One of the best days on the rugby league calendar takes place on Saturday as the sport heads to the national stadium at Wembley for the Challenge Cup final.
This is always a showpiece occasion which everyone involved in the sport wants to be a part of and it is Leeds and Hull KR who will be featuring in it this year.
Leeds have seen off the likes of Hull FC and St Helens to make it into the final of the competition they won last year and they will be aiming to win back to back Challenge Cup’s. That is something that hasn’t been done since Warrington in 2010.
Hull KR will be in their first final since 1986 so this is a huge occasion for the club. They have beaten Catalans, Wigan and Warrington on their way to Wembley so nobody can claim they don’t belong in the final. Now they need to give a good account of themselves.
Leeds go into the final with a largely unchanged squad from two weeks ago when they beat Wigan after they rested players last week but they will be without Paul Aiton and Jamie Jones-Buchanan who are both out for the season.
The big team news for Hull KR is that they have named Albert Kelly in the squad for the first time since the semi-final win over Warrington. He will be a huge player for them if he is fit and mobile and could be the game changer. Tyrone McCarthy also returns to the team having been rested last week.
This will be an emotional occasion. Hull KR are playing at Wembley for the first time in a while and Kevin Sinfield and Jamie Peacock will be gracing the turf of the London venue for the final time before they end their rugby league careers at the end of the season.
Leeds have been quite awesome in recent times and they will be eager to translate that into the first piece of silverware of the campaign. They’ve been heavy favourites in this final before and come unstuck though so they’ll need to remain focused.
Hull KR were going through a sticky patch going into their semi-final against Warrington but that win has kick started them. All of a sudden their defence has improved immeasurably and they’ve remained unbeaten through the Super 8s which should ensure they go into this final full of confidence. Importantly they go into it with nothing to lose so they’re a dangerous animal.
I think Leeds will win this final but whether they cover a 16pt handicap I’m not sure. Hull KR will be right up for this and let’s not try and underestimate the effect Albert Kelly’s inclusion will have on their side. He almost single-handedly won that semi-final for them and he can keep them competitive in this final. Ultimately it will be in vain for the Robins but I fancy their defeat to be by less than 16pts.
I get the feeling a high scoring final is expected here but I’m not convinced it will play out that way. The points line is set at 48.5 but only once since 2006 has the cup final had more points in it than that and that was an incredibly open match between Warrington and Leeds three years ago. History suggests this final is more lower scoring with both sides raising their game for the big occasion and leaving nothing behind at the end. I think that line is a few points too high.
Back Hull KR (+16) to beat Leeds for a 4/10 stake at 2.00 with Skybet
Back Under 48.5pts for a 3/10 stake at 1.90 with Betway
Blog RL YTD: +7.69pts
