The Tigers experienced first hand how big the gulf is between the community and the professional game.

It didn't help that North Wales Crusaders are big spending and will almost certainly challenge for the Championship title in 2026 but the lesson here is how much more development needs to happen on the field here in Bedford.

"It's not the physicality as such, it's just the sheer speed of everything they're doing", commented Lewis Swindells as he tried to catch his breath after his first stint on the field. And his synopsis was as accurate as you'll get. Everything was in motion, highly accurate and at a tempo we just aren't used to in our competition.

The Challenge Cup has been a good experience for the club and one we will look to push for again as a target in 2026. Increased exposure, a big home crowd, (which was actually bigger than the one North Wales generated for our round 2 clash), and some learning curves will all stand the club in good stead moving forwards.

Focus now turns to recruitment and planning for the league season which starts on April 11th at home to North Herts.