Hawks aim to make a mark in Cup

Hawks have had a tough season so far in Kingstone Press League One, but the pressure will be off against the big-spending First Utility Super League visitors.

The south Leeds side have pulled off two impressive wins in the Ladbrokes Challenge Cup but only broke their league duck at the fourth attempt last week. And coach Matt Bramald said they can go into the fifth round tie in relaxed mood, but knowing it is an opportunity to test themselves against players from the top level.

“It is like our cup final, against a team like Salford,” Bramald said.

“Hopefully they will bring some of their star players and we can enjoy playing against them.

“At the end we want to be able to puff our chests out and hold our heads high, regardless of what happens on the scoreboard.

“We want to give a good account of ourselves, so their players know our players’ names after the game, which they probably don’t do now.”

Hunslet pulled off possibly the biggest Challenge Cup upset of the summer era with an 18-14 home win over Super League Huddersfield Giants 13 years ago, but Bramald is aware the chance of a repeat are slim.

“We are under no illusions,” he stressed. We know we will have to be right on top of our game and hope they are off theirs. We are aware of the size of the task in front of us, but it is a good opportunity to play against a Super League team.

“We don’t get that chance very often because of the way the competition is now.”