The two points were unlikely to improve Warrington’s league position, given their awful points difference, but it would keep them in touch with the top six and a play-off place, however, they were up against a resurgent Leeds Rhinos who themselves wanted to reinforce their claim for third spot.

The Wolves needed to bounce back from their Challenge Cup heartbreak last weekend and knew that a win would go some way to do that, but they also knew that a loss would make the remainder of their season much more difficult.

Warrington won the previous meeting between the two sides in March by 16-14 but the bookies favoured the Rhinos this time, handicapping them by eight points on the coupon.

If there was one away banker on this weeks coupon then it was surely for the Wigan Warriors as they faced a lowly Huddersfield Giants as they struggle to break free of the bottom of the table in a game played at the Flair Stadium in Dewsbury.

The ‘home’ side were given a twenty-two point start by the bookies with Wigan clear favourites to move back within two points of the league leading Hull KR and in the process increase their points difference total tremendously in their favour.

The sides met back at the start of March, Wigan the 44-18 winners at the ‘Brick Community Stadium’.

Fifth against tenth in the Super League table as round fourteen got underway with Hull FC eying fourth spot in the table, facing a Castleford Tigers side who wanted the points to lift themselves farther away from the bottom two as they cling onto their very remote hopes of a play-off position.

The black & whites were the favourites for the win and handicapped by twelve points on the coupon, two more than the margin by which they beat Castleford when the two sides met in March.

A win of any description would see Hull FC into fourth spot, at least until Sunday evening, a Castleford win would lift them two points further away from the Huddersfield Giants and Salford Red Devils.

Following a nerve-jangling Challenge Cup Final, York Knights and Featherstone Rovers entered the arena to play the AB Sundecks 1895 Cup Final in the pouring rain as the stadium emptied of a large proportion of supporters after the main event.

Featherstone were favourites for the win and were handicapped by four points on the coupon, despite the relative league positions which see York in fourth and Featherstone four table points behind in eighth spot.

Yor beat Halifax, Widnes, and Bradford on their way to the final while Featherstone saw off the challenges of Keighley, London and Oldham on their way to Wembley.

Wembley Stadium was half red and white and half primrose and blue as solid favourites Hull KR looked for their first Challenge Cup win since the 1979-80 season as they faced an out of form Warrington Wolves looking to emulate their 2019 victory.

The sides met just a fortnight ago in the Super League with a massive 31-12 win, Warrington languishing in eighth place in the table while Hull KR are clear leaders with just one loss all season.

Warrington brushed aside the challenges of Whitehaven, Widnes, St Helens, and Leigh on their way to the final, Hull KR going past York Knights, Oldham, Hull FC and the Catalans Dragons, the neutrals were hoping for a close game.

St Helens were looking for their fifth consecutive Challenge Cup final win in the competition which they have made their own and all that stood in their way was their arch-rivals, Wigan Warriors, who were seeking their first ever win in their first ever final.

Both sides won their divisions with unbeaten records and without conceding a point, while Saints beat London and York in the quarter and semi-finals, Wigan eliminated Cardiff and Leeds on their road to Wembley.

The bookies favoured a St Helens win, despite Wigan currently leading the women’s Super League table by a point over their archrivals.

On paper this was the game of the round, Leeds Rhinos in fourth spot in the table approaching the halfway stage against promoted side Wakefield Trinity who are currently in sixth with both sides coming into the game on the back of three game unbeaten streaks.

The home side were favourites with the bookies to take a game which marked a year since the passing of Leeds super star Rob Burrow, and they were handicapped by eight points for a game which would be used to recognise motor neurone disease (MND), a cause close to the Rhinos hearts.

A win would take the Rhinos back ahead of Leigh and into the third spot that they relinquished last night to the Leopards, a win for Wakefield would elevate them to fourth, pushing the Rhinos back into fifth on points difference.

The league leaders Hull KR took on St Helens in round thirteen knowing that only a win was likely to keep them at the top of table as Wigan Warriors kicked off at the same time against the 2025 whipping boys Salford Red Devils needing two points to draw level.

St Helens came into the game on the back of two victories and were looking to make it three in a row after a rocky period, the bookies though favoured the home side and gave the visitors a six point start on the coupon suggesting that the Robins might not have everything their own way.

Hull KR have been victorious on the last three occasions that the sides have met including a 20-10 win in the round four match earlier this year and you have to go back as far as August 2023 to find the last Saints win.

Both sides were desperate for a win, and the points, in the opening game of round thirteen as second bottom side Huddersfield Giants looked for their second win of the season against a Leigh Leopards side who were looking to end a three-game losing streak.

Huddersfield haven’t beaten Leigh since February 2024, losing the only meeting between the two sides in 2025 by a fourteen-point margin, and as a result the Giants were given a ten point start on the coupon.

A win wouldn’t help the Giants league position, although it would lift them clear of Salford in bottom spot, but if the Leopards could get the points then they would move above the Rhinos and into third.

The pinnacle of rugby league, the three game State of Origin series, got underway at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane as the Maroons faced the Blues, New South Wales seeking to get off to the best of starts to retain the shield after wrestling it from Queensland in 2024.

Last season the Maroons won the opening game convincingly before losing the second and third outings to lose the shield that they had held for the previous two seasons, although they still hold a 24-17 series lead since the start of modern origin games in 1982.

The bookies were predicting a close game pre-kick-off but leaned slightly towards the Blues, handicapping them by four points on the coupon, the stage was set for a cracker.

Wigan Warriors were strong favourites for the win as the travelled to Perpignan to take over a Catalans Dragons side who had parted company with their longstanding coach during the week and who were having a disappointing season which see’s them in eighth position and in danger of missing out on the playoffs.

Wigan have won the last four games between the two sides and you must go back almost two years to find the last victory for the Dragons, but this is the first meeting between the sides in 2025 and comes at an inopportune moment for the home side.

Joel Tomkins was in temporary charge of the home side but his brother, and Dragons talisman, Sam was still unavailable for selection.

Castleford Tigers were looking for back-to-back wins for the first time in 2025 after defeating Salford Red Devils last time out, but they were up against near neighbours Leeds Rhinos who are pushing towards the top of the table and secured a sensational dying seconds win over Hull FC in round eleven.

A win would take the Rhinos into third spot, their highest league position for some time, while a win for the Tigers would move them to within two points of the Warrington Wolves in eighth spot, still holding out a hope of making the top six with a good run of form.

The home side were given an eight point start on the coupon, the bookies expecting a close game between these two fierce rivals, closer than when the Rhinos won by 38-24 in March.

Hull FC suffered heartbreak last time out when they lost in the dying seconds to a Ryan Hall try an Leeds snatched the win after trailing for seventy-eight minutes, while Leigh Leopards ended up losing by just eight points against Wigan Warriors after spending a large part of the game trailing heavily.

A win for Leigh would lift them back within a point of the Warriors while keeping them clear of the Rhinos in fourth, Hull FC would be up to fifth grom seventh if they could claim the points.

The Leopards were the favourites with the bookies but not by much, handicapped by six points on the coupon.

The ongoing takeover saga and financial troubles overshadow everything and anything that the Salford Red Devils try to do on the field and the side with just one win in 2025 travelled to a Castleford Tigers side who themselves have won just two games in a basement battle to finish off the eleventh round of Super League XXX.

The bookies didn’t give Salford a ‘snowball in hell’s’ chance of winning, handicapping Castleford by twenty points on the coupon as they looked to repeat their round three victory when they won by 22-14.

A Red Devils win would lift them back off the bottom, but Castleford needed three wins to make any difference to their league position, however, one would be a good start for Danny McGuire’s men.

Two sides locked together in the bottom half of the table on ten league points met with the chance to finish the weekend in the top half of the table as Wakefield Trinity took on the Warrington Wolves in a seventh against ninth clash with a win for either side being enough to lift them above Hull FC.

Warrington were slight favourites with the bookies and had been given a two-point handicap on the coupon, but the scene was set for a battle royal between two sides trying to break into the play off positions in a game which for most was too close to call before kick off.

Wakefield have emerged victorious from their last four home meetings with Warrington, and you have to go back as far as 2019 for the last win for the Wolves on Trinity’s home paddock, Wakefield also won the round four encounter in Super League XXX by 30-14 in March.

It was second top against second bottom as Hull KR looked to climb back over the Wigan Warriors into top spot while the Huddersfield Giants knew that a second consecutive win would lift them up to four league points, level with tenth in the table Castleford.

The visitors had a massive twenty-eight point start on the handicap coupon, the bookies, pundits and most fans giving them little hope of a famous Hull double within a fortnight as Luke Robinsons men looked to salvage some pride out of a disappointing 2025 season.

In reality, the expectation was for a cricket score win for the Robins.

 

It was the clash of the embattled coaches as sixth placed St Helens, under the precarious coaching of Paul Wellens, took on seventh placed Catalans Dragons under the stewardship of an embattled Steve McNamara.

The winners would be up to fifth, or potentially fourth, and it was St Helens who were the favourites to win with the bookies as they were handicapped by twelve points on the coupon but both sides were looking to bounce back from consecutive losses.

Saints were victors in the round three meeting at the end of March by a single point, but honours were shared last year with a game apiece, the Dragons winning the four games before that for five victories in the last seven over the Saints.