Leigh Leopards head coach Adrian Lam has branded Hull KR as ‘red-hot favourites’ ahead of their Challenge Cup quarter-final fixture this weekend.
In a replay of last year’s Challenge Cup final, which the Leopards won, the two sides will battle it out for a place in the final four of the competition.
Speaking via the club’s YouTube channel, Lam spoke about how difficult it is to play at Craven Park, which has routinely been a home sell-out recently.
He said: “Yeah, obviously it’s a tough place to go up to and play really well.
“They’ve got the big crowd behind them and they’ll be red hot favourites and so they should be, I think. The last month of rugby has been pretty scintillating for them, scoring big scores.
“I know if we go up there and we’re not quite on it, it could happen to us.
“They’re red hot favourites as I mentioned, so we’ve got to play well.”
Where can I watch Leigh Leopards on TV?
The Leopards who are, of course, the current holders of the competition, play Hull KR on Saturday evening with the game slated for a 5pm kick-off and it’s being broadcast on free-to-air TV.
Both BBC 2 and the BBC iPlayer will show the game as Leigh continue their defence of the trophy, and Lam was asked if they were using that fact as extra motivation.
He said: “I think you do that at the start of the Challenge Cup series and you tap into things as you go along.
“I think this week is more about our squad, and where we’re at, and us looking for improvement, and making sure that we defend better than what we’ve been doing.
“So there’s a lot of different angles we can take. But this is a massive one for us.
“I think Hull will be emotionally connected to that and we’ve got to match it.”
Credit: Imago Images
Winning the 2023 edition was a first for 52 years for Leigh Leopards, and Adrian Lam also spoke about his personal memories of that game:
“Obviously the Challenge Cup final was one of the greatest moments for this club in the last century and one that we’re grateful to be a part of.
“You never want that to end and the season start again, but it’s come around so quickly.
“But some memories that we’ll have in our hearts – not only for me and the players, for the whole town.
“It was an important part of who we are at the moment, what we’re building here, so you know, it’s our trophy to hold at the moment.
“So we’ve got that in the back of our mind and make sure that we go up there and give our absolute all and I’m sure the players will.”
Hull KR vs Leigh Leopards takes place on Saturday, 13 April at 5pm.
