Dave Ryan reports…
Leopards will take a step into the unknown when they start their National Cup campaign in late September.
Having been given a late promotion to Division One, the Big Cats will start a stage earlier than the rest of their league rivals and will travel to either Birmingham Mets or Team Derby in the second round on Sunday September 30.
Mets finished sixth in Division Three North with a 7-9 record (two games were void) last season while Derby will join them in the third tier after winning Division Four North at the first attempt with 19 wins from 22 games.
A possible trip to old rivals Westminster Warriors awaits the Big Cats if they reach round three, with Team Birmingham Elite or WLV Albion the other options.
The fourth round would see Leopards at home, with Division Two champions the most likely opposition, while the quarter-finals would also be at home with the possibility of former winners Reading Rockets or Manchester Magic likely to meet each other in the last 16.
The original Big Cats won the National Cup in 1997, while the current club also lifted the oldest piece of silverware in 2005/6 and again six years later.
