Taylor and Goole wrapped up in Challenge Cup magic

Scott Taylor won the Challenge Cup three times as a player, and twice with hometown club Hull FC

Betfred Challenge Cup second round: London Broncos v Goole Vikings

Venue: Rosslyn Park FC, London Date: Saturday, 25 January Kick-off: 12:30 GMT

Coverage: Live on BBC iPlayer and BBC red button service

Those doomsayers preaching that the historic Challenge Cup has lost its sparkle clearly failed to get their message across to Goole Vikings.

Rugby league's newest professional club are making their return to the oldest domestic knock-out competition in the game for the first time since the 1930s, and the buzz is tangible.

Led by head coach Scott Taylor, himself a three-time winner as a player, the Vikings are headed for the capital in their first professional outing, to face 1999 finalists London Broncos in round two.

"It's my first time as a professional head coach, it's exciting for the team and the club, we've all worked really hard up to now," Taylor told BBC Sport.

"It's a special moment, it'll be some of my players' biggest game of their careers so far. I'm just trying to pass on my experience and the magic of the cup.

"A few weeks ago before the draw was made I was able to take the Challenge Cup trophy around Goole, going to local businesses and sponsors and around the town.

"Even just going round the town plenty of people knew the cup, and even the ones who had no clue just looked at the trophy and said how special and historic a trophy it was.

"That's what it does. The magic of the cup is still there, any player or fan who has been to the final knows how special it is to see the cup lifted.

"It's very special for people to say they've competed in that cup, whether it's the first round or the final."

Taylor 'fire in belly' for new challenge

Jamie Shaul, former teammate of Taylor's at Hull FC, is among their new recruits

Situated just 30 miles west of the city of Kingston-upon-Hull, Goole is right in the midst of rugby league country, and in the Vikings had a community club representing the town in the amateur Yorkshire League competition.

That is, until president Anthony Whiteley and the club decided to apply to join the professional ranks last summer.

Their application was accepted, triggering a real push to get the infrastructure and personnel ready in time for 2025.

With former Hull FC chief executive James Clark on board and local businessman Mark Richardson adding to the expertise within the club, and Taylor appointed as head coach, the Vikings are ready to make their bow.

"I've got the fire in my belly," Taylor said. "It's a real big push and the reason I wanted to take this job out of the few I was looking at, the chance for me to set my mark early on with a new group of players.

"For me it's about building something from scratch and making it work as good as possible straight away and be competitive in all areas.

"We want to be as successful, make a really positive impact and show the Rugby Football League they might the right decision on accepting Goole as the new team."

Eccles 'sleepless nights' as Broncos wait

Mike Eccles stayed in post despite the upheaval and uncertainty of London's ownership situation

Saturday's opponents London Broncos have endured a tumultuous off-season with uncertainty around their future at the heart of it after owner David Hughes decided to step away after years of investment.

As such, head coach Mike Eccles might have wondered whether he would get to this stage of the season with a club to coach and players to select.

Yet here they are, ready for the off.

"Two years ago, wins were getting promoted and the play-offs; last year it was competing with the country's best and locking horns with some fantastic coaches," Eccles told BBC Radio London.

"Now it's simply just being here, existing, for the time being and having a team and putting the game on. We didn't know if we'd get to this point, we had to consider our futures and took a decision that we could do it."

There are only 12 contracted players for Eccles to select from, bolstered by two loanees from Wigan, but despite all the adversity the key factor is - the Broncos are still alive and breathing.

"We've had a lot of sleepness nights, we're far from out of the woods yet, but we've stabilised," Eccles added.

Putting learning into practice

Wayne Bennett was just one of the top coaches Scott Taylor played under during his career

Taylor's off-season was an equally busy one, if not as uncertain as his Broncos counterpart, as a squad needed to be assembled, training schedules created and gameplans written for a group built from scratch.

It is a challenge the 33-year-old has immersed himself in, having got the taste for coaching during his playing days as he took charge of community club Beverley.

That apprenticeship was the deciding factor for the Hull-born former England forward, who worked under such elite-level coaches as Wayne Bennett, Shaun Wane and Tony Smith during his playing days.

"I've had some of the best coaches in the world, and I've had some different coaching as well, so I feel I've managed to pick up things pros and negatives from these coaches throughout my career, which has sort of moulded me on what I think a head coach environment should look like and what it should do," Taylor added.

"I'm a young coach, so I'm going to make mistakes, but I've built a really honest group of staff with experience around me so they can pick up on things and be honest with me.

"I've got a really good senior playing group, I wanted to make sure I had some really quality experienced players there in Brett Ferres, Jamie Shaul and Thomas Minns, I can get constant feedback off them.

"As a head coach you've got to be open to criticism and changing things, it's about being open and honest. Full-blown honesty."

Rosslyn Park's homely ground is a long way from Wembley's Royal Box on cup final day, but for Taylor and the Vikings on Saturday, it will be just as significant a moment in cup folklore.