THE RFL has confirmed that Oldham will be one of the four Betfred Championship clubs to take part in the first round of the Challenge Cup in early March.
The four are Oldham, Dewsbury Rams, Newcastle Thunder and Whitehaven, based on final placings in League 1 and the Championship at the end of the 2019 season.
First-round ties across the first weekend in March will comprise the four clubs named above plus the ten Betfred League 1 clubs. That will produce seven winners, who will join the other nine Championship clubs – Toulouse Olympique will not compete in either cup competition — to play in round two on the second weekend in March.
That will produce eight winners, who will contest four third-round ties two weeks later. The four winners from round three will join the 12 Betfred Super League clubs in the last 16 of the Challenge Cup in April and will also qualify for the semi-finals of the AB Sundecks 1895 Cup.
The draw for the first and second rounds of the Challenge Cup has been scheduled for the week commencing January 4, while fixtures for the Championship and League 1 are scheduled to be announced in mid-January.
