North Wales Crusaders v Leigh Leopards, 7th February 2026, Challenge Cup Round 3

 

Competitive Rugby League is back! First things first, I was almost right about the match day squad. Leopards are Massive: Bring Yer Boots (You Might Get a Game). Will Brough was not included, and Ryan Brown was added due to the need to add forwards. Ben McNamara stepped down to 18th man with Gaz O'Brien entering the fray as the replacement dummy half to give Edward Ipape a rest.

A review of the backs, Bailey Hodgson was strong on carries, Tesi Niu was very quiet, but Josh Charnley was busy and collected a brace of tries. Keenan Brand, however, seems to have let last season's performances get to his head. He needs to knuckle down and complete the basics; at least he didn't get sin-binned this week. 

At half-back, Adam Cook and Lockie Lam are still working on combinations, but the new secret weapon in the Leopards' armoury is the left boot of Cooky. Standard end of sets are producing towering kicks into the corner, with plenty of time for the advancing players to get into position. There is still a reluctance to challenge for the ball, preferring to play the percentages and nail the catcher before he can start to move. A booming 30-10 kick from Cook was the highlight of his night, but his goal kicking will be the most important thing that he brings to the Leopards this season.  Lockie was much more fluid, but it took at least 20 minutes to find his feet. A brace of tries topped off a solid performance.

Forwards, a 20 minute stint from both Robbie Mulhern and Owen Trout, with more minutes in the legs,  both should be fully fit for a Super League opener next week. The second row both played 80 minutes, with Jacob Alick putting in a stint and looking a little more assured as the starting player he is supposed to be. Frankie Halton ran hard all night, but dropped at least one on the night; it was a good stint.

The reserve props Nathan Wilde and Ryan Brown (the Bash Brothers) played long minutes, with some good aspects; both might be ready for appearances on the bench in the coming weeks. The pick of the subs goes to Andrew Badrock, and if the BBC are correct, he scored a wonder try at the end, with incredible balance and perseverance. Gaz O'Brien offered good distribution from dummy half, but looked far more comfortable when moved to full-back for the last 10 minutes.

Rumours of a sell-out at the Eirias Stadium, appear to have been very wide of the mark. The travelling army of Leopards fans had a good evening on the coast, without too much jeopardy. Any signs of a banana skin were soon allayed, with Leigh firmly encamped in the Crusaders' red zone.

Adrian Lam, in the post-match interview, stated, "I couldn't have hoped for any more." 

Highlights | North Wales Crusaders vs Leigh Leopards | Challenge Cup

Bring Yer Boots (You Might Get a Game)

 

Lammy this week will be trying to knock some square pegs into round holes. This weekend will witness the Challenge Cup 3rd Round, with Leigh Leopards visiting the North Wales Crusaders at Colwyn Bay. One would usually assume that this is a straight forward win for the Super League, but Lammy has hinted that he only has 19 available players, but he named a 20 man squad for the trip to Wales.

Leigh Leopards squad: Keanan Brand, Tesi Niu, Josh Charnley, Adam Cook, Lachlan Lam, Edwin Ipape, Robbie Mulhern, Frankie Halton, Owen Trout, Jacob Alick-Wiencke, Bailey Hodgson, Innes Senior, AJ Towse, Gareth O’Brien, Jack Hughes, Andrew Badrock, Ben McNamara, Nathan Wilde, Ryan Brown, Will Brough

How will Leigh actually line-up on Saturday:

1. Bailey Hodgson
2. Innes Senior 
3. Tesi Niu 
4. Keanan Brand
5. Josh Charnley
6. Adam Cook 
7. Lachlan Lam
8. Robbie Mulhern
9. Edwin Ipape
10. Owen Trout
11. Frankie Halton
12. Jacob Alick-Wiencke
13. Jack Hughes
14. Andrew Badrock
15. Ben McNamara 
16. Nathan Wilde
17. Gareth O’Brien
18. Will Brough

Robbie Mulhern is considered to be a doubt, so Ryan Brown may be brought onto the bench. The backs are looking fairly Leopard-like but the forwards will be without Joe Offahengaue, Issac Liu, Liam Horne and Matt Davis.

This is not looking good with the start of the Super League only 8 days away. Anyway bring yer boots, you never know.

Rugby League Fans and the Away Games

 

For Rugby League fans, it is a cold and desolate wait for the new season. The 2025 Super League season ended with the Grand Final on Saturday 11th October 2025, with the Challenge Cup 3rd Round starting on the weekend of 7th/8th February 2026, a total of 119 days, with only Christmas and New Year to brighten the wait. The result of the waiting is the need to attend Friendlies and Testimonials. The first such event is the annual pilgrimage to the Halliwell Jones stadium, the home of the Warrington Wolves, on Friday, 30th January 2026. Personally, this is the nearest Super League to my home, at 3.3 miles, it is actually walkable at an estimated 1 hour and 10 minutes. This, compared to the home games at the LSV, is an absolute doddle.

Every year I always attend at least one away game (Warrington) plus a special trip. This started:

• 2021 – Magic Weekend Newcastle
• 2022 – 1895 Cup & (Challenge Cup final was a bonus) also included Featherstone, York, Bradford, Sheffield, Widnes and Halifax
• 2023 – Challenge Cup final Wakefield
• 2024 – London Broncos
• 2025 – Perpignon and St Helens (semi-final Challenge Cup)
• 2026 – York, Colwyn Bay and Magic Weekend (Everton)

2022 was a great year in the Championship, with most games being played on a Sunday, which allows the travelling supporter to be able to get across the Pennines without worrying too much about traffic on the M62. The other years are all Super League years, Wigan and St Helens have always been slightly more intimidating places to go, and until 2025, wins against the local rivals were as rare as hen's teeth, hopefully that will change now the hoodoo has been broken.

Round 3 of the Challenge Cup sees the Super League teams join the competition. All top-flight teams are supposed to play away, although Hull KR and Warrington think they are exempt from this ruling (I think that I will save that rant for another time). Leigh has drawn North Wales Crusaders on the 7th February 2026, and having been starved of Rugby League during the dark nights, it was decided to buy tickets for the short trip to Colwyn Bay (63 miles away). I appear not to be the only person with the same idea, and The Stadiwm CSM (see photo above), appears to be heading for a sell-out. 

A big part of these trips away is to have a weekend away or, at the very least, a nice meal. I will be looking forward to visiting Porth Eireas (Michelin Bib Gourmand) for something fishy before heading to the ground. The Stadiwm CSM looks like a nice stadium, but suffering the misfortune of having an athletics track around the pitch. Opera glasses might be the order of the day. Still only two more days until I hear the roar of the Halliwell Jones Stadium, and enjoy a curry with a cold pint of Cobra.