# 2010 Championship Cup

The 2010 Championship Cup (known for commercial reasons as the Northern Rail Cup) was the 9th season of the rugby league football competition for clubs in Great Britain's Co-operative Championship and Championship One.
The final was played at Bloomfield Road in Blackpool with Batley Bulldogs defeating the Widnes Vikings 25–24 to claim the trophy.

## Format

The format and structure of the 2010 Northern Rail Cup competition was the same as in 2009. All the English-based Co-operative Championship and Championship One clubs have been divided equally into two pools for the group stages with five teams from each division in each pool.
Each team played two home games and two away games against teams in their pool with each club playing an equal number of The Co-operative Championship and The Co-operative Championship One clubs.
The top four teams in each pool following the conclusion of the group stage fixtures then progressed into an open draw for the knock-out quarter-final stage.
The Northern Rail Cup quarter-finals were played on the weekend of 5 and 6 June with the semi-finals taking place on 19 and 20 June.
The winners of the Northern Rail Cup were eligible to apply for a Super League licence in 2011.
Toulouse Olympique and newly formed South Wales Scorpions did not participate in the 2010 Northern Rail Cup.

## Fixtures
### Pool 1
#### Round 1

| Home | Score | Away | Match information | Match information | Match information | Match information |
| Home | Score | Away | Date & time | Referee | Venue | Attendance |
| Whitehaven | 26 – 34 | Batley Bulldogs | 10 February, 19:30 GMT | | Recreation Ground (Whitehaven) | 888 |
| Widnes Vikings | 50 – 6 | Gateshead Thunder | 2 February, 15:00 GMT | | Stobart Stadium Halton | 2,200 |
| Blackpool Panthers | 22 – 24 | Keighley Cougars | 31 January, 15:00 GMT | | Woodlands Memorial Ground | |
| Doncaster | 0 – 60 | Barrow Raiders | 17 February, 19:45 GMT | | Keepmoat Stadium | 285 |
| Workington Town | 18 – 19 | Swinton Lions | 17 February, 19:30 GMT | | Derwent Park | 286 |

#### Round 2

| Home | Score | Away | Match information | Match information | Match information | Match information |
| Home | Score | Away | Date & time | Referee | Venue | Attendance |
| Barrow Raiders | 34 – 8 | Blackpool Panthers | 7 February, 14:00 GMT | | Craven Park | 1,474 |
| Batley Bulldogs | 30 – 30 | Widnes Vikings | 7 February, 14:00 GMT | | Mount Pleasant, Batley | 1,004 |
| Keighley Cougars | 17 – 16 | Whitehaven | 7 February, 14:00 GMT | | Cougar Park | 756 |
| Gateshead Thunder | 12 – 26 | Workington Town | 7 February, 15:00 GMT | | Gateshead International Stadium | 404 |
| Swinton Lions | 30 – 20 | Doncaster | 7 February, 15:00 GMT | | Park Lane (stadium) | 380 |

#### Round 3

| Home | Score | Away | Match information | Match information | Match information | Match information |
| Home | Score | Away | Date & time | Referee | Venue | Attendance |
| Batley Bulldogs | 46 - 10 | Swinton Lions | 14 February, 14:00 GMT | | Mount Pleasant, Batley | 999 |
| Keighley Cougars | 38 - 10 | Workington Town | 14 February, 15:00 GMT | | Cougar Park | 654 |
| Whitehaven | 54 - 10 | Doncaster | 14 February, 14:00 GMT | | Recreation Ground (Whitehaven) | 808 |
| Widnes Vikings | 22 - 20 | Barrow Raiders | 14 February, 15:00 GMT | | Stobart Stadium Halton | 3,432 |
| Blackpool Panthers | 74 - 6 | Gateshead Thunder | 14 February, 15:00 GMT | | Woodlands Memorial Ground | |

#### Round 4

| Home | Score | Away | Match information | Match information | Match information | Match information |
| Home | Score | Away | Date & time | Referee | Venue | Attendance |
| Barrow Raiders | 62 - 18 | Keighley Cougars | 10 March, 19:45 GMT | Craig Halloran | Craven Park | 1,277 |
| Doncaster | 20 – 40 | Blackpool Panthers | 24 March, 19:45 GMT | Tim Roby | Keepmoat Stadium | 198 |
| Gateshead Thunder | 4 - 100 | Batley Bulldogs | 17 March, 19:30 GMT | Chris Leatherbarrow | Gateshead International Stadium | 237 |
| Swinton Lions | 12 - 36 | Widnes Vikings | 21 February, 15:00 GMT | Warren Turley | Park Lane (stadium) | 816 |
| Workington Town | 22 - 14 | Whitehaven | 21 February, 15:00 GMT | M Thomason | Derwent Park | 738 |

#### Pool 1 qualification table

2010 Northern Rail Cup: Pool 1 :
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | BP | Pts |
| 1 | Batley Bulldogs | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 210 | 70 | +140 | 0 | 11 |
| 2 | Widnes Vikings | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 138 | 68 | +70 | 0 | 11 |
| 3 | Barrow Raiders | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 176 | 48 | +128 | 1 | 10 |
| 4 | Keighley Cougars | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 144 | 110 | +34 | 0 | 9 |
| 5 | Blackpool Panthers | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 144 | 84 | +60 | 1 | 7 |
| 6 | Workington Town | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 76 | 83 | −7 | 1 | 7 |
| 7 | Whitehaven | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 110 | 83 | +27 | 3 | 6 |
| 8 | Swinton Lions | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 71 | 120 | −49 | 0 | 6 |
| 9 | Doncaster | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 50 | 184 | −134 | 1 | 1 |
| 10 | Gateshead Thunder | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 28 | 250 | −222 | 0 | 0 |

### Pool 2
#### Round 1

| Home | Score | Away | Match information | Match information | Match information | Match information |
| Home | Score | Away | Date & time | Referee | Venue | Attendance |
| Dewsbury Rams | 50 - 4 | London Skolars | 31 January, 15:00 GMT | | Tetley's Stadium | 887 |
| Leigh Centurions | 24 - 12 | Oldham | 31 January, 15:00 GMT | | Leigh Sports Village | 1,627 |
| Sheffield Eagles | 13 - 6 | Halifax | 17 February, 19:45 GMT | | Don Valley Stadium | 851 |
| Hunslet Hawks | 0 - 68 | Featherstone Rovers | 4 March, 20:00 GMT | | South Leeds Stadium | |
| Rochdale Hornets | 12 - 36 | York City Knights | 17 February, 20:00 GMT | | Spotland Stadium | 362 |

#### Round 2

| Home | Score | Away | Match information | Match information | Match information | Match information |
| Home | Score | Away | Date & time | Referee | Venue | Attendance |
| Featherstone Rovers | 18 - 18 | Sheffield Eagles | 7 February, 15:00 GMT | | Chris Moyles Stadium | 1,175 |
| Halifax | 24 - 0 | Dewsbury Rams | 7 February, 15:00 GMT | | Shay Stadium | 2,141 |
| London Skolars | 12 - 60 | Hunslet Hawks | 7 February, 14:00 GMT | | New River Stadium | 328 |
| Oldham | 22 - 14 | Rochdale Hornets | 8 February, 20:00 GMT | | Boundary Park | |
| York City Knights | 13 - 12 | Leigh Centurions | 7 February, 15:00 GMT | | Huntington Stadium | 911 |

#### Round 3

| Home | Score | Away | Match information | Match information | Match information | Match information |
| Home | Score | Away | Date & time | Referee | Venue | Attendance |
| Leigh Centurions | 36 - 6 | Featherstone Rovers | 14 February, 15:00 GMT | | Leigh Sports Village | 1,729 |
| Sheffield Eagles | 40 - 10 | York City Knights | 14 February, 15:00 GMT | | Don Valley Stadium | 840 |
| Hunslet Hawks | 28 - 14 | Oldham | 14 February, 14:00 GMT | | John Charles Centre for Sport | 519 |
| London Skolars | 0 - 68 | Halifax | 14 February, 15:00 GMT | | New River Stadium | 416 |
| Rochdale Hornets | 12 - 48 | Dewsbury Rams | 14 February, 15:00 GMT | | Spotland Stadium | 575 |

#### Round 4

| Home | Score | Away | Match information | Match information | Match information | Match information |
| Home | Score | Away | Date & time | Referee | Venue | Attendance |
| Featherstone Rovers | 56 - 10 | Rochdale Hornets | 23 February, 20:00 GMT | Craig Halloran | Chris Moyles Stadium | 777 |
| Dewsbury Rams | 22 - 44 | Leigh Centurions | 3 March, 19:45 GMT | Jamie Leahy | Tetley's Stadium | 888 |
| Halifax | 36 - 42 | Hunslet Hawks | 21 March, 15:00 GMT | Ronnie Laughton | Shay Stadium | 1,771 |
| Oldham | 22 - 24 | Sheffield Eagles | 21 February, 15:00 GMT | Robert Hicks | Boundary Park | 340 |
| York City Knights | 34 - 12 | London Skolars | 10 March, 19:00 GMT | Tim Roby | Huntington Stadium | 439 |

#### Pool 2 qualification table

2010 Northern Rail Cup: Pool 2 :
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | BP | Pts |
| 1 | Sheffield Eagles (Q) | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 95 | 56 | +39 | 0 | 11 |
| 2 | Leigh Centurions (Q) | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 116 | 53 | +63 | 1 | 10 |
| 3 | York City Knights (Q) | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 93 | 76 | +17 | 0 | 9 |
| 4 | Hunslet Hawks (Q) | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 130 | 130 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| 5 | Featherstone Rovers | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 148 | 64 | +84 | 0 | 8 |
| 6 | Halifax | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 134 | 55 | +79 | 2 | 8 |
| 7 | Dewsbury Rams | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 120 | 84 | +36 | 0 | 6 |
| 8 | Oldham | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 70 | 90 | −20 | 2 | 5 |
| 9 | Rochdale Hornets | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 48 | 162 | −114 | 1 | 1 |
| 10 | London Skolars | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 28 | 212 | −184 | 0 | 0 |

### Finals

Sky Sports televised one Northern Rail Cup quarter-final tie live on Thursday 3 June and one of the semi-finals on Thursday 17 June as well as providing full coverage of the Northern Rail Cup final at Bloomfield Road, Blackpool, on Sunday 18 July.
| Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final | Final |
| 1 | Keighley Cougars | 32 | | | | | | |
| 2 | York City Knights | 6 | | | | | | |
| 2 | York City Knights | 6 | Keighley Cougars | Keighley Cougars | 18 | | | |
| | | | Widnes Vikings | Widnes Vikings | 48 | | | |
| 3 | Widnes Vikings | 26 | Widnes Vikings | Widnes Vikings | 48 | | | |
| 4 | Barrow Raiders | 12 | | | | | | |
| 4 | Barrow Raiders | 12 | | | | Batley Bulldogs | Batley Bulldogs | 25 |
| | | | | | | Widnes Vikings | Widnes Vikings | 24 |
| 5 | Batley Bulldogs | 26 | | | | | | | Widnes Vikings | Widnes Vikings | 24 |
| 6 | Sheffield Eagles | 16 | | | | | | |
| 6 | Sheffield Eagles | 16 | Leigh Centurions | Leigh Centurions | 4 | | | |
| | | | Batley Bulldogs | Batley Bulldogs | 25 | | | |
| 7 | Hunslet Hawks | 6 | Batley Bulldogs | Batley Bulldogs | 25 | | | |
| 8 | Leigh Centurions | 42 | | | | | | |

#### Quarter-finals

The Northern Rail Cup quarter-final draw took place on Wednesday 24 March and was broadcast live on Sky Sports’ weekly Boots N' All programme.
Barrow, Batley, Hunslet, Keighley, Leigh, Sheffield, Widnes & York all qualified for the quarter-final stage of the competition. The eight teams were entered into the open draw for the quarter-final knock-out stages which was played on the weekend of 5 and 6 June. Only Hunslet and York come from Co-operative Championship 1.
One quarter-final tie was brought forward to Thursday 3 June to be screened live on Sky Sports.
The teams lined up as per the table below:
| Home | Score | Away | Match information | Match information | Match information | Match information |
| Home | Score | Away | Date & time | Referee | Venue | Attendance |
| Widnes Vikings | 26 – 12 | Barrow Raiders | 19:30, 3 June 2010 | | Stobart Stadium Halton | 1,718 |
| Keighley Cougars | 32 – 6 | York City Knights | 15:00 6 June 2010 | | Cougar Park | 712 |
| Batley Bulldogs | 26 – 16 | Sheffield Eagles | 15:00 6 June 2010 | | Mount Pleasant | 708 |
| Hunslet Hawks | 6 – 42 | Leigh Centurions | 15:00 6 June 2010 | | South Leeds Stadium | 770 |

#### Semi-finals

The semi-finals will take place on the weekend of 19 and 20 June with Sky Sports broadcasting one tie live on the Thursday night.
| Home | Score | Away | Match information | Match information | Match information | Match information |
| Home | Score | Away | Date & time | Referee | Venue | Attendance |
| Leigh Centurions | 4 – 25 | Batley Bulldogs | 19:30, 17 June 2010 | | Leigh Sports Village | 2,058 |
| Keighley Cougars | 18 – 48 | Widnes Vikings | 15:00 20 June 2010 | | Cougar Park | 1,686 |

#### Final

The Northern Rail Cup final took place at Bloomfield Road, Blackpool on Sunday 18 July at 4pm live on Sky Sports. The Match was contested by Batley Bulldogs and defending champions Widnes Vikings, who were looking for their 3rd cup victory in just 4 years. Batley won the match, beating Widnes 25-24 thanks to two late tries from Alex Brown. This was Batley's first appearance in a cup final since 1998 and first in a major final since 1952. The victory leaves Batley eligible to apply for the 2012–14 Super League licences to gain promotion to the Super League, although coach Karl Harrison stated that they have no Super League ambitions.
| Home | Score | Away | Match information | Match information | Match information | Match information |
| Home | Score | Away | Date & time | Referee | Venue | Attendance |
| Batley Bulldogs | 25-24 | Widnes Vikings | 16:00 18 July 2010 | Robert Hicks | Bloomfield Road, Blackpool | 8,138 |