Villeneuve arrive in York today aiming for a hat-trick of Cup triumphs at Huntington Stadium.

The Leopards, the French champions, come on the back of a 22-6 defeat of Lezignan last week.

However, that was only their fourth win in nine games of a turbulent season. They lost several stars over the closed season, while financial worries came to a head last week when coach John Ackland, the New Zealander, quit due to unpaid wages.

As reported by the Evening Press this week, former York Wasps star Brad Davis has taken over alongside ex-French international David Despin.

Despite their problems, they have a fine Cup pedigree, including two wins over the Wasps in the past four years and a quarter-final appearance in 2001.

The first French club to appear in the Cup was former Super League side Paris St Germain in 1996-97, with Villeneuve and St Gaudens becoming the first to enter as French League clubs, in 1999-2000.

Villeneuve - the oldest professional club in France, formed in 1934, and the most successful French outfit of the last decade - have gone on to qualify for the competition in each of the last four seasons.

Updated: 10:13 Saturday, February 07, 2004