A SQUAD of cup heroes are to be treated with a Wembley appearance -12 months after a historic victory, writes Rod Winstanley.

Thatto Heath became one of only four amateur teams to defeat professional opposition in the Silk Cut Challenge Cup when they beat Chorley Borough 27-12 last season.

And as part of the Challenge Cup celebrations they have been invited to appear on the hallowed turf on May 3.

The squad who played at Chorley will be introduced to the crowd before the Plate Final between Hull KR and Hunslet.

But one member of the team will be missing . . .

Stand-off Mark Cook has his own match of the day back in St Helens.

He's due to marry fiancee Christine Clishan from Newtown.

For the record, the other amateurs who've beaten their professional counterparts are West Hull, Dudley Hill and Beverley.

And the Heath team that played at Chorley was:

Dave Donoghue, Mark Pilkington, Barry Ford, Lee Gannon, Ray Waring, Mark Cook, Howard Hughes, Dave Mitchell, Lyndon Smith, Paul Ashurst, Terry Moran, Norman Barrow and Darren Harris, with substitutes Martin Horton and Jimmy Waterworth. A week later Ray Waring and Lyndon Smith signed for Chorley, joined by team-mates Mark Gleave and Ste Gee.

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