1895 Cup details confirmed

Oldham will find out their first round opponents in the 1895 Cup when the draw is made this Sunday at 5:40pm.

The Rugby Football League has announced the return of the competition for 2026 with a venue for the final still to be confirmed.

The format has changed from last year, with the RFL scrapping the group stages in favour of a straight knockout draw.

The draw will be made by former England international Lukke Gale and presenter James Deighton on BBC Radio Leeds for the preliminary and first rounds.

With Roughyeds reaching the last 16 of the Challenge Cup, alongside fellow Championship clubs Keighley and Goole, all three sides have earned automatic progression beyond the preliminary round.

The draw will see six balls pulled first to produce three Preliminary Round ties before the remaining ten – and the addition of the three teams still in the Betfred Challenge Cup and home balls from the Preliminary Round ties – are drawn to determine eight Round One fixtures.

Preliminary Round fixtures will be played on the weekend of March 14/15 with Round One scheduled to take place on April 17/18.

The Final of the 1895 Cup will be played on Monday 31 August, with the venue to be confirmed in due course.

Oldham have been assigned ball number 19 for Sunday's draw:

1. Barrow Raiders

2. Batley Bulldogs

3. Dewsbury Rams

4. Doncaster RLFC

5. Hunslet RLFC

6. London Broncos

7. Midlands Hurricanes

8. Newcastle Thunder

9. North Wales Crusaders

10. Rochdale Hornets

11. Salford RLFC

12. Sheffield Eagles

13. Swinton Lions

14. Whitehaven RLFC

15. Widnes Vikings

16. Workington Town

On the conclusion of the draw for the Preliminary round, balls 17-19 to be added:

17. Goole Vikings

18. Keighley Cougars

19. Oldham RLFC

Key dates for the 1895 Cup:

Preliminary Round – 14/15 March

First Round - 18/19 April

Quarter Finals – 16/17 May

Semi Finals – 13/14 June

Final – 30 August, venue TBC