Challenge Cup preview: Liam Finn wanting ‘Championship tempo and pace’ as Dewsbury Rams face Widnes Vikings

The Rams have won their opening four league games of the 2023 campaign and have beaten Ashton Bears and Rochdale Hornets to secure this lucrative tie with John Kear’s Championship outfit.

Ahead of the intriguing fixture, Finn said:

“It is a really important game for us in the sense that we want to be a Championship team, we want to be playing at a Championship tempo and at a Championship pace, so to be playing against a top Championship team at this stage will hopefully have that effect on us.

“It is a free hit but we want to keep our levels high, as that is where we want to be at. We know that the level alone at Championship is a higher standard than what we are playing.

“But we just need to be more consistent and do the good things for longer periods and stay in the game and be prepared to be patient and not give anything away in terms of discipline - penalties and errors. That will probably be the deciding factor in the game.

“It is like any step up at any level of sport. You have got to be tidier for longer and you have to be able to go with the tempo for longer. It will be a good test for where we’re at.”

Featherstone Rovers aside, the Championship, as expected before a ball was even thrown or kicked before the season, is proving to be a competitive division, with Widnes one of nine teams, situated between second and tenth, separated by only four points.

On the perceived inconsistency in the rugby league’s second tier, Finn said:

“It is just the quality of the league that brings inconsistency in results. I don’t think it is down to any one team being inconsistent - it is down to the quality of the competition and teams needing to be on it every week.

“I don’t think it is about any inconsistencies. I think it’s the opposite, more the consistency of the competition itself.”