Road to Wembley: How Batley Bulldogs reached the 1895 Cup final - and the club's first ever appearance at the national stadium

Featherstone Rovers away or Wath Brow Hornets at home? If you had to pick an opponent to kick-start an adventure which would eventually lead to a first-ever appearance at Wembley in your 143-year history, you’d happily have another club take on responsibility at trying to topple the Championship and 1895 Cup favourites.

Fax certainly did that with their 22-18 win at Fev. But, without disrespecting brave amateur side Wath Brow, who play in the National Conference Premier Division, Batley, as the famous saying goes, could only beat what was put in front of them in the third round of the Challenge Cup and they comprehensively swatted the Hornets away, 60-0, mainly thanks to four tries from Josh Hodson.

In many respects, it got easier for the Bulldogs who were then drawn away to another amateur outfit in Hunslet ARLFC, but the game was switched to the Fox’s Biscuits Stadium due to their opponents’ ground being deemed unsuitable.

Batley, playing down the famous slope in the first half, scored 44 points without reply. They added another 36 in the second half as Craig Lingard’s men won 80-6. In total, Batley scored a staggering 15 tries, with Hodson helping himself to another four.

The routine victory set up the Bulldogs’ toughest test of their journey - a fifth round home tie with newly-promoted Keighley Cougars, with the winners guaranteeing their place in the semi-finals of the 1895 Cup.

Batley had already beaten the Cougars, 28-23, in thrilling fashion in round four of the Championship campaign, thanks to a dramatic Dale Morton try.

However, there was no need for late drama here as the Bulldogs ran in seven tries on their way to a respectable 34-16 victory. Lucas Walshaw and Aidan McGowen both grabbed doubles, while Hodson, Morton and Jimmy Meadows all got in on the try-scoring action.

Their place in the last four of the 1895 Cup secured, Batley’s Challenge Cup adventure made its way to Hull KR. But dreams of a quarter-final were soon squashed as the Super League recorded a dominant 50-0 win.

Like Fax, the Bulldogs were drawn away in the semi-finals of the 1895 Cup, with 80 minutes against York City Knights standing in their way of a chance of playing at Wembley for the first time in 143 years.

Lingard had said throughout 2023 that his players’ eyes were always on Wembley. And that desire and determination was on show from minute one at the LNER Community Stadium as Batley produced a dominant first half performance, which was rewarded with tries from Hodson (who else) and Adam Gledhill.

An Alistair Leak try at the start of the second half made it 20-0 and although York scored two tries themselves, they never came close to crushing Batley’s Wembley dream.

The Bulldogs have made history by simply reaching the famous stadium. To win at Wembley would certainly complete their epic journey in sensational style.