Club Championship (rugby league)

The Club Championship was a competition for British rugby league clubs during the 1973–74 season. The competition was a replacement for the end-of-season playoff system which had been held between 1906 and 1973. Although named the Club Championship, it was considered a separate competition to the League Championship, which was awarded to league winners, Salford. The tournament was won by Warrington. It was replaced by the Rugby League Premiership after one season.

Format

Qualification for the competition was determined by a merit points system. Points were awarded based on clubs final league position, and victories in knockout competitions during the season.

A preliminary knockout round also took place for the top 12 Second Division clubs, with three winners qualifying for the Club Championship. These three clubs were joined by the 13 teams who were awarded the most merit points.

Merit points
  • Qualified: Warrington (68), Leeds (64), St Helens (53), Salford (51), Featherstone Rovers (47), Rochdale Hornets (45), Bramley (43), Wakefield Trinity (42), Dewsbury (40), Castleford (40), Widnes (39), Wigan (38), Bradford Northern (30), Workington Town (28), Keighley (25), Hull (9)
  • Failed to qualify: Leigh (24), Hull KR (22), Whitehaven (20), York (20), Halifax (18), Swinton (17), Oldham (17), Batley (10), Huddersfield (8), Barrow (6), New Hunslet (4), Huyton (4), Blackpool Borough (3), Doncaster (2)[1]

First round

The draw was seeded based on the number of merit points awarded to each team, with the teams with the most points being awarded home advantage.[2] As Castleford and Dewsbury had been awarded the same number of points, a coin toss was used to determine their respective positions in the merit table.[3]

Date Team one Score Team two
20 April 1974Leeds31–12Keighley
20 April 1974St Helens24–7Workington Town
21 April 1974Bramley0–14Castleford
21 April 1974Featherstone Rovers22–14Wigan
21 April 1974Rochdale Hornets5–31Widnes
21 April 1974Salford16–16Bradford Northern
21 April 1974Wakefield Trinity26–11Dewsbury
21 April 1974Warrington34–12Hull

Replay
Date Team one Score Team two
25 April 1974Bradford Northern17–8Salford

Second round
Date Team one Score Team two
27 April 1974Warrington15–9Bradford Northern
28 April 1974Featherstone Rovers16–19Wakefield Trinity
28 April 1974Leeds20–15Widnes
28 April 1974St Helens25–9Castleford

Semi finals
Date Team one Score Team two
3 May 1974Leeds10–23St Helens
4 May 1974Warrington12–7Wakefield Trinity

Final
Date Team one Score Team two
18 May 1974Warrington13–12St Helens

See also

References
  1. "Hull at Warrington in play-off". Hull Daily Mail. 18 April 1974. p. 21 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  2. "Merit clubs' home boost". Manchester Evening News. 18 April 1974. p. 20 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  3. "Dewsbury win toss of coin". The Guardian. London. 19 April 1974. p. 25. ProQuest 185691496.
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