176-639: The York Knights are the men's professional rugby league team of York RLFC , based in York , England. The club play their home games at York Community Stadium and currently compete in the Championship , the second tier of British rugby league . The club, which was founded as the York City Knights , is a phoenix club established after the original York club folded in 2002. The Knights played in blue and white until 2017 when they reverted to
352-433: A 22–10 win, before Saints claimed the 2014 Super League Grand Final by a score of 14–6, taking a 2–1 lead in their Super League Grand Final head-to-heads. Wigan and St Helens have also met in 4 Premiership Finals, Wigan winning 3, St Helens once, 3 Lancashire County Cup Finals, St Helens winning two, Wigan one, and one Floodlit Trophy Final in 1968, Wigan winning 7–4. The two have traditionally met each other in
528-617: A breakaway faction of England's Rugby Football Union (RFU). Both organisations played the game under the same rules at first, although the Northern Union began to modify rules almost immediately, thus creating a new simpler game that was intended to be a faster-paced form of rugby football. Similar breakaway factions split from RFU-affiliated unions in Australia and New Zealand in 1907 and 1908, renaming themselves "rugby football league s" and introducing Northern Union rules. In 1922,
704-675: A club logo. A club mascot, Norris the Knight, was introduced making his first public appearance in December 2003 and taking part in the Mascot Grand National in 2006. In the 2016 season, with the Knights sharing a ground with York City F.C., they launched an away kit in blue and red; the colours of the football club and proposed colour scheme of the future community stadium. However, the club changed ownership in December 2016 and
880-580: A decree by the RFU banning the playing of rugby at grounds where entrance fees were charged led to twenty-two clubs (including Stockport, who negotiated by telephone) meeting at the George Hotel, Huddersfield , on 29 August 1895 and forming the "Northern Rugby Football Union". Within fifteen years of that first meeting in Huddersfield, more than 200 RFU clubs had left to join the rugby league. In 1897,
1056-414: A defensive and disciplined edge that was never apparent under Ian Millward. His personality and relationship with the fans was an additional reason why St Helens fans were disgruntled in him leaving after four years in charge and why next boss Mick Potter faced a fair amount of criticism in his initial period as boss. Mick Potter was announced as the successor to Anderson, which received many plaudits from
1232-574: A disappointing low mid—table finish. During the First World War , St Helens struggled to compete and failed to complete the full fixture list of the Emergency War League on two occasions, with the club finishing mid—table in the first year of the war, as well as being beaten by 37 points to 3 by Huddersfield in that year's Challenge Cup Final. The aftermath of the war was still taking its toll on national sport, not merely
1408-405: A four-yearly cycle in the 2010s; as of 2023 , the holders are Australia . A short-sided version of the sport, rugby league nines , using modified rugby league rules also exists, and is comparable to rugby sevens . Wheelchair rugby league is a mixed-gender sport using heavily modified rugby league rules for disabled and able-bodied players. Unlike wheelchair rugby which adopted its name after
1584-504: A good late run of form including wins over Whitehaven , Doncaster and Rochdale Hornets , York were relegated back to National League Two at the end of the season culminating in a 60–16 defeat to Leigh Centurions at Hilton Park . York finished second bottom, above Oldham with five wins and thirteen defeats, three points below Doncaster. They did however, win the Fairfax Cup, after beating Batley 14–10 in their first appearance in
1760-540: A late try by Penrith took the game into extra-time. In the 2023 Super League season, St Helens finished third on the table equal on points with league leaders Wigan and the Catalans Dragons. In the elimination playoff, the club defeated Warrington which set up a match with Catalans at the Stade Gilbert Brutus. St Helens lead the match until the final minute when Catalans player Sam Tomkins scored
1936-538: A mid—table side was once more apparent. The first two years of the 1950s, the last two years of Peter Lyons' reign, also ended trophyless. The arrival of Jim Sullivan as head coach in 1952 heralded a successful era for St Helens, and helped to establish the club as a respected force in British and eventually world rugby league. Under Sullivan, St Helens reached, and lost, the 1952–53 Challenge Cup final. They didn't have long to wait for trophies as St Helens won
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#17327987140582112-572: A mid—table side. They finished second to bottom in the 1900–01 Lancashire League season, meaning they did not qualify to compete in the national league the year later. In the 1901–02 season, however, they did finish third in the Lancashire league. In 1902–03 , the combined Lancashire and Yorkshire leagues saw St Helens enter for the first time. St Helens were placed in Division 1 but finished next to bottom and suffered relegation. Promotion
2288-437: A mix of the two sports' rules. Much more so than rugby union, rugby league shares significant similarities with North American gridiron codes. Although described as evolving from both rugby and association football , the basic structures of American and Canadian football are remarkably similar to rugby league through a process of parallel evolution: a try-and-goal based scoring system, a set number of plays before handover of
2464-502: A one-year deal. York won one league game all season beating Swinton Lions 26–22. Thus York finished bottom of the pile. Chris Thorman announced he would be joining the coaching staff at Huddersfield Giants at the end of the season. He was to be replaced by Gary Thornton who was appointed head coach in 2012 . 2013 started off well for the City Knights and looked to be challenging for the playoffs. A run of eleven straight losses at
2640-463: A one-year rolling contract in September 2007. He took York to sixth place again with eleven wins and ten losses. Even though there were three promotion places available (two automatic, one via the playoffs), the Knights failed to capitalise and lost in the playoffs to Rochdale Hornets 12–28. Gateshead Thunder and Barrow Raiders went up automatically, Doncaster went up via the playoffs. 2009 saw
2816-588: A positive note, made it a hat—trick of ex—Blackbrook Royals to win the Man of Steel Award whilst playing for St Helens. This would be Anderson's last game in charge of the club, as he announced he was to return to Australia and the Parramatta Eels of the NRL . St Helens fans and players alike were saddened to see Anderson leave, after not only upholding the tradition of St Helens exciting brand of rugby, but giving them
2992-633: A professional level. 45 national teams are ranked by the RLIF and a further 32 are officially recognized and unranked. The strongest rugby league nations are Australia , England , New Zealand , Samoa and Tonga . The Rugby League World Cup is the highest form of representative rugby league. Countries that have contested are Australia , Cook Islands , England , Fiji , France , Ireland , Italy , Jamaica , Lebanon , New Zealand , Papua New Guinea , Russia , Samoa , Scotland , South Africa , Tonga , US and Wales . The 2021 Rugby League World Cup, which
3168-675: A replay. St Helens retained the Lancashire Cup the year later, whilst also winning the Lancashire League for being the highest placed Lancashire side in the National standings, and they also reached the final of the Floodlit Trophy that season, where they were beaten 7–4 by Wigan. The 1969–70 season would be the year that Evans would leave his post, but not without winning a National Championship, beating Leeds in
3344-404: A reprieve. Dewsbury were also saved after Barrow Raiders received a points deduction meaning the Knights finished fourth bottom. Just six days later Dave Woods was sacked by the club. In 2012, there were no relegation spots available and thus, York decided against strengthening their squad. Chris Thorman was appointed head coach and former Leeds Rhinos full back Jordan Tansey signed for the club on
3520-453: A result play stops much less frequently in rugby league, with the ball typically in play for 50 out of the 80 minutes compared to around 35 minutes for professional rugby union. Other differences include that there are fewer players in rugby league (13 compared to 15) and different rules for tackling . Rugby union has more detailed rules than rugby league and has changed less since the 1895 schism. Since rugby union turned professional in
3696-407: A season until they could find a permanent home. In 2016 the Knights began ground sharing with York City F.C. at Bootham Crescent. The Crescent had a capacity of 8,256 with 3,409 seats and the remaining capacity was standing. In March 2021 the knights played their first match at York Community Stadium in a pre-season game against Hull F.C. The stadium has a capacity of 8,500. In 2002, following
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#17327987140583872-587: A team that was widely regarded as an entertaining team to watch, but seemed to be constant runners-up. This was illustrated by the defeat by Halifax in the Challenge Cup final at Wembley, 19–18, in 1987. Success was achieved in 1988 when St Helens lifted their one and only John Player Trophy with a 15–14 victory over Leeds in January 1988, at Central Park , Wigan . Neil Holding with the crucial, match-winning drop-goal . They, however, lost to Widnes in
4048-415: A team's creative unit or 'playmakers'. During the interactions between a team's 'key' players (five-eighth, half-back, fullback, lock forward, and hooker), the five-eighth and half-back will usually be involved in most passing moves. These two positions are commonly called the "halves". The forwards' two responsibilities can be broken into "normal play" and "scrum play". For information on a forward's role in
4224-516: A third successive time and from winning the cup for a fourth time running. This defeat naturally came as a shock to the St Helens faithful, after so often in the last 15 years seeing the team reach the pinnacle of this competition and go on to win the cup. It was from here that the criticism began, and questions were raised particularly of his tactics and his activity (or lack of) in the transfer market. On 3 October 2009, Saints defeated fierce rivals
4400-666: A traditional rivalry with Wigan Warriors as the two most successful clubs in the British game, and close regional rivals. The clubs face each other traditionally on Good Friday . The club also have a local rivalry with the Warrington Wolves and a rivalry with Leeds Rhinos borne out of close competition during the Super League era. St Helens are the oldest members of the Rugby Football League . Founded as St Helens Football Club on 19 November 1873 at
4576-401: A try underneath the posts to win the match for Catalans and end St Helens four-year dominance of the competition. St Helens began the 2024 Super League season strongly winning six of their opening seven games. However, injuries in the middle of the season to key players saw results drop. On 26 July 2024, St Helens were defeated by Leigh 46-4 which meant the club had lost five matches in a row for
4752-512: A two—legged game, St Helens won 92–11 on aggregate. In their first Challenge Cup Final of the 1970s, they defeated Leeds in 1972 16–13, in addition to winning their first Floodlit Trophy, after losing out in the final three times before, with an 8–2 win over Rochdale. The club reached the Championship final in that season, but were beaten. No success was achieved in seasons 1972–73 and 1973–74, with St Helens finishing third and second in
4928-401: A value of 2 points when kicked from beyond the 40 metre line. Field position is crucial in rugby league, achieved by running with or kicking the ball. Passing in rugby league may only be in a backward or sideways direction. Teammates, therefore, have to remain on-side by not moving ahead of the player with the ball. The ball may be kicked ahead, but if teammates are in front of the kicker when
5104-421: A winger from Northampton , signed a professional contract with the club, and has made great strides in the under 18s after his signing from Northampton Demons. There is a strong rivalry between St Helens and Wigan ; the local derby between the two clubs has been traditionally regarded as the biggest in British rugby league , as well as one of the oldest in world rugby league. Both being founder members of
5280-557: Is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 m (74 yd) wide and 112–122 m (122–133 yd) long with H-shaped posts at both ends. It is one of the two major codes of rugby football , the other being rugby union . It originated in 1895 in Huddersfield , Yorkshire , England, as the result of a split from the Rugby Football Union (RFU) over
5456-474: Is conducted under the direction of the Federation of International Touch (FIT). Though it shares similarities and history with rugby league , it is recognised as a sport in its own right due to its differences which have been developed over the sport's lifetime. Touch is a variation of rugby league with the tackling of opposing players replaced by a touch. As touches must be made with minimal force, touch
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5632-432: Is the dominant winter sport in the eastern Australian states of New South Wales and Queensland . The game is also among the predominant sports of Tonga and is played in other Pacific nations such as Samoa and Fiji . Researchers have found that rugby league has been able to help with improving development in the islands. In Australia, and indeed the rest of the region, the annual State of Origin series ranks among
5808-555: Is therefore considered a limited-contact sport. The original basic rules of touch were established in the 1960s by members of the South Sydney Junior Rugby League Club in Sydney, Australia . OzTag is a non-contact form of rugby league, and can be seen as a variation of British tag rugby. Cronulla Sharks and St George Dragons halfback Perry Haddock introduced the sport in Australia while coaching
5984-413: Is worth. One of the main differences is the rules of possession. When the ball goes into touch , possession in rugby union is contested through a line-out , while in rugby league a scrum restarts play. The lesser focus on contesting possession means that play focuses more on powerful running, hard tackling, forward progression and the contest for field position (commonly compared to an "arm wrestle"); as
6160-602: The 1953–54 Challenge Cup Final replay at Odsal Stadium , Bradford , England, setting a new record for attendance at a rugby football match of either code. Also in 1954, the Rugby League World Cup, the first for either code of rugby, was formed at the instigation of the French. In 1966, the International Board introduced a rule that a team in possession was allowed three play-the-balls and on
6336-509: The 1999 NRL season . Figure shown is the total attendance which is officially counted for both games. ** The official attendance of the 1954 Challenge Cup Final replay was 102,569. Unofficial estimates put the attendance as high as 150,000, Bradford Police confirming 120,000. St Helens R.F.C. St Helens R.F.C. , commonly known as Saints , is a professional rugby league club in St Helens, Merseyside , England . Founded in 1873,
6512-545: The 2000 World Club Challenge , losing 44–6 to Melbourne , but lead them to retaining their Super League title in 2000 beating Wigan 29–16. They also won the Challenge Cup in 2001; 13–6 over Bradford, with the final held at Twickenham Stadium for the first time, and the 2001 World Club Challenge , earning a 20–18 win over the Broncos. Millward then lead Saints to the top of Super League VII , and to reclaim
6688-612: The 2013 season . Famous wins in 2014 came against Hunslet whom they beat three time, 28–26 away in March, 40–0 at home in May and won the league at the South Leeds Stadium after the comeback was sealed thanks to a Colton Roche Try meaning the Knights won 20–18. They also beat Oldham 54–14 at home. York City Knights topped Championship 1 but lost in the end of season play-offs to Hunslet Hawks , thus failing to secure promotion back
6864-400: The 2019 Super League Grand Final at Old Trafford against Salford . St Helens won the match 23–6 securing their 14th championship. At the end of the 2020 season, St Helens finished second behind league leaders Wigan. After easily accounting for Catalans Dragons in the semi-final, St Helens played against Wigan in the 2020 Super League Grand Final . With only seconds remaining and with
7040-454: The ARL and NZRL . Since rugby league was introduced to Australia in 1908, it has become the largest television sport and 3rd most attended sport in Australia. Neighbouring Papua New Guinea is one of two countries to have rugby league as its national sport (with Cook Islands ). Australia's elite club competition also features a team from Auckland , New Zealand's biggest city. Rugby league
7216-583: The Grand Final , after Leeds beat Catalans in the eliminators, and Wigan in the semi-final. St Helens won the match 24–12, to win their fourth final in a row, and by doing so, they become the first team in Super League history to win four in a row. Before the start of the 2023 Super League season, St Helens travelled to Australia for the 2023 World Club Challenge . A week before the match, St Helens played one pre-season trial fixture against St. George Illawarra which St Helens won 30–18 at WIN Stadium . In
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7392-634: The International Rugby League . Rugby league is the national sport of Papua New Guinea and the Cook Islands and is a popular sport in countries such as England , Australia , New Zealand , France , Tonga , Fiji , Samoa , Lebanon , Jamaica , and Malta . The first Rugby League World Cup was held in France in 1954, the first World Cup of either rugby code, and has been held sporadically ever since, settling into
7568-472: The Lancashire Leagues , in 1952–53 , The 1953 Championship final against Halifax was held at Manchester City's Maine Road ground; in front of a crowd of over 50,000, Saints won their second Championship 24–14. They also won the 1953 Lancashire Cup, beating Wigan 16–8 at Swinton, the first time the two old rivals had clashed in a major final, Saints. Sullivan took Saints to their first victory in
7744-657: The Lance Todd Trophy after sharing the award with team-mate Leon Pryce the year earlier. They also achieved first place again in the 2008 Super League season—for the fourth year running —winning the League Leaders Shield , and beat Leeds 38–10 for the right to go to Old Trafford to contest the Grand Final. However, St Helens were once again defeated by Leeds in the Grand Final , by a margin of 24 to 16, on 4 October 2008. James Graham , on
7920-513: The League Championship 17 times, the Challenge Cup 13 times and World Club Challenge on three occasions. Since the foundation of the Super League in 1996, Saints have been the most successful team, winning 10 championships (including 4 in a row between 2019 and 2022), and being runner up a further 5 times (losing to Leeds Rhinos each time between 2007 and 2011), while winning the League Leaders Shield 9 times. They club have
8096-493: The Magic Weekend too. The two teams have a pretty even record, winning two (at Millennium Stadium in 2007 and 2008) and losing two (at Murrayfield in 2009 and Etihad Stadium in 2012), with one draw (at Millennium Stadium in 2011) in five ties. St Helens greatest winning margin and the highest game score between the two in competitive football was a 75–0 win in a 2005 Challenge Cup round 6 game. Wigan's biggest win
8272-694: The National League Cup on 19 January with a bumper crowd of 3,105. In their first year, the Knights finished fourth with 11 wins, a draw and 6 losses. They made the National League Two play-offs but lost 50–30 to Barrow Raiders. Paul Broadbent resigned as coach at the end of the season. Richard Agar was appointed head coach for the following year. They made it all the way to the Challenge Cup Quarter-final, losing 50–12 to Huddersfield Giants . York also made
8448-704: The New South Wales Rugby Football League was founded at Bateman's Hotel in George Street. Unlike in England, where both codes maintained their own geographic areas of dominance, in Australia rugby league went on to displace rugby union entirely as the primary football code in New South Wales and Queensland , while Australian rules football dominated the rest of Australia. On 5 May 1954, 102,569 spectators watched
8624-494: The Northern Rugby Football Union , the derby has been played since 1895, making it amongst the most historical derbys in both British and global rugby league. Remarkably, the first encounter between the fierce rivals ended in a 0–0 draw at Knowsley Road , The games were traditionally played on Boxing Day , however were moved to Good Friday , during the busy Easter period in rugby league. More recently,
8800-557: The Northern Union after defecting from rugby union and association football . The Recs were based individually at the City Road ground, after previously sharing with St Helens, before their move to Knowsley Road, when neither played rugby league. The Recs played their first game on 6 September 1913. St Helens now had two professional rugby league teams. In both sides first year in co—existence, St Helens finished yet again in
8976-749: The Ottawa Aces were scheduled to join the English league pyramid, becoming the only Canadian team in the system after the Wolfpack were denied re-entry. The club subsequently relocated to Penryn, Cornwall , and are now known as Cornwall R.L.F.C. In 2021, the North American Rugby League announced an attempt to be North America's professional championship, with Canadian club Toronto Wolfpack joining several USA Rugby League clubs, New York Freedom and Cleveland Rugby League to form
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#17327987140589152-533: The Premiership Final at Old Trafford at the end of the season, further showing this team's ability to get to finals and not be able to compete on the best stage. Nothing was achieved in the next two seasons, including a defeat in the 1989 Challenge Cup Final and Murphy stood down as coach. Murphy was succeeded by Mike McClennan in February 1990. In his first season, McClennan took St Helens to
9328-509: The Rugby Football Union to form their own Northern Union in 1895, York initially stayed with the RFU but in 1901 they joined the new entity. The original York Wasps folded in March 2002. After a last-ditch take-over deal to save the Wasps collapsed, the RFL accepted the club's resignation on 26 March 2002. A supporters' trust working party was formed on 27 March and applied to the RFL to continue
9504-598: The Rugby League European Federation and Asia-Pacific Rugby League Confederation expanding the game to new areas such as Chile , Canada , Ghana , Philippines , Czech Republic , Germany , The Netherlands , Sweden , Norway , Spain , Sri Lanka , Hungary , Turkey , Thailand and Brazil to name a few. The two most prominent full-time professional leagues are the Australian National Rugby League and
9680-479: The York International 9s . 2007 was a poor season for the City Knights, finishing sixth in the league with ten wins and twelve losses. There was also a record defeat for York City Knights in the Challenge Cup 5th round losing 74–4 to Huddersfield Giants, Chris Spurr getting York's sole try. Mick Cook quit as coach at the end of the season to run his business and Paul March was appointed player-coach on
9856-488: The final on 25 August 2007. They were beaten in the Grand Final that year by Leeds by 33 points to 6, despite finishing at the top of the league ladder for the third successive season. James Roby , however, became the second St Helens player, and home—grown talent in two years to win the Man of Steel Award. Saints success in the Challenge Cup continued in 2008 with a victory at the new Wembley Stadium , this time defeating Hull F.C. 28–16. Paul Wellens received
10032-507: The line-out was abolished and in 1898 professionalism introduced. In 1906, the Northern Union changed its rules, reducing teams from 15 to 13 a side and replacing the ruck formed after tackles with the play-the-ball . By this point, rule changes meant the game organised by the RFL was distinct as a sport from its union cousin. A similar schism to that which occurred in England took place in Sydney , Australia. There, on 8 August 1907
10208-508: The 1960s, Saints became one of the most successful side of the summer era . Since the inception of Super League in 1996, they have won the title on eight occasions, and have added seven Challenge Cups to their five previous successes. Indeed, they won the inaugural Super League , albeit by finishing top of the league before the play—off era. St Helens defeated Bradford 8–6 in the 1999 Super League Grand Final , their first Grand Final, with more than 50,000 people witnessing Chris Joynt lift
10384-430: The 1964–65 Championship final to Halifax at Station Road, Swinton . The 1965 New Zealand tourists appeared at Knowsley Road on Wednesday 15 September. Saints inflicted a 28–7 defeat on their visitors, their biggest loss of the tour. A League and Cup double was achieved under Coan in the 1965–66 season, whilst they lost the Floodlit Trophy final against Castleford . St Helens were beaten by Wakefield Trinity in
10560-431: The 1967 Rugby Football League Championship Final at Station Road, Swinton on 10 May 1967 by 20 points to 9 in a replay, after a 7–7 draw 4 days earlier. This would be Coan's last year in charge at St Helens after a highly successful period as boss. He was replaced by Cliff Evans . Evans' first full season in charge at the club saw him win the club's eighth Lancashire Cup in 1968; winning 13–10 against Warrington after
10736-526: The 1990s, when News Corporation paid for worldwide broadcasting rights. The media giant's "Super League" movement created changes for the traditional administrators of the game. In Europe, it resulted in a move from Rugby League being a winter sport to a summer one, as the new Super League competition tried to expand its market. In Australasia, the Super League war resulted in long and costly legal battles and changing loyalties, causing significant damage to
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#173279871405810912-617: The 1991 Challenge Cup Final, where they were defeated by 13 points to 8 by Wigan. They won the Lancashire Cup, in the 1991–92 season, beating Rochdale Hornets . They also lost the Premiership Final that season, losing to Wigan. In 1993 the club avenged their defeat by Wigan the season previous to win the Premiership, in the same season that they won the Charity Shield , and lost the Lancashire Cup final. McClennan
11088-518: The 1992 St George Jersey Flegg side. Together with Chris Parkes, the two took the sport to fields across Australia. Today, it is played by over 200,000 players in organised leagues across the country. League Tag replaces tackling with the removal of one of two tags carried on an opponent's hips, attached directly to specific League Tag shorts with Velcro patches, but otherwise retains almost all other rules of traditional rugby league (such as kicking). A number of additional rules are also added relating to
11264-416: The 2002 Northern Ford Premiership fixtures. After hearing it would be impossible to meet requirements to return that season, on 5 May fans backed a proposal for a new club to apply for admittance to the league for 2003. The RFL accepted York's bid to play in the newly formed National League Two on condition that they had £75,000 in the bank by 31 August. The new club decided that the best way to raise cash
11440-511: The 2011 season saw the emergence of a new crop of talent, with players such as Jonny Lomax and Lee Gaskell stepping up to fill the gaps left by senior players and earning rave reviews for their performances. In 2012, the club moved into their new home at Langtree Park . However, the season started with a terrible run of results, which culminated in Royce Simmons being sacked in March. With assistant coach Kieron Purtill also leaving,
11616-454: The 2017 Kingstone Press League 1 in their inaugural season and earned promotion to the 2018 Rugby League Championship. In 2019 The Wolfpack won promotion to the Super League, lasting only a few months before having to withdraw due to the ongoing worldwide COVID-19 pandemic . New ownership is currently trying to revive the club with matches against amateur clubs in the US and Canada. Beginning in 2022,
11792-505: The 2021 RFL Championship season in 9th place. The following year, the club reached the playoffs by finishing sixth. However, a month before the playoffs began on the 21 August 2022, York suffered a club record 100–4 loss against Leigh . In the playoffs, York upset Halifax in the first week to set up another match against Leigh. On this occasion, York were defeated 70–10 which ended their season. The Knights played their first game at Huntington Stadium on 19 January 2003. It had previously been
11968-674: The British Super League (with teams from New Zealand and France respectively). Other professional and semi professional leagues include Australia's Queensland Cup (which includes a team from Papua New Guinea ) and NSW Cup , the British RFL Championship and RFL League 1 , the French Super XIII and Elite 2 . The Papua New Guinea National Rugby League operates as a semi-professional competition and enjoys nationwide media coverage, being
12144-506: The Challenge Cup final (against Halifax in 1956), On Saturday 24 November 1956, St Helens inflicted a touring Australia its biggest ever defeat with a 44–2 win. The following year saw Saints win the 1956-7 Lancashire League 1956–57 and they won it again in 1958–59 . Sullivan's second championship came in 1958–59 . A second Lancashire County Cup came in 1960–61, Ex—St Helens captain and prop-forward Alan Prescott took over from Jim Sullivan as head coach in 1959. Perhaps
12320-523: The Championship. Gary Thornton was sacked and was replaced by James Ford for the start of the 2015 season where the Knights are now homeless after John Guildford failed to sign up for the Community Stadium deal. John Guildford has stepped down as Chairman and appointed four directors; Stephen Knowles, Dave Baldwin, Neil Jennings and Gary Dickenson, the latter has since stepped down. On 18 June 2015, York City Knights reserves were kicked out of
12496-628: The Championship. They beat Oldham 25–6 at the Halliwell Jones Stadium in Warrington . The Knights had finished the regular season 13 points behind their final opponents. York finished third-bottom of the Championship in 2011, but bottom club Toulouse were exempt from relegation so, with two going down, the Knights faced demotion along with Dewsbury Rams – until the RFL decided not to admit Crusaders into this division following their withdrawal from Super League, thus earning York
12672-642: The Fleece Hotel by William Douglas Herman, they played their first ever match on 31 January 1874 against Liverpool Royal Infirmary. They became known as St Helens Rangers up until the 1880s. The club moved from the City Ground in 1890 where they had shared with St Helens Recs when neither were members of the Northern Rugby Football Union. They defeated Manchester Rangers in the first match played at Knowsley Road. In 1895
12848-530: The Floodlit Trophy in the 1978–79 season, going down to Widnes. The 1979–80 season was unsuccessful, with St Helens finishing mid—table. Eric Ashton left the club after this disappointing year. Former club player and Welsh international Kel Coslett took over as coach in June 1980. However, his spell as coach was not nearly as successful as his spell as a player, and St Helens won nothing whilst under Coslett's command, finishing mid-table in both seasons. He held
13024-454: The Knights start positively and looked like they could challenge for the title. After a Sky Sports game at home to Oldham, March was sacked in due to disciplinary matters and then director of rugby James Ratcliffe took over. The Knights finished third but eventually lost in the playoffs in the semi-final to Oldham 44–14. Chris Thorman arrived at the club in 2010 as assistant to Ratcliffe but saw himself become acting head coach while Ratcliffe
13200-534: The National Rugby League, this was reduced to ten prior to the 2008 season and further reduced to eight prior to the 2016 season. If a team has to interchange a player due to the blood bin rule or due to injury, and this was the result of misconduct from the opposing team, the compromised team does not have to use one of its allocated interchanges to take the player in question off the field. The backs are generally smaller, faster and more agile than
13376-475: The Northern Union also changed its name to the Rugby Football League and thus over time the sport itself became known as "rugby league" football. In 1895, a schism in Rugby football resulted in the formation of the Northern Rugby Football Union (NRFU). The success of working class northern teams led to some compensating players who otherwise would be on their job and earning income on Saturdays. This led to
13552-411: The RFU reacting to enforce the amateur principle of the sport, preventing "broken time payments" to players who had taken time off work to play rugby. Northern teams typically had more working class players (coal miners, mill workers etc.) who could not afford to play without this compensation, in contrast to affluent southern teams who had other sources of income to sustain the amateur principle. In 1895,
13728-561: The Recs in the Lancashire County Cup Final by 10 points to 2 in the 1926–27 season. The season after, they were trophyless, finishing tenth in a 28—team league. One year after the Challenge Cup's début at Wembley , St Helens reached the final there where they were defeated by 10 points to 3 by Widnes in 1930. They won their first ever National Championship in the 1931–32 season, defeating Huddersfield 9–5 in
13904-644: The St. Helens fans and the European game as a whole, as the year previous he had led the Catalans Dragons to a record—high third—placed finish in the league. On 9 August 2009, St Helens reached a record ninth consecutive Challenge Cup semi—final, where they were beaten by 24 points to 14 by the Huddersfield Giants . This prevented Saints from reaching the final at the new Wembley Stadium for
14080-473: The Super League title in the 2002 Grand Final , Sean Long snatching a last minute 19–18 win over the Bradford with a drop—goal . They lost the 2002 Challenge Cup Final to Wigan at Murrayfield Stadium by 21 points to 12. They were hammered in the 2003 World Club Challenge by Sydney by 38 points to 0. In this season, they failed to win a trophy after being knocked out of the Challenge Cup by Leeds at
14256-583: The Wigan Warriors to book their place at a fourth consecutive Super League Grand Final , only to lose out to the Leeds Rhinos in the final, 18–10, making the Leeds Rhinos the only team to win the Grand Final three times consecutively. A 20-year-old Kyle Eastmond scored all of Saints' points. A trophyless year for the first time since 2003 was another catalyst to Potter's critics abusing and slating his appointment, with even rumours of rifts within
14432-519: The Year Coach Award – this was the first time a rugby league coach had won the award. After a slow start to the 2007 season , Saints added to their history by beating Brisbane 18–14 to win the 2007 World Club Challenge . In July, they beat Super League rivals, Bradford , to reach the first Challenge Cup final at the new Wembley Stadium. Here, St Helens successfully defended their Challenge Cup by defeating Catalans Dragons 30–8 in
14608-476: The amount of youth talent that the club homed. More early examples of players that made the grade following on form their stints in the academy and reserves (previously known as the "St Helens Colts") include Steve Prescott , Paul Forber , Gary Connolly , and Chris Arkwright . St Helens' traditional policy with youth was to make them better players for the club. Now, however, it can be argued that Saints look to make them internationals, with no less than five of
14784-447: The ball comes into contact with the ground. An attacking team gets a maximum of six tackles to progress up the field before possession is changed over. Once the tackle is completed, the ball-carrier must be allowed to get to his feet to ' play-the-ball '. Ball control is also important in rugby league, as a fumble of the ball on the ground forces a handover, unless the ball is fumbled backwards. The ball can also be turned over by going over
14960-421: The ball is kicked, they are deemed off-side. Tackling is a key component of rugby league play. Only the player holding the ball may be tackled. A tackle is complete, for example, when the player is held by one or more opposing players in such a manner that he can make no further progress and cannot part with the ball, or when the player is held by one or more opposing players and the ball or the hand or arm holding
15136-433: The big stage was once more shown, going down in this semi—final by 32–28. Defeating Huddersfield Giants in the qualifying semi—final in the 2010 play-off series by 42–22 not only saw Saints qualify for their fifth Grand Final in five years, but also saw the final ever game to be played at Knowsley Road. Fittingly, Cunningham snatched the final ever try at the famous old ground in typical fashion from dummy—half. However, for
15312-613: The changing rooms. 2010 was the year that saw Potter surrender to his critics and leave St. Helens. Criticisms from club legends like Paul Sculthorpe and Sean Long regarding his personal skills with the fans, as well as the continued fan rejection saw him let his contract run out and, initially, seek a job in the NRL, but eventually, and perhaps surprisingly, join Bradford on a two—year contract. Names like Royce Simmons , Mal Meninga , and assistant coach Kieron Purtill , were linked with
15488-478: The city's traditional home colours of amber and black. The club was renamed as York RLFC in 2022 with the men's team continuing to be known as the Knights and the women's team becoming the Valkyrie . The first club was formed in 1868 as "York Football Club", playing both codes, association and rugby football in different fields as the club did not have their own venue. When Northern rugby teams broke away from
15664-406: The club as soon as all necessary legal steps had been taken. The following day a joint statement from the club, the RFL and the city council was issued stating "We continue to work to resolve this situation and are hopeful that ways can be found for James Ford and his players to be able to fulfil the remainder of their fixtures this season." On 25 July the club owner, John Guildford, announced that he
15840-487: The club broke two 24 year old world records for rugby league when they beat West Wales Raiders 144–0, beating the previous highest score of 142–4 ( Huddersfield Giants v Blackpool Gladiators , November 1994) and the previous record margin of 138 points ( Barrow Raiders v Nottingham City , 138–0, also November 1994). At the end of the 2018 season, York were promoted back to the RFL Championship. York finished
16016-493: The club is one of the oldest members of the Rugby Football League , and one of the most successful clubs in its history. The club plays their home games at the Totally Wicked Stadium and currently compete in Super League , the top tier of British rugby league system . Since 1961 the club's home colours have been distinctive white shirts with a prominent red "V" on the chest of the jersey. St Helens have won
16192-429: The club issued a statement that ownership of the Knights had passed entirely to a consortium headed by Jon Flatman. The following day the RFL confirmed that the team would be re-instated into League 1 for the 2017 season. In January 2017, it was revealed that the club will play all home fixtures in 2017 and 2018 at York City 's Bootham Crescent , and that the team colours had changed to amber and black. In April 2018,
16368-447: The club later. The club reverted to this kit for one season during the rugby league centenary season in 1995 . The Challenge Cup was launched in 1897 and it was St Helens who contested its first final with Batley , at Headingley , Leeds . The "Gallant Youths" of Batley emerged victorious 10–3, with Dave "Red" Traynor scoring the lone St Helens' try. Between 1897 and 1901, St Helens were not successful, even generally considered
16544-402: The club were one of 22 clubs that resigned from the Rugby Football Union and established the Northern Union . The first match of the new code was an 8–3 win at home to Rochdale Hornets before 3,000 spectators, Bob Doherty scoring St Helens' first try. They played in a vertically striped blue and white jersey—a stark contrast to the well known broad red band which would become the kit for
16720-473: The club's ability to compete and complete fixtures, on 31 January 1918 'close down' due to a lack of finances following a 22–0 defeat by Widnes. Saints re-open on 25 December 1918 and are beaten 20 points to nil by St Helens Recs in a friendly fixture at City Road. In the shortened 1918–1919 season, St Helens played only nine times. The club's lack of success and disappointing league finishes continued for another seven seasons. The club defeated town rivals
16896-425: The club's new stadium upon its construction in 2012. He would additionally take up a coaching role with the academy, as well as a strength and conditioning role with the first team. In light of these decisions, neither Cunningham nor Potter halted their personal and the St Helens team quest for success; shown by their tenth successive semi—final appearance in the Challenge Cup . However, Saints failure to perform on
17072-419: The coaching reins were taken up by youth coach Mike Rush for the remainder of the 2012 season, with Keiron Cunningham acting as his assistant. Following St Helens's defeat by Wigan in the quarter-final of the Challenge Cup, which ended a run of 11 consecutive semi-final appearances, it was announced that Nathan Brown would be taking over as head coach for 2013, with Rush moving back into his previous role. At
17248-469: The code in an extremely competitive sporting market. In 1997 two competitions were run alongside each other in Australia, after which a peace deal in the form of the National Rugby League was formed. The NRL has since become recognised as the sport's flagship competition and since that time has set record TV ratings and crowd figures. The objective in rugby league is to score more points through tries , goals and field goals (also known as drop goals) than
17424-452: The current St Helens squad's youth products having gone on to represent either Great Britain or England or both. St Helens youth policy does not operate solely in the borough boundaries of the town. Indeed, many of St Helens current and past squads call areas like Widnes, Wigan, Cumbria and Oldham home. St Helens have, also, branched even into rugby union territory and other wider national areas for youth players; most recently, Daniel Brotherton,
17600-404: The demise of York Wasps, the newly established York club sought a new beginning with a new identity that left behind the difficulties associated with the previous club. The team adopted a blue and white kit rather than the traditional amber and black colours and competitions were held in the local newspaper, The Evening Press , first to choose a new name, York City Knights RLFC, and then to design
17776-615: The departing members of the squad that many had hoped for, but nevertheless, a new era was just around the corner, as Simmons' reign began. Australian Royce Simmons took over from compatriot Mick Potter for the start of the 2011 season. As the club awaited completion of the new stadium, all home fixtures in 2011 were played at the Halton Stadium in Widnes , effectively meaning St Helens were forced to play an entire season of away fixtures. In addition, they suffered upheaval in terms of
17952-767: The end of the Super League XIX regular season, St Helens claimed the League Leaders' Shield and reached the 2014 Super League Grand Final against Wigan where they won the match 14–6 claiming their 13th premiership. In the Super League XXIII season, St Helens claimed the League Leader's Shield and Ben Barba who had joined the club that year won the Man of Steel award. St Helens were favourites to reach another grand final but were upset in
18128-403: The end of the season and failure to win away in the league since June 2011 saw them relegated back to Rugby Leagues basement tier. They made the 5th round of the Challenge Cup losing 92–8 away at Catalans Dragons . The Knights finished the season seven points from safety with six wins and twenty losses. York City Knights played in Championship 1 , as they finished bottom of the Championship in
18304-595: The famous 'Dads Army' final. They also won the Premiership against Salford , and the Floodlit Trophy against Dewsbury in a successful season. In the same year, St Helens lost to Eastern Suburbs in an unofficial World Club Challenge Final by 25 points to 2. The club won the Premiership in 1977, but, on 13 December 1977, Saints lost 26–11 to Hull Kingston Rovers in the final of the BBC2 Floodlit Trophy . In 1978 Leeds avenged their 1972 loss against St Helens, emerging winners by 14–12. St Helens lost
18480-507: The final after finishing third overall. The 1970s were also seen as a successful spell for St Helens, as they reached three Challenge Cup finals in the period. Jim Challinor took over from Cliff Evans in 1970, and in his first season, he won the Championship, and reached two finals, the Lancashire Cup and Floodlit Trophy, losing both. In this season, a European Championship—not dissimilar to today's World Club Challenge —was contested between St Helens and French champions St Gaudens . Over
18656-426: The final. This was the same season that they won their second Lancashire League , the first coming in the 1929–30 season. They lost the 1933 Lancashire Cup Final to Warrington, whilst finishing in no competitive position in the league once more. St Helens reached no finals or achieved any more honours during the remainder of the 1930s. Also, what appeared to be building as something of an inter—town derby between
18832-478: The finest youngsters, potential stars and internationals the world of rugby league has seen. Although initially, players were signed either from other clubs, or would go straight into first team reckoning after being signed from their amateur club at a much later age than today's system; as the game became more widespread in the town, across the North—West and nationally, a system had to be introduced in order to suffice
19008-464: The first time since the Super League era began. St Helens would finish the 2024 Super League season in sixth place on the table, their lowest finish of the Super League era. The club were eliminated in the first week of the playoffs against Warrington. St Helens were not expected to win the game but took Warrington to golden point extra-time where George Williams would kick the winning drop goal for Warrington. The St Helens academy has produced some of
19184-485: The first time. They were now only one tier away from Super League. They had the highest crowd average for National League One teams, of 1,986. York's game against Hunslet on 25 May 2005 drew a crowd of 3,224 which at the time was a record for National League One. York kicked off their first season in rugby league's second tier, losing 25–18 away at Widnes Vikings . They lost their first seven games before finally beating Oldham 62–0 and then again 15 days later, 54–10. Despite
19360-630: The five years prior to the Second World War , the sport's popularity increased as Frenchmen became disenchanted with the state of French rugby union in the 1930s. However, after the Allied Forces were defeated by Germany in June 1940, the Vichy regime in the south seized assets belonging to rugby league authorities and clubs and banned the sport for its association with the left-wing Popular Front government that had governed France before
19536-463: The following month it was announced that both the home and away kits would change to the amber and black historically associated with rugby league in York, and which had previously been used for heritage and away kits. The club badge initially remained blue and white, but this too would change colour the following year when the 2018 kit launched featuring a new logo that commemorated the 150th anniversary of
19712-547: The football, each play restarting from a set piece position and ended by a tackle. Although the Canadian Football League in particular maintained the word 'rugby' in its name for many years, alluding to that shared past, the introduction of the forward pass and unlimited substitution in North American games created a fundamentally different species of game from either original rugby code. Although
19888-407: The forwards. They are often the most creative and evasive players on the field, relying on running, kicking and handling skills, as well as tactics and set plays, to break the defensive line, instead of brute force. Generally forwards play a more collision oriented game, making ground by pure strength, and tackling near the play-the-ball. Usually, the stand-off/five-eighth and scrum-half/half-back are
20064-406: The fourth tackle a scrum was to be formed. This was increased to six tackles in 1972 and in 1983 the scrum was replaced by a handover. 1967 saw the first professional Sunday matches of rugby league played. The first sponsors, Joshua Tetley and John Player , entered the game for the 1971–72 Northern Rugby Football League season . Television had an enormous impact on the sport of rugby league in
20240-478: The fourth year running, St Helens once more proved flops in the Grand Final . One of the finest finals of the Super League era was anticipated, but the flamboyant Saints that the fans saw so rarely under Potter once more failed to materialise, and, in front of a near sell—out crowd of 71,526, they fell to a 22–10 loss to rivals Wigan. It was not the romantic finish to the Saints careers of Potter, Cunningham or any of
20416-643: The game was even played on Maundy Thursday in Super League. In all league encounters between the two since 1895, there have been 235 games, with Wigan having won nearly double the number of games that St Helens have. Saints winning 83, drawing 11 and losing 141. All competitive games, i.e. cup and league games combined, show that in the 366 games played, St Helens have won 141, there have been 19 draws and Wigan have won 206. They too have contested no fewer than 6 Challenge Cup Finals, and have met in three Super League Grand Finals ; St Helens winning 29–16 in 2000 , with Wigan initially gaining revenge in 2010 , with
20592-403: The golden era of the club came in the 1960s, as well as more lately in the Super League era . With a galaxy of stars including Tom van Vollenhoven , Alex Murphy , Dick Huddart , Cliff Watson , Ray French and Vince Karalius , the 1960s was a decade of great success for the Saints. In Prescott's first season as coach he lifted the Lancashire League in the 1959–60 season . During this decade,
20768-585: The ground, with the ball usually set in a kicking tee , and the opposing team not allowed to directly challenge the kicker. The Super League in Europe and the National Rugby League (NRL) in Australasia are the world's premier club competitions. Globally, rugby league is played internationally , predominantly by European , Australasian , and Pacific Island countries, and is governed by
20944-411: The historic link between the codes continues to be acknowledged, neither Canadian or American football is commonly considered a rugby code today except in the broadest sense, and are more commonly referred to collectively as gridiron codes, or simply as 'football' within their respective countries. Players on the pitch are divided into forwards and backs , although the game's rules apply to all players
21120-415: The home ground of York Wasps until they were dissolved in 2002. The capacity was 3,428 and the stadium also had an athletics track. The Knights left the stadium at the end of the 2014 season and it was later demolished to allow for the building of York Community Stadium which is on the same site. The Knights were left homeless and were forced to ground share with local amateur team Heworth A.R.L.F.C. for
21296-440: The invention of the sport previously called murderball and is not directly linked to rugby union, wheelchair rugby league has grown out of the parent sport, and retains key aspects of that sport such as an egg shaped ball, the forward-pass rule and conversions. While not a Paralympic sport, the sport has its own Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup . A further variation for ambulatory disabled players, physical disability rugby league ,
21472-412: The issue of payments to players. The rules of the game governed by the new Northern Rugby Football Union progressively changed from those of the RFU with the specific aim of producing a faster and more entertaining game to appeal to spectators, on whose income the new organisation and its members depended. In rugby league, points are scored by carrying an oval ball and touching it to the ground beyond
21648-498: The job for 2011. Simmons was the chosen man for the job, as announced on 22 July 2010. The 2010 season would also see legendary hooker and captain Keiron Cunningham retire from the game after 17 years with his one and only club. However, Cunningham would not be leaving without leaving a lasting legacy on the club. A lifelike bronze statue of Cunningham was built and placed on display in the town, before being transported to
21824-511: The league's inaugural season. Several brand new clubs from Western USA were scheduled to join in 2022 but never played. The new competition is sanctioned by Canada Rugby League , but not yet by the United States governing body. Unfortunately, while some exhibition matches were played in 2021 and 2022, NARL was defunct by 2023 The early 21st century has seen other countries take up the game and compete in international rugby league with
22000-549: The management of Prescott. After his departure in 1962, Stan McCormick led the club to retaining the Lancashire Cup in his first year, again beating Swinton; and St Helens made it a quadruplet of Lancashire Cup successes with wins against Leigh in 1964, and once more Swinton in 1965, the latter success under coach Joe Coan. St Helens won the Western Division Championship under McCormick's rule, beating Swinton 10–7. St Helens, under coach Joe Coan, lost
22176-453: The mid-1990s, it has increasingly borrowed techniques, tactics and even laws from rugby league, while high-profile players and coaches from the league game have increasingly gone on to success in the union code in those countries where both codes are popular (e.g. Andy Farrell , Jason Robinson and Henry Paul ). The inherent similarities between rugby league and rugby union have at times led to experimental hybrid games being played that use
22352-537: The most popular sporting events. The Rugby League European Federation are responsible for developing rugby league in Europe . In England, rugby league has traditionally been associated with the historic northern counties of Yorkshire , Lancashire , and Cumberland , where the game originated, especially in towns and cities along the M62 corridor . Its popularity has also increased elsewhere. As of 2024 , only two of
22528-413: The national sport of the country. Five main variant sports of rugby league exist worldwide; Touch , OzTag , League tag , Nines , and Sevens . Touch, OzTag, and League Tag are all non-contact versions of the sport, where as Nines and Sevens are both reduced form (shorter match times and smaller teams) of the sport. Touch (also known as touch football or touch rugby) is a variant of rugby league that
22704-494: The new Super League, although the club was dissolved in 1997. In 2006, the Super League admitted the Catalans Dragons, a team from Perpignan in the southern Languedoc-Roussillon region. They have subsequently reached the 2007 Challenge Cup Final and made the playoffs of the 2008 Super League XIII season. The success of the Dragons in Super League has initiated a renaissance in French rugby league, with new-found enthusiasm for
22880-405: The north of England there have been complaints about its lack of profile in the British media. On the eve of the 2017 Rugby League World Cup final where England would face Australia, English amateur rugby league coach Ben Dawson stated, "we're in the final of a World Cup. First time in more than 30 years and there's no coverage anywhere". France first played rugby league as late as 1934, where in
23056-404: The opposing team's goal line; this is called a try , and is the primary method of scoring, worth four points. The opposing team attempts to stop the attacking side scoring points by tackling the player carrying the ball and denying forward progress. On occasion, where a clear try scoring opportunity has been thwarted by foul play, a penalty try may be awarded without the ball being grounded over
23232-475: The opposition within the 80 minutes of play. If after two-halves of play, each consisting of forty minutes, the two teams are drawing , a draw may be declared, or the game may enter extra time under the golden point rule, depending on the relevant competition's format. The try is the most common form of scoring, and a team will usually attempt to score one by running and kicking the ball further upfield or passing from player-to-player in order to manoeuvre around
23408-400: The opposition's defence. A try involves touching the ball to the ground on or beyond the defending team's goal-line and is worth four points. A goal is worth two points and may be gained from a conversion or a penalty . A field goal, or drop goal, is only worth one point and is gained by dropping and then kicking the ball on the half volley between the uprights in open play. A field goal has
23584-737: The original York club. On 14 October 2022, the club announced that it had changed its name to York RLFC as an umbrella term with the men's team continued to be known as the Knights. The women's team became the Valkyrie . Both teams introduced new logos as part of the rebrand. Head coach Updated: 21 October 2022 Source(s): [1] Gains Losses League Cups Rugby league Rugby league football , commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby XIII in non- Anglophone Europe and South America, and referred to colloquially as football , footy , rugby , or league in its heartlands,
23760-592: The play-off final by Halifax 34–30 at the Halton Stadium in Widnes. Agar left York to join Hull F.C. as an assistant coach. York appointed Mick Cook as their new head coach in 2005 as part of a partnership with Super League club Leeds Rhinos . Cook's side made it to the 5th round of the Challenge Cup losing 62–0 to St. Helens 62–0 at Knowsley Road . At the end of the league season they were champions by three points and were promoted automatically to National League One for
23936-413: The playing squad; having already lost the influential Cunningham to retirement and other club legends like Sean Long, the start of the season was overshadowed by the news that Kyle Eastmond , who had been earmarked as Long's replacement, and inspirational leader James Graham were both looking to leave the club. A number of serious injuries to further key players such as Leon Pryce and Ade Gardner meant
24112-542: The position they play, similarly to association football . Substitutes (generally referred to as "the bench") are allowed in the sport, and are typically used when a player gets tired or injured , although they can also be used tactically. Each team is currently allowed four substitutes, and in Australia and New Zealand, these players occupy shirt numbers 14 to 22. There are no limitations on which players must occupy these interchangeable slots. Generally, twelve interchanges are allowed in any game from each team, although in
24288-470: The post for two years before handing over to Billy Benyon . Not in-keeping with several of his predecessors, Benyon did not enjoy any success in his first season as St Helens coach, losing the Lancashire Cup final of that year to Warrington. Nothing was won in the 1983–84 season, but Saints won back the Lancashire Cup, with a 26–18 win at Wigan in the 1984–85 season. They also won the Premiership in
24464-498: The preliminary final by Warrington 18–13 at Langtree Park . During the Super League XXIV season, St Helens reached the Challenge Cup final against Warrington but lost the match 18–4 at Wembley Stadium . At the end of the Super League XXIV regular season, St Helens won the League Leader's Shield for a second consecutive year after finished 16 points clear of second placed Wigan . St Helens would go on to reach
24640-590: The public design a club logo which was based on the New South Wales Rugby League Team 's logo, while they picked new colours of blue and white – a move away from York RL's traditional amber and black. John Guildford, majority shareholder of York building firm Guildford Construction, was revealed to be the majority shareholder. They played at Huntington Stadium , where the previous incarnation of York RL played. The Knights played their first game at home against Hull Kingston Rovers in
24816-415: The recognisable 'red vee' strip first appeared in 1961 for the final against Wigan . St Helens won this epic 12–6, and the kit has since become synonymous with the club. Mick Sullivan joined Saints for £11,000, then a record transfer fee. They won the Lancashire Cup in the 1961–62 season, with a 25–9 success over Swinton (at Central Park , Wigan ) seeing yet more silverware come St Helens' way under
24992-572: The reserve league and banned from entering the 2016 competition. The first team still remained homeless. At the end of the 2015 season, York City Knights finished Fourth in League 1 and qualified for the playoffs. They lost out to Swinton Lions 17–16 on the Golden Point They were also knocked out in the League 1 Cup second round by Newcastle Thunder. They reached the fifth round of the Challenge Cup, losing to St. Helens 46–6. In July 2016 it
25168-416: The respective years. This could be a possible reason for Jim Challinor's replacement with Eric Ashton as head coach. In Ashton's first season in charge, St Helens won the Championship, and contested the inaugural Premiership Final, losing 26–11 to Leeds. They repeated their first Challenge Cup success of the 1970s three years after the first against Widnes in 1976 where they were victorious by 20–5 in
25344-479: The same season with a 36–16 victory over defending champions Hull Kingston Rovers at Elland Road in Leeds . The 1984–85 season saw the arrival (for one season only) of giant Australian international centre Mal Meninga who quickly became a crowd favourite at Knowsley Road. In Benyon's last season as coach, 1985–86, nothing was won. The arrival of Alex Murphy as coach in 1986 produced some colourful displays from
25520-501: The same way. Each position has a designated number to identify himself from other players. These numbers help to identify which position a person is playing. The system of numbering players is different depending on which country the match is played in. In Australia and New Zealand, each player is usually given a number corresponding to their playing position on the field. However, since 1996 European teams have been able to grant players specific squad numbers, which they keep without regard to
25696-403: The scores locked at 4-4, St Helens scored a try after the siren through Jack Welsby to win back to back championships in the most dramatic of circumstances. On 17 July 2021, St. Helens won the Challenge Cup for the first time in 13 years beating Castleford in the final 26–12. St. Helens had trailed the match at half-time 12–6. St Helens finished the 2021 Super League season in second place on
25872-496: The scrum see rugby league scrummage . Forward positions are traditionally named after the player's position in the scrum yet are equal with respect to "normal play" with the exception of the hooker. Forward positions are traditionally assigned as follows: Rugby league is played in over 70 nations throughout the world. Papua New Guinea is the only country to have rugby league as its national sport . Four countries – Australia, England, France, and New Zealand – have teams that play at
26048-498: The semi-finals of the Championship Cup , losing 32–0 to Hull Kingston Rovers. After finishing second in the league, and three points behind Barrow, the Knights entered the playoffs. They lost 37–20 in the qualifying semi final to Halifax and then beat Workington Town 70–10. Mark Cain broke the record for most tries in a match and the score was the highest points tally since the Knights were born. They were narrowly beaten in
26224-476: The semi—final stage, and the Super League play—offs by Wigan at the same stage. In 2004 they beat arch—rivals Wigan 32–16 at the Millennium Stadium , Cardiff in front of a capacity crowd of 73,734 people to win the Challenge Cup , Long gaining his second of an eventual three Lance Todd Trophies . Millward's reign was not without controversy and his St Helens career ended controversially after he
26400-524: The sideline. Rugby league and rugby union are distinct sports with many similarities and a shared origin. Both have the same fundamental rules, are played for 80 minutes and feature an oval-shaped ball and H-shaped goalposts. Both have rules that the ball cannot be passed forward, and dropping it forwards leads to a scrum. Both use tries as the central scoring method and conversion kicks , penalty goals and drop goals as additional scoring methods. However, there are differences in how many points each method
26576-526: The specific issues associated with a tag based game. Rugby League played with nine players per team with nine minutes per half, in addition to slight rule modifications to aid the game. Rugby League played with seven players per team with seven minutes per half, in addition to slight rule modifications to aid the game. The top five attendances for rugby league test matches (International) are: The top five attendances for domestic based rugby league matches are: * NRL double header played to open Round 1 of
26752-663: The sport in the south of the country where most of the Super XIII teams are based. In other parts of Europe, the game is played at semi-professional and amateur level. As of 2023, there is no professional rugby league in North America. From 2017 to 2020, the Toronto Wolfpack were North America 's only active professional Rugby League team, competing in the English Rugby League system. They won
26928-769: The summer era. Additionally, Paul Wellens received the Man of Steel Award for the 2006 season. In December 2006 St Helens were awarded with the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Team Award at the Annual BBC Sports Personality of the Year Ceremony. This accolade recognises the best team in any sport within the United Kingdom. At the same ceremony Daniel Anderson was given the BBC Sports Personality of
27104-478: The table. They then went on to defeat Catalan Dragons 12–10 in a hotly-contested Grand Final, securing the club's first league and cup double since 2006 and an historic 'three-peat' - becoming only the second team in the summer era to win three consecutive championships. St Helens ended the 2022 regular season as League Leaders, thus earning them a bye to the semi-finals. They beat Salford 19-12, to reach their 4th consecutive Grand Final. They faced Leeds in
27280-400: The team was facing an uphill battle on the field all season. However, despite all the problems faced, St Helens defied the odds to reach their 11th Challenge Cup semi-final in a row, and at the end of the season they qualified for their sixth consecutive Grand Final. However, for the fifth year in a row they were on the losing side, as the injury-plagued squad finally succumbed to Leeds. However,
27456-492: The trophy at Old Trafford. They also won the World Club Challenge in 2001 and 2007 , beating Brisbane both times. In 2023 they then beat Penrith Panthers 13-12 in Australia to win it for a third time. The success of the Saints in Super League began under the leadership of Shaun McRae in 1996. During his tenure the club won one league title ( 1996 ), a year in which he was named Super League's coach of
27632-482: The try line. In addition to tries, points can be scored by kicking goals. Drop goals (or field goals) can be attempted from the hand at any time for a single point. Following a successful try, the scoring team gains a free kick to try at goal with a conversion worth a further two points. Penalty kicks at goal, known simply as penalties, may also be awarded for general foul play, and are also worth two points. Unlike drop goals, penalty kicks and conversions are taken from
27808-507: The twelve Super League teams are based outside of these traditional counties: Catalans Dragons and London Broncos . One other team from outside the United Kingdom, Toulouse Olympique , competes in the British rugby league system , although not at the highest tier Super League level, but rather in the second tier Championship . Super League average attendances are in the 8,000 to 9,500 range. The average Super League match attendance in 2014
27984-560: The two St Helens clubs was struck down as St Helens Recs played their last game on 29 April 1939, as, due to the economic depression , it was not possible for the town to sustain two teams. Like during the First World War, the club could not enjoy having a full—time squad during the Second World War and struggled to compete. They did not compete in the National Championship until a 17 team Emergency War League
28160-580: The war. The sport was unbanned after the Liberation of Paris in August 1944 and the collapse of the Vichy regime, although it was still actively marginalised by the French authorities until the 1990s. Despite this, the national side appeared in the finals of the 1954 and 1968 World Cups, and the country hosted the 1954 event. In 1996, a French team, Paris Saint-Germain was one of eleven teams which formed
28336-491: The week leading up to the World Club Challenge game against Penrith , many pundits, former players and coaches predicted St Helens would lose the match heavily with Phil Gould stating "Penrith should be allowed to declare at half-time". St Helens would go on to win the World Club Challenge game 13-12 in golden point extra-time to claim their third trophy in the competition. St Helens had led the match 12-0 until
28512-545: The year, and enjoyed back—to—back successes over Bradford in the Challenge Cup (1996 and 1997 ). St Helens lost consecutive Premiership finals to Wigan in 1996, and 1997. 1998 proved to be a trophyless year, and Ellery Hanley succeeded McRae in 1999, after the Australian left for new Super League side Gateshead . Hanley led Saints to Grand Final success against Bradford in October of his first year in charge. Hanley
28688-472: Was 8,365. In 2018 average Super League match attendance was 8,547. Ranked the eighth most popular sport in the UK overall, rugby league is the 27th most popular participation sport in England according to figures released by Sport England ; the total number of rugby league participants in England aged 16 and over was 44,900 in 2017. This is a 39% drop from 10 years ago. While the sport is largely concentrated in
28864-509: Was announced the club would not be able to play their first game of the Super 8s against Doncaster at Bootham Crescent due to York City FC playing on the Saturday, meaning that the Knights would have to play midweek due to there having to be 24 hours between games at the stadium. Due to the disputes between the owner and the council, the club directors announced that they would be winding up
29040-537: Was awarded the Lance Todd trophy for a record third time for his man—of—the—match performance during the final. St Helens followed up their Challenge Cup win by claiming the League Leader's Shield , before cementing their reputation as the team of the year by defeating Hull 26 points to 4 in the Super League Grand Final . Once more St Helens confirmed their status as the outstanding team of
29216-402: Was considered by many to be a polarising figure and after several acrimonious disagreements with the St Helens board of directors, he was sacked a month into the following season . Ian Millward was appointed as Hanley's successor as head coach. Under Millward, St Helens quickly became the most exciting team in the competition, playing expansive, attacking rugby. He saw them soundly beaten in
29392-552: Was created and had its first world cup in 2022 to coincide with the rescheduled 2021 Rugby League World Cup competitions. Rugby league football takes its name from the bodies that split to create a new form of rugby, distinct from that run by the Rugby Football Unions, in Britain, Australia, and New Zealand between 1895 and 1908. The first of these, the Northern Rugby Football Union , was established in 1895 as
29568-518: Was formed in the 1941–42 season, and did not win any regional honours. They finished bottom of the EWL in seasons 1942–43 and 1943–44 and next-to-bottom in 1944–45. The club's fortunes that had seen them be successful so rarely the decade previous did not change in the 1940s. After the commitments of the Second World War, St Helens still found it hard to compete, and the trend of finishing as
29744-479: Was gained at the first attempt, only for another poor year to see them finish once again in a relegation position. However the two Divisions became one League to save the club from a second relegation. The Champion fortunes that St Helens fans' greet today were certainly not apparent in this period, with the club finishing fourth to bottom in 1907, third to bottom in 1908, and consistently mid—table between 1909 and 1913. On 14 June 1913, St Helens Recs joined
29920-622: Was head coach until December 1993, when Eric Hughes succeeded him as head coach in 1994. Under Hughes, St Helens only reached the one, Regal Trophy Final, where they lost to Wigan in 1996 by 25 to 16. They finished fourth in both of Hughes' seasons in charge. The lack of trophies in the St Helens cabinet, after the club had suddenly become so accustomed to success, would need to change in the "new" brand Super League that formed in 1996; hence Hughes' departure in 1996 and replacement with Australian Shaun McRae . Following on from their most constant ambition for successes, first experienced really in
30096-479: Was hosted by England during October and November 2022, staged the Men's , Women's and Wheelchair competitions together for the first time. The competition formerly featured 16 teams, but has been cut down to 10 for the upcoming 2026 Rugby League World Cup . The Asia-Pacific Rugby League Confederation 's purpose is to spread the sport of rugby league throughout their region along with other governing bodies such as
30272-436: Was in negotiation with local businessman, Gary Dickenson, and that the sale would be of a club "virtually debt-free" enabling the Knights to continue to run. however on 23 August Dickenson discontinued the negotiations. Following the collapse of the sale to Dickenson, Guildford put the club up for sale to any interested buyer. The RFL issued a deadline of 1 December 2016 for ownership issues to be resolved and late on 1 December
30448-552: Was named as head coach. York were fifth in Championship 1 at the time after seven wins and six losses in the league. Woods' first game was a 60–12 victory over Gateshead and finished third in the table and thus qualified for the play-offs. After losing to Oldham, York then beat Blackpool Panthers in the semi-final where they'd face Oldham in the final. On 26 September 2010, the Knights won the Co-operative Championship 1 play-off Grand Final to earn promotion to
30624-429: Was suspended in May 2005. He was sacked for gross misconduct a week later. Daniel Anderson was appointed as coach, Millward was then made coach of archrivals Wigan. Daniel Anderson saw his new team become the first team to top the Super League and fail to reach Old Trafford in 2005. However, St Helens won the 2006 Challenge Cup Final at Twickenham Stadium , beating Huddersfield 42–12. Scrum-half Sean Long
30800-539: Was suspended. The Knights claimed one of their biggest scalps when they defeated Leigh Centurions, who were in the division above, 13–12 in the Northern Rail Cup group stages thanks to a late Thorman drop goal. Ratcliffe returned for the away game at Doncaster and Dave Woods arrived at York as director of rugby in April 2010. Five games later, Ratcliffe was sacked after a 30–36 defeat to Swinton Lions and Woods
30976-496: Was through a fans' membership scheme. Former Great Britain star Paul Broadbent was revealed as player-coach. With the total standing at £70,000, John Smith's brewery came in with £5,000 as the club hit the target just hours before the deadline. The full name of the new club was revealed to be York City Knights RLFC , following a competition in The Evening Press . Club bosses, in the following month of October, also let
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