GENE Ormsby capped his Barrow Raiders debut with a try to help them see off Sheffield Eagles in the Challenge Cup, but the match was overshadowed by an injury suffered by Joe Bullock.

Prop Bullock was taken off late in the game after needing treatment for a lengthy period following a bad tackle on him and was taken to hospital after the game, although this was more as a precautionary measure.

Nevertheless, it was enough to put a dampener on the day as the Raiders overcame fellow Betfred Championship side Sheffield to earn the chance of possibly drawing a Super League team in the next round.

Former Warrington Wolves and Huddersfield Giants three-quarter Ormsby went straight into the starting 13 for the Raiders after his registration went through in time.

He lined up at centre in a much-changed team alongside Andy Litherland, who was making his first appearance since the season-opener at London Broncos after being ruled out due to a sternum injury and then illness.

Elsewhere, Luke Cresswell came in at full-back, with Ryan Fieldhouse moving to stand-off due to Brad Marwood being unavailable.

Dean Parata dropped into the halves too, swapping with Karl Ashall at hooker, and fellow Australian Alec Susino moved to loose forward as skipper Martin Aspinwall was rested.

Jono Smith made a long-awaited comeback in the second row after recovering from tonsillitis, lining up alongside Jarrad Stack, playing his last game before a two-match suspension kicks in.

There was also a return to the team for Brett Carter and Glenn Riley after they missed last week’s defeat at Rochdale Hornets.

Sheffield gained some ascendancy in the opening minutes on the back of a penalty and drop-out, but the Raiders saw out that out and then took the lead after seven minutes when Joe Bullock set up Fieldhouse to scamper through from close range, with Carter adding the extras.

A penalty on halfway led to the Eagles hitting back seven minutes later after Matthew Fozard was able to stretch out and get the ball down on the line, followed by Oscar Thomas kicking the conversion to level the scores.

But Sheffield barely threatened for the rest of the half, with a string of handling errors proving costly. The hosts punished them for that as well, starting on 16 minutes when Fieldhouse returned the favour for Bullock to send the prop over for a try converted by Carter.

The Raiders’ third try followed six minutes later when the returning Litherland was held up short, and the ball was played out to Fieldhouse, who kicked it through for Stack to scoop up and twist his way over, followed by Carter adding the extras.

A break from Parata then led to Ormsby grabbing a try on his first outing for Barrow on 32 minutes, jinking his way through the defence for a score which, along with Carter’s conversion, saw the home side lead by 18 points at the interval.

The second half proved a much scrappier affair, but it was the Eagles who scored first on 59 minutes following a long spell of pressure after the Raiders had given away several penalties. It came when Iliess Macani finished in the corner, but it went unconverted.

Barrow pushed further ahead six minutes later when a show-and-go from Litherland saw him mark his return to action with an unconverted score, although the centre was on the receiving end of an apparent kick from Sheffield’s Ben Blackmore soon after which saw the visiting winger placed on report.

Ryan Millar did manage another converted score for Sheffield, coming after a long stoppage for to Bullock's injury, but it made little difference to the outcome and at full time it was Barrow who had booked their place in the fifth round of the competition.

They now await the draw on Tuesday evening, where they have the possibility of being paired with one of Super League quarter Warrington Wolves, Widnes Vikings, Catalans Dragons or Hull Kingston Rovers.

Barrow Raiders: Luke Cresswell; Shane Toal, Gene Ormsby, Andy Litherland, Brett Carter; Ryan Fieldhouse, Dean Parata; Joe Bullock, Karl Ashall, Tom Walker, Jono Smith, Jarrad Stack, Alec Susino. Interchange: Nathan Mossop, Dan Toal, Ryan Duffy, Glenn Riley.

Sheffield Eagles: Ryan Miller; Lliess Macani, Daniel Igbinedion, Joshua Toole, Ben Blackmore; Oscar Thomas, Simon Brown; Mark Offerdahl, Matthew Fozard, Shaun Pick, Matthew James, Oliver Davies, Kieran Moran. Gregory Burns, Nabil Djalout, Ben Morris, Jonathan Magrin.

Referee: Brandon Robinson.