Widnes find relief in easy Challenge Cup win over Rochdale Hornets

With four defeats in a row and Oldham’s shock victory against Hull KR 24 hours earlier alerting Super League sides to the dangers of the Challenge Cup this year, a visit to Rochdale Hornets had the hallmarks of a difficult afternoon for Widnes but in the end Denis Betts’ side enjoyed a serene passage into the last 16.

Oldham’s performance on Saturday had suggested that the gap between full-time and part-time sides was narrowing but the Vikings presented a firm illustration that Super League sides still hold a high level of superiority over their lower league counterparts.

As far as they were concerned this was a timely return to form – 12 tries and a first win in five before a compelling-looking derby against Warrington on Friday night.

Rochdale, the early pacesetters in League One,, the sport’s third tier, had briefly threatened an upset when Paul Crook put them in front after 20 minutes but that was merely the catalyst for Widnes to turn their game up a gear. They were without some key pivots, as Rhys Hanbury and Joe Mellor were rested after the Easter period, but in truth the Widnes captain, Kevin Brown, provided enough input on his own to see the Vikings safely through to the next round.

“It was a no-win situation for our guys,” Betts said afterwards. “They had everything to play for and we had everything to lose but it was a seriously clinical performance. We showed a lot of energy and I’m proud of the attitude above all else, because we went about our business really well.”

The Hornets led 6-4 after the opening quarter thanks to Crook’s conversion of his own try following an earlier score for Chris Bridge but they were the only points Rochdale could muster. The young half-back Jordan Johnstone provided a prompt response for Widnes before Brown’s first of a hat-trick put real daylight between the sides for the first time.

Chris Dean crossed soon after before Johnstone was forced from the field with concussion after a dangerous-looking tackle from the Rochdale forward Jo Tairia, an incident which saw him shown the yellow card by the referee, James Child, but which irked Betts. “I thought it was atrocious. It was a red card straight away,” he said.

With Johnstone off and another youngster in Tom Gilmore already withdrawn with a shoulder injury, Brown spent the remainder of the afternoon as Widnes’s only recognised half-back but it mattered little. They scored four tries during the 10-minute period they held a numerical advantage, with Brown’s second followed by tries for Corey Thompson, Bridge’s second and Stefan Marsh – with Thompson’s superb break for the last a moment that underlined the gulf in class between the two sides.

Manase Manuokafoa’s try as the game entered the final quarter was followed by Brown’s third and, even though he was withdrawn shortly after, further tries for Bridge and Matt Whitley completed an uneventful progression into the sixth-round draw on Thursday. Widnes will now turn their attention towards fixing their stumbling league form against the Wolves on Friday.

Rochdale English; Lee, Ratu, Dandy, Bloomfield; Crook, Yates; Tahraoui, Moores, Thompson, Biscomb, Case, Tilley. Interchange Hadden, Trumper, McClurg, Tairia.

Try Crook. Goal Crook.

Widnes Thompson; Flynn, Chamberlain, Bridge, Marsh; Gilmore, Brown; Manuokafoa, White, Dudson, Whitley, Dean, Leuluai. Interchange Brooks, Chapelhow, Johnstone, Cahill.

Tries Bridge 3, Johnstone, Brown 3, Dean, Thompson, Marsh, Manuokafoa, Whitley. Goals Bridge 7.

Referee J Child. Attendance 1,242.