Betfred Championship/League One fixtures: Featherstone Rovers take on Batley Bulldogs in opener

Fixtures have been revealed with Dewsbury Rams also hosting Whitehaven and Halifax playing their first game following their rebrand as the Panthers take on Danny Ward’s London Broncos at The Shay on the weekend of April 2 to 5.

Hunslet will kick off their Betfred League 1 campaign on the weekend of May 8-9 with a home clash against Workington.

Following a meeting of Championship and League 1 clubs with the RFL last week, clubs agreed to ditch golden point for drawn matches following concerns expressed for the welfare of players who will have gone more than a year since their last fixture, and the majority of whom are part-time. The intention is to reintroduce golden point for the 2022 campaign.

It has also been agreed that positions on the league table in each competition will be determined by points percentage, as in the Betfred Super League last year.

This is to recognise the likelihood of fixtures being affected by Covid-19, with postponements permitted if a team loses seven or more players for Covid-related reasons – either players with positive tests, or who have been ruled out through test and trace analysis of close contacts in matches or training.

The Summer Bash will not be played in 2021 because of the expectation that crowds will have to be socially-distanced and therefore limited when fans are permitted to return.

The Championship season comprises 22 rounds running until the weekend of September 19, with each of the 14 teams playing nine of the other 13 twice and the other four once.

In League 1, there will be a full home and away programme with 18 rounds of fixtures ending on the weekend of September 12.

Betfred Championship opening round (April 2-5 – dates and kick-off times TBC): Dewsbury v Whitehaven, Featherstone v Batley, Halifax v London, Newcastle v Widnes, Oldham v Swinton, Sheffield v Bradford, York v Toulouse.

Betfred League 1 opening round (May 8-9 – dates and kick-off times tbc): Coventry v Barrow, Hunslet v Workington, Keighley v Doncaster, London Skolars v North Wales, Rochdale v West Wales.

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