Rugby league has travelled a long & arduous road in the land of the free and the home of the brave. Many brave people have tried to clear a pathway for the game’s success. However, all too often, obstacles and disputes have prevented a star spangled future for the game of Rugby League in the…
Category: International Rugby League
Episode 11 – The History of the Rugby League Challenge Cup
On the 20th of March, 1897, 20 Rugby League matches were played in the North of England.Amongst the results that day, Hunslet defeated the amateur Broughton Recreation by 75 to 5 – whilst Leigh and Wakefield Trinity played out a nil all draw. It was the beginning of a competition that would bring agony and…
Episode 5 – The History of Rugby League in France ( Part 2)
In Part 1, Mike Rylance told us about the incredible rise of Rugby League in the 1930’s – followed by the cruel bans of the Vichy Regime in the 1940s, and the golden period of the 1950’s which saw France dominate international Rugby League. In Part 2 we chart the game’s demise AND possibly the…
Episode 4 – The History of Rugby League in France ( Part 1)
If someone told you that France once dominated international rugby league, you would probably laugh. But for more than a decade after World War II, France did dominate international rugby league. But there were some dark forces at play, which attacked the foundations of the game – eventually leading to a massive decline. Can Rugby…
Episode 1 – The 1970 Ashes Tour of Australia
The 1970s Ashes series is widely regarded as one of the greatest in the competition’s 112 year history. The Lions, captained by Frank Myler, included a number of the game’s great players, including Cliff Watson, Malcolm Reilly and Roger Millward. The Australian team included Graeme Langlands, Arthur Beetson and Bob Fulton, who made his Test…