YORK Acorn boss Josh Mortimer will not be underestimating Wath Brow Hornets when the sides meet in the Fourth Round of the Betfred Challenge Cup this afternoon (2pm).

The fixture will be Acorn’s first in front of their home fans this season, having been drawn away at both Orrell St James and Betfred League One side Cornwall so far during their competition run.

Mortimer’s side sealed their place in the Fourth Round with an 18-10 upset on the South Coast in a game marred by sinbins, confrontations and alleged crowd trouble a fortnight ago.

But though their tie with the fellow NCL premier division outfit may seem relatively straight forward on paper, the Acorn boss warned that his side can take nothing for granted in their quest to progress in the competition.

“On paper it is very winnable,” he told The Press. “But Wath Brow are a brilliant team, they’re a top-end NCL team.

“I have no idea what the odds for them are to win the league, but I guarantee it will be short. I’ve never come across a bad team from Wath Brow.”

Acorn have come out on top in the sides’ meetings in North Yorkshire for the last two seasons, but Mortimer admits that knock-out rugby is a different ball game.

“We’ve got a decent record against them at home but a pretty shoddy one away!” he explained. “But I’m sure they’ll be looking to win, it’s the Fourth Round of the Challenge Cup.

“They like to bring quite a few fans over and hopefully try to create an atmosphere.

“They’ve got some great players, Ellison Holgate plays for them at nine, he’s a fantastic player, and they’ve got some real good workmen in the middle.

“I thought that we were pretty average against Orrell, I thought that we were pretty good against Cornwall in the conditions, but I think we’re going to have to be pretty good or brilliant to get past Wath Brow in this fixture.”

The opportunity to play Betfred Championship opposition in the Fifth Round is undoubtedly a carrot for either team, but though Acorn have the coveted home advantage, Mortimer insists that his side cannot afford to think that Wath Brow will roll over.

“The pressure is not necessarily on, but there’s a big carrot at the end of it.

“It’ll be fantastic if we can get past them, but we’re certainly not full of our own self-importance and thinking ‘oh, we beat a semi-pro team, Wath Brow they’ll be easy’.

“That definitely won’t be the case.

“I’m not even sure where we play anymore, it’s been that long since we played at home!

“You’d like probably a less-significant home tie to start off your season, weed out a few cobwebs and make sure everything runs smoothly.

“But I’m buzzing, and I think that Wath Brow are probably buzzing as well.

“It’s great to get all these Cup ties, but you want them at home so that you can make some money.”