Rugby League’s Wembley memories

   28/04/2023

Wembley Stadium turns 100 years old today, and while Rugby League may not have been mentioned, or covered, in the celebratory tweet from the famous venue, we haven’t forgotten our game’s history there.

With the Challenge Cup having been held at Wembley since 1929, that competition has created many Wembley memories and here are just five to look back on and enjoy.

1968

Sometimes, abiding Challenge Cup Final memories are ones of agony, and one of the most heart-wrenching involved Don Fox in the 1968 Watersplash Final. Playing on almost flooded pitch due to heavy rain the day before and a torrential downpour before kick-off conditions were never going to be great, but in a close encounter Wakefield pulled it back to 11-10 when Ken Hirst touched down with just moments left. Fox, who had already won the Lance Todd Trophy for his starring performance, stepped up knowing that his kick from in front of the posts would win it for Trinity. But he slipped on the treacherous surface and sent the ball wide of the posts and sunk to his knees in despair.

 

1994


Martin Offiah scored one of the greatest tries ever seen on the Wembley turf when he darted almost the entire length of the pitch to open the scoring for Wigan against Leeds in 1994. After 12 scoreless minutes, Offiah took a pass on his own 10 metre line and found the smallest of gaps in the Leeds’ defensive line. His pace then took him between two more Leeds men as he raced down the field. With only fullback Alan Tait left to beat he did what he needed to and proved too quick over the final 30 metres. His celebration after that incredible score – on his knees with head in hands – has since been immortalised outside Wembley Stadium as part of the Rugby League statue.

 

1998

Sheffield Eagles produced arguably the biggest shock in Challenge Cup Final history when they beat Wigan in 1998. This was a club that had only been formed 14 years earlier knocking the Cup Kings of the late 80s and early 90s off their perch. It was the stuff of legend. No Sheffield player had any experience of playing at Wembley, but when Darren Turner touched down, and Mark Aston converted, to make it 17-2 twelve minutes into the second half the dream looked to be on. Wigan would have to stage the biggest comeback in the history of cup finals at that point to overhaul the Eagles. And as we know, that didn’t happen, and John Kear’s men held on to create a piece of history.

 

2015

There wasn’t a dry eye in the house when Lizzie Jones took to the pitch in the build up to the 2015 final and belted out the traditional anthem Abide With Me. The performance came a mere matter of months after her husband, and Keighley Cougars favourite Danny passed away suddenly from an undiagnosed heart condition while playing London Skolars. As a professional singer, this was the perfect way for Lizzie to give her thanks to the rugby league community for all their love and support since Danny’s passing, and once an image of the family appeared on the big screen and the couple’s young twins were brought onto the field as well, the levels of pure emotion hit fever pitch.

 

2016

The Hull FC squad of 2016 created history when they became the first Black and Whites side to win at Wembley after almost 100 years of trying. However, they very nearly let it slip away in the dying moments against Warrington Wolves. But then up stepped tackling machine Danny Houghton. With the Wolves throwing everything at Hull, they kept the ball alive and Ben Currie charged for the line. The whitewash, and the trophy, were inches away for Warrington. Not only did Houghton’s herculean tackle stop Currie agonisingly close to his own special cup memory, it was also enough to dislodge the ball and give Hull FC possession back with just seconds to go.

The above article originally appeared in issue 473 of Rugby League World magazine in June 2022