Only three teams remain from those whose Betfred Challenge Cup journey began in Round One – with two being the fierce London and SCL rivals Hammersmith Hills Hoists and Wests Warriors.
This weekend will therefore see one of these London-based community clubs progress to Round 4 of the Men’s Challenge Cup for the first time in history, as these two sides have been drawn together in a hugely significant Third Round tie – a capital city cup clash and mouth-watering repeat of last year’s SCL Grand Final.
Hammersmith, founded in 2008 by local Australian expats, will host Wests Warriors and enjoy home advantage for a third consecutive time in this year's cup competition, as they continue to make their own Challenge Cup history.
The Hoists’ first historic achievement came with comfortably beating Medway Dragons 56-6 in Round One, as this meant they would reach the Second Round for the first time ever. Another emphatic victory over West Bowling in Round Two now means Hammersmith find themselves in Round 3 of the sport's famous competition – and their Club Chairman Ricc Caligiuri is excited for what’s ahead:
“I personally cannot wait for it. It’s a really exciting draw for rugby league in London and the South, and it guarantees one of us will be through to Round 4 against professional opposition, which is a huge incentive.”
Hammersmith were originally founded to provide their players, regardless of nationalities, backgrounds and abilities, the chance to play competitive rugby league in and around the capital city. They currently compete in the Southern Conference League (SCL), alongside the Wests Warriors and are seven times Champions – winning the league’s Grand Final mostly recently in 2023.
Caligiuri is fully aware that the Warriors will be out for revenge on Saturday, but is looking at the game in a positive manner:
“We’ve won the last two fixtures between the clubs including our 14-0 victory in the SCL Grand Final last year, so Wests will no doubt be looking for retribution,” Caligiuri explained.
“And the longer Wests and ourselves stayed on the board (in the Challenge Cup), the more you could sense we were going to draw each other, and it promises to be a really competitive encounter.”
Similarly, Wests Warriors, another top side of the SCL, have deservedly booked their place in Round 3 of the Challenge Cup, following impressive wins over Newsome Panthers and Rochdale Mayfield, respectively.
The Warriors reached the Third Round last year but were heavily defeated by Championship outfit Widnes Vikings. The Third Round is the furthest the club have ever progressed, and they will have the opportunity to go that one historic step further on Saturday.
Wests Head Coach Kim Parkinson, who has been with the Warriors since their formation in 2014 and is one of the Club's hard-working co-founders, reflected on last season and looked ahead to 2024:
“Since 2014, we’ve worked our way up to the SCL. Last season, we set ourselves a goal to make the finals and unfortunately, we lost both of those finals, but we’re building again for 2024, and we’re looking really good for this year.”
The Warriors were unable to retain their Champions title for a third successive year in 2023, having won the Grand Final in 2021 and 2022, and are a strong force to be reckoned with in the SCL competition. And with the inclusion of London Skolars in the Southern Conference League this season, Parkinson recognises how competitive this year's league is going to be:
“2024 is going to be the most competitive it’s ever been, with London Skolars coming down to join us.
“All of the teams (in the SCL) have recruited well. I think it’s going to be a tight competition this year and that there will be surprises in the top four this year.”
Looking ahead to Saturday’s highly-anticipated Challenge Cup tie, Parkinson is aware of the competition's prestige, and this will be the third occasion where the Warriors have reached Round 3:
“We love playing in the Challenge Cup, we don’t take it for granted. We know it’s an honour and a privilege to be part of.
“To play against Widnes last year, a Championship side and a club that’s won the Challenge Cup seven times before – it was a real learning experience. Regardless of what the score was we had a great weekend up there.”
“It made us hungrier to get to Round 3 again this season.”
Wests Warriors' journey to the Third Round this year consisted of a solid win over Newsome Panthers, before a gutsy encounter against Rochdale Mayfield, and Parkinson admits they were firm underdogs heading into Round Two's cup match, and was extremely proud of his team's efforts and performance:
“Nobody but ourselves backed us to win in the Rochdale game but we went into it pretty confident. We got the job done and we’re excited for this next challenge against Hammersmith.”
Wests Warriors' team is made up of a mix of players - consisting of expats, younger players who are just starting out, and then former players from professional ranks and experienced heads who help to guide the team. This includes the notable Neil Thorman, who has previously played for both London Broncos and London Skolars, as well as Australian Jack Payne, who came through St George Illawarra Dragons' junior ranks and has been with the Warriors since 2021.
“We have a good mix here. It’s all about everyone buying into the culture at the club regardless of our ages, when you’ve been - or who you’ve played for. We’ve all got to be on the same level ground and have that same goal," as Parkinson explained that one of their main reasons for playing is out of love for the game.
And Parkinson has admitted that his side will indeed be seeking retribution in Saturday's cup tie against Hammersmith, following their gutting Grand Final defeat last year:
“The boys are pretty confident. Hammersmith beat us in the Grand Final so it’s a little bit of redemption there, and we’ll use that as motivation.
“We know the guys at Hammersmith really well and the local rivalry between us. They’ll be a lot of people coming down to watch the game - hopefully it turns out better for us this weekend.”
Despite a chance to break historics record at the weekend, Parkinson admits that they've haven't been too focussed on this idea, and instead highlights his pride for the club and how successfully they have grown over the years:
“We haven’t talked about history much," Parkinson admitted. "For me personally, it’s about being here from day one, and seeing how far we’ve come. But going into Round 4, if that did happen, would probably be the club’s biggest achievement.
“We’ve still got SCL teams in the Challenge Cup, and it’s massive. We’re getting decent crowds and people are even asking about joining the club – it’s all positive and that’s what we want to do regardless of winning or losing this weekend.
"This tie will have a positive impact on London rugby league and it's amazing."
Both Hammersmith and Wests have knocked out National Conference League (NCL) opposition to reach Round 3, but neither side ever reached a Fourth Round before. Their Third Round tie will also be a chance to further showcase the exciting rugby league that takes place in London, both on and off the field - giving positive exposure to the sport in our capital city.
However, there’s only one team who can make it and go on to face teams from the professional ranks...but will it be Hammersmith or the Warriors who come out on top?
Hammersmith v Wests Warriors will take place on Saturday 10 February at Chiswick Rugby Club, K.O. 2:30pm.
Fans can keep up to date with Hammersmith through their social media channels, including Facebook,Instagram and X.
Likewise, the Wests Warriors can be found on Facebook, Instagram and X and news is available on their club website.
A full Betfred Challenge Cup Round Three Preview can be found here.
