GETTING relegated from Super League is never a fun thing to happen during a season.
Each club goes into a new season full of hope and anticipation, but for one reason or another, it just doesn’t work out.
Here are all the sides relegated from the top flight since the creation of the summer game in 1996.
Workington Town 1996
People sometimes forget that Workington Town were included in the very first Super League season, but they were even though it didn’t exactly go well. The Cumbrian side won just two games in 1996 and drew another, finishing bottom of the table with off-field financial problems plaguing the club. Workington were relegated from the second tier in 2002, but took part in the 2022 Championship season. That, however, didn’t go to plan either with Town once more being relegated as they sit in League One for 2023. Workington have never been back in Super League since 1996.
Oldham Bears 1997
Like Workington, Oldham were one of the founders of the Super League, yet they too have never been back in over 20 years. Oldham, famously nicknamed the ‘Bears’ in 1997, were relegated in the second year of the summer game, with the club going bankrupt in the same year. Oldham Roughyeds were formed out of the doldrums and, credit to the Manchester club, they rallied before just missing out on promotion to Super League in 2001. Oldham seemingly never recovered and they have yo-yoed between the Championship and League One ever since.
Huddersfield Giants 2001
Relegation was scrapped between 1998 and 2000 with the Huddersfield Giants next to face the drop in 2001. The lack of relegation had been a blessing for the West Yorkshire club after a controversial merger with Sheffield Eagles failed to pay off, leaving them within danger of exiting the top flight. It was, therefore, perhaps a curse that their best season in Super League ended with their relegation in 2001, winning six out of 28 games. That being said, Huddersfield were not be cast aside and they returned the year after following an unbeaten season in the Championship. Since then, the Giants have been a stable Super League side.
Salford City Reds 2002
Salford hold the record as being the first second-tier side to win promotion to Super League back in 1996, but they found themselves back in the Championship six years later in 2002. It was a two-horse race as to who would be relegated from the top flight with the then-named Salford City Reds fighting with Wakefield to avoid the drop, with Trinity surviving by one point. Salford, like Huddersfield, returned a year later, but were relegated once again in 2007. That was, however, the last time that the club sat in the second tier and have been a top-flight side ever since, rebranding to the Salford Red Devils in 2014.
Halifax 2003
The worst season in Super League history will always be remembered by a particular club in West Yorkshire. Halifax began the 2003 season with a young side, ripped apart by bigger clubs, and the gulf in class was evident throughout. They were relegated with zero points – a record – after winning just one game all year and then having those points deducted for a salary cap breach. A period of uncertainty then followed for the Yorkshire side before they finally became a stable Championship club where they have remained ever since. They are now known as the Halifax Panthers.
Castleford Tigers 2004
The Tigers had been slowly edging towards the brink when 2004 came along following the exit of Stuart Raper as head coach in 2001. Despite being mainstays in Super League since the summer era, Castleford were relegated with just six wins after local rivals Wakefield Trinity condemned them to the second-tier. That being said, the West Yorkshire club rallied in 2005 and earned promotion easily with Dave Woods at the helm – though that would be the last act of Woods’ tenure at The Jungle, with Terry Matterson taking over as head coach.
Widnes Vikings and Leigh Centurions 2005
It was perhaps harsh that two clubs were relegated in 2005 as a result of Catalans Dragons being awarded a franchise. Though Leigh won just two games all season and justified being relegated, Widnes were victorious in six. However, the Vikings were still seven points behind Wakefield in the Super League table. The relegation to both sides was damaging and it took Widnes seven years to return, having been awarded a franchise in the second round of licensing, whilst Leigh returned in 2016.
Castleford Tigers 2006
It was two relegations in three years for the Tigers in 2006, as new boss Terry Matterson took the club down to the Championship in his first season in charge. It was actually incredibly harsh on Castleford though who didn’t actually finish bottom, but Catalans’ exemption from relegation meant the Tigers were relegated with 19 points – a record at the time. The relegation was made even worse by the fact that Wigan’s salary cap breach was postponed until the 2007 season – if the four-point deduction had been given in 2006, the Warriors would have suffered the drop instead. It didn’t seem to faze the Tigers too much in the second tier, however, as they once more secured promotion at the first time of asking and have been a stable Super League side ever since.
Salford City Reds 2007
After four seasons in the top-flight, it was time for Salford to once more face the drop following a dismal 2007 Super League season. The City Reds ended the year on 12 points after winning six games, but seven points separated them and those above them, Hull KR. It was yet another quick spell in the second tier as Salford were awarded a franchise for 2009.
Crusaders RL 2011
In 2009, Welsh side Crusaders RL were awarded a Super League license in a bid to expand the game throughout the UK. It seemed to work at first as Crusaders finished in the play-offs in 2010, however, the club quickly faced financial problems and entered administration in November 2010. Facing a six-point deduction for that administration, the Welsh side withdrew their application for the second round of licensing in 2011, dropping down to Championship 1 as North Wales Crusaders where they have remained ever since, with the competition now renamed League One.
London Broncos and Bradford Bulls 2014
After another three seasons of licensing and a restructuring of the divisions, two sides were destined for relegation as Super League was cut from 14 to 12 teams. Whilst London won just one game all year and thoroughly deserved the drop, Bradford had been deducted six points at the start of the year for entering administration. It wouldn’t have mattered though as the Bulls would still have finished five points behind Wakefield in 12th. Bradford have never returned since, but London graced the top-flight once more in 2019, only narrowly getting relegated on points difference.
Hull KR 2016
After earning promotion in 2006, Hull KR had spent a decade in the top flight, but the uncertainty yielded by the Super 8s system ended with heartache in 2016. The Middle 8s had almost produced a dramatic swap in 2015 between Wakefield and Bradford, but Trinity managed to keep hold of their top-flight status. In 2016, however, it was between Hull KR and Salford – two Super League sides. Unfortunately, KR were subjected to that incredible Gareth O’Brien drop-goal, before returning to the elite tier a year later, becoming a stable Super League side ever since.
Leigh Centurions 2017
Despite showing their strength in the 2016 Middle 8s, Leigh couldn’t maintain that sort of intensity in Super League in 2017. The Centurions won six games all year, actually finishing above Widnes Vikings, but they lost to the Catalans Dragons in the Million Pound Game to make it just one year in the top flight. Leigh were, however, the beneficiary of Toronto Wolfpack’s demise in 2020 to return to the top-flight for 2021.
Widnes Vikings 2018
Widnes had been a relatively stable top-flight club since earning promotion in the 2011 round of licensing, but that changed seven years later. With off-field troubles plaguing progress on it – the sale of Kevin Brown to Warrington didn’t help – the Vikings almost seemed beyond saving heading into the Middle 8s in 2018. They won just once in the Middle 8s Qualifiers as relegation loomed. The Cheshire club has yet to return to the first tier since.
London Broncos 2019
After stunning Toronto in the Million Pound Game in 2018, nobody gave London any hope of staying in Super League in 2019. Danny Ward’s side, however, came so close to defying the odds, with points difference the only reason for London’s drop in the end. London were level with Hull KR at the bottom of the table and just two points behind Wakefield Trinity and Huddersfield Giants, but the Broncos still found themselves in the Championship in 2020. They have returned for the 2024 Super League season after earning promotion in dramatic fashion last season.
Toronto Wolfpack 2020
They had taken the Championship by storm in 2019, but Toronto Wolfpack’s Super League season had been one plagued by difficulties from the outset. The Covid-19 pandemic brought with it unprecedented upheaval, and, after pulling out of their Super League obligations, the Canadian club were not allowed to return. The Wolfpack have since announced their place in the North American Rugby League, but the Super League adventure looks dead and buried for good.
Leigh Centurions 2021
Unfortunately for Leigh, their stepping in to the Toronto Wolfpack’s shoes in the 2021 Super League season didn’t really go to plan. They won just two games all season, though were on the end of some heartbreakingly narrow defeats. The Centurions spent 2022 in the Championship, but it was a superb year for all those involved with the club as they lost just one game in the second tier to bounce back yet again at the first time of asking. Since then, Leigh have rebranded to the ‘Leopards’ as they plan to thrive not just survive in Super League – a fact realised in 2023 with the club winning the Challenge Cup Final.
Toulouse Olympique 2022
2022 saw a second French side enter the Super League for the first time in the competition’s history with Toulouse Olympique earning their top-flight status following a successful year in the Championship. However, the French club endured a difficult time in Super League, winning just five games all season as Sylvain Houles’ men couldn’t stay past their maiden year in the elite tier. Toulouse failed to bounce back at the first attempt in 2023, but, under IMG, who knows where Olympique could be heading.
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