Warrington Guardian Sports Editor Mike Parsons marks 30 years of watching Wolves as man and boy, reporter and supporter

WHEN I arrived at Craven Park for last year's Challenge Cup quarter-final tie between Hull Kingston Rovers and Warrington Wolves there was a typical cup-tie buzz about the place.

The buzz was borne from the home crowd's excitement at the possibility of a giant-killing in front of the BBC cameras, showing the world that KR were a force to be reckoned with again after spending too many years in the shadows of city rivals Hull FC.

And the optimism was built on the run of 17 successive wins by the National League One club, creating a confidence among supporters that not even a top-six Super League club could stand in their way.

I had felt all that before, when Wolves travelled to Cumbria to face Whitehaven in the quarter finals in 2004.

Whitehaven were going well at the time and that was another potential banana skin day for Wolves, with the BBC cameras on hand and staff believing all the local hype that one of the big guns was about to be scalped.

The Cumbrians gave Wolves a run for their money in the opening 30 minutes and there was only going to be one winner after that, with class and fitness shining through in the end.

I expected much the same at Craven Park last year.

But an hour before kick-off word spread like wildfire that Lee Briers would not be playing, withdrawing because of a hamstring injury.

The buzz among the east Hull throng grew louder because, although they were feeling positive in their hearts about a strong Robins performance, they knew in their minds that Briers was a major threat to their appearance in the semi finals.

In contrast, talk at the Wolves end of the ground was that the win would be harder without the skipper but on paper the team was still too strong and should defeat a National League One side.

With Wolves going 10-0 ahead inside 13 minutes and leading 22-12 after 30 minutes, any nerves should have been settled.

Alarm bells started ringing when Rovers fought back to lead 24-22 at half time and the scorching three tries in a six-minute spell in the second half consigned Warrington to their first ever defeat to a lower division club in the Challenge Cup.

It was a great day to be a KR fan and a neutral watching the game on TV. Wolves fans just wanted to die of embarrassment.

Hull KR have since proven that win was no fluke after making a great start to their first season in Super League.

But a loss at The Halliwell Jones Stadium two weeks ago, when Wolves were missing Briers and fellow half back Chris Bridge, highlights that Rovers will not be able to feel such a lift from any of Warrington's key men that may not be playing today.