RFL statement said: “The Monday Night Betfred Championship fixture between Batley Bulldogs and Barrow Raiders will now be played at Dewsbury’s FLAIR Stadium, because of damage to the floodlights at Batley’s Fox’s Biscuits Stadium.
“It will still be shown on Viaplay Sports, with coverage starting at 7.15pm ahead of kick-off at 7.45pm.
“The RFL have approved the late switch of venue because of special circumstances, and are grateful to the flexibility shown by the clubs and broadcasters.”
Batley are due to be on TV again on Monday May 8, when they host Widnes. Their last televised home game was back in May 2022, when Leigh won 52-0.
Barrow look for first league win
Barrow travel to Yorkshire looking for their first win of the league season, having only managed a home draw against Newcastle so far.
Last season’s Grand Finalists Batley have had an average start to the new campaign, beating London and Keighley, but losing to Swinton, Sheffield and Halifax.
A win for Batley would lift them up to eighth in the table, while a win for Barrow would get them off the bottom of the table and above Newcastle.
Whitehaven moved out of the bottom two at the weekend with a surprise 14-12 win away at York. That result, plus Widnes’ home defeat to Toulouse by the same scoreline, prevented a four point gap opening up between the top seven and the rest.
Elsewhere on Sunday, Bradford continued their fine start to the season with a 32-18 home win over Sheffield and Halifax beat Keighley 34-10.
League leaders Featherstone maintained their 100% record with a 34-6 triumph away at Swinton.
Batley v Barrow squad news
Batley 21-man squad: Buchanan, Hodson, Campbell, White, Leak, Hirst, Manning, Walshaw, Brown, Meadows, Kear, Ward, Illycrop, Kibula, McGowan, Morton, Milthorpe, Richardson, Flynn, Burton, Reilly.
Barrow 21-man squad: Broadbent, Brooks, Bulman, Burke, Carter, Corkill, Cresswell, Dawson, Emslie, Evans, Gilliam, Iaria, Johnston, Langtree, Sammut, Shaw, Stack, Toal, Wells, Wood, Worthington.