1895 Cup final: Wembley is a ‘really big lift’ for Featherstone Rovers and the town, says club legend Ian Hardman

That is the viewpoint of assistant coach, and club legend, Ian Hardman, who was part of the backroom staff when Rovers won the 1895 Cup for the first time at Wembley in 2021, as well as the unsuccessful defence the following year at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

They have returned to the showpiece final in 2025 after three superb victories over Keighley Cougars, London Broncos and Oldham, where they will face York Knights - the side they beat to lift the trophy in 2021.

However, their form in the Championship has been contrasting to say the least, with only five wins from their opening 11 games, although they have won their last three league outings.

Could this now reignite their campaign?

“Our league position has struggled a little bit this year,” admitted former captain Hardman, who scored 827 points, including 131 tries, for the club in the ten years he spent at Post Office Road as a player since signing from St Helens in 2009.

“It’s a really big lift for the club and the town. Our bread and butter is the Championship and the early stages of the season have been tough, but there have been a lot of contributing factors to that like missing some key personnel at key times.

“But, over the last month, we have shown some positive signs of being the team that we think we can be. We realise that the Championship is a long season and we need to keep building.

He added: “We hope that the positivity of getting to Wembley, and hopefully being successful at Wembley, can definitely have an effect on the rest of our season but it is up to us to make the most of it.

“We have had a relatively good record in this competition over the last few years. To get back to Wembley Stadium is a great achievement for the club and for the players and it’s a really good incentive.

“It is something that we are all looking forward to.”

After hanging up his boots in 2018 - his final act was to lift the Championship Shield - Hardman had a spell working with Leeds Rhinos’ foundation before returning to Featherstone in a supporting role as football manager in May 2021, a couple of months before their trip to Wembley to face York.

“It was a very strange situation because it was during Covid so there were restrictions on who could go,” revealed Hardman.

“There were positive tests and re-tests. It was a very stressful week going into that one.

“But it was a great occasion for the players. There were some younger players who got a chance to play, and it will have been great memories for a few of our lads who are still involved now like Josh Hardcastle and Gaz Gale and that I am sure they will want to replicate.”

And Hardman, who combines his current coaching role working in the Featherstone Rovers Foundation, knows how much another Wembley trip means to everyone involved.

He said: “The club means a lot to me because I played here for a number of years. I understand the importance of the club to the town, to the people and to the fans, and when we do have these big games you get a sense of how much the club means to people.

“I am made up for them. But, then again, finals are not a really nice place to lose. We are very much focussed on getting the job done when we get there and winning it.

“It’s an iconic stadium and it’s great that players and fans in the Championship get this opportunity to get down to Wembley. We are made up to be there. We are looking forward to it.”

Of Fev’s five victories in the league so far in 2025, one came against York in April. In a morale-boosting win, Rovers roared back from a 16-0 deficit at half-time to claim an astounding 24-22 triumph.

Where will the 2025 1895 Cup final be won and lost?

“We have to treat this as a one-off where the winner takes all,” Hardman said.

“York are a quality team with quality players. We had a couple of good battles with them last season and that has continued this year.

“They were comfortable at half-time in our league fixture this season and we were struggling. But we got our game going in the second half and the momentum swung and we managed to get a victory, albeit with some nervous times at the end of the game.

“They have got some great players that can definitely hurt us and they showed in their semi-final against Bradford that they can rise to the occasion as well.”

He added: “It will be a good, entertaining game, and there will be some interesting individual battles but, in finals, it’s about who can keep as calm as they can, who can get their game going as quick as they can, and who can make those good decisions under pressure.

“It is something that we’re all looking forward to and it will be a good battle.”