AS we near the end of the first quarter of the 21st century and the eleventh year of your annual feature setting out the most significant moments of the Rugby League year, we are taking this chance to look back at the top moments from each year since 2015, when the feature was first introduced.
We began ten years ago with the tragic death of Danny Jones and the legacy of his wife Lizzie’s campaign for every club to instal a defibrillator on its premises to avoid future deaths from cardiac arrest. The following year we listed Salford’s success in the Million Pound Game against Hull KR, which now seems ironic after what has happened in 2025. And we included a series of historic events, including the impact of Covid in 2020, which produced a season like no other.
The most disappointing significant moment is our 2022 nomination of the announcement of France hosting the 2025 World Cup, which failed to come to fruition after the French Federation withdrew from hosting the tournament the following year.
Despite that, we hope you enjoy the memories.
2015 The death of Danny Jones
Sunday 3rd May was a tragic day for Rugby League, when the popular Keighley Cougars player Danny Jones suffered a cardiac arrest while playing for the Cougars against London Skolars at the New River Stadium.
Jones left the pitch, clearly in distress, and his condition rapidly deteriorated whilst in the dugout. He collapsed and, when it became clear that urgent work was being done by the medical staff, the match commissioner ordered play to be suspended and subsequently the match was abandoned.
An air ambulance landed on the pitch as treatment continued and he was taken away to hospital, but was later pronounced dead.
Danny’s image would subsequently be shown on the big screen at Wembley as his wife Lizzie sang ‘Abide With Me’, and on TV in front of 10 million viewers as she sang ‘Danny Boy’ at the Sports Personality of the Year show.
But his true legacy is that his death has led to the compulsory heart screening of every player who represents a professional club to try to ensure such a tragedy doesn’t happen again.
2016 O’Brien’s million-dollar field goal
With Salford Red Devils and Hull KR fighting it out for Super League survival in the Million Pound Game, only Gareth O’Brien’s incredible golden-point field-goal could separate them.
Trailing 18-10 with less than two minutes on the clock, two late tries from Niall Evalds and Greg Johnson brought the Red Devils back from the dead.
O’Brien couldn’t convert either try, however, and the game went to extra-time, where the halfback struck from close to half way to relegate Hull KR to the Championship in the most dramatic manner anyone could imagine.
It will become one of the most iconic moments in the history of Rugby League.
2017 Josh Dugan’s ankle tap
The margin between success and failure can sometimes be heartbreakingly narrow.
And so it proved in the World Cup Final, when England fell to a 6-0 defeat by Australia in Brisbane.
And one incident stands out from the rest.
With 16 minutes remaining we all jumped up as Kallum Watkins broke downfield with other England players alongside him. Surely an equalising try was assured.
But a miraculous ankle-tap from Aussie centre Josh Dugan tripped Watkins up and the chance was gone. Dugan had managed to prevent a try by a hair’s breadth.
At that moment it must have dawned on many England supporters that, perhaps, this was again not going to be England’s day and our World Cup disappointment would continue.
2018 Catalans win the Challenge Cup Final
On Saturday 26 August Catalans Dragons made Rugby League history, when they became the first French club and the first non-English club to win the Challenge Cup Final, defeating Warrington Wolves 20-14, with Tony Gigot becoming the first French player to win the Lance Todd Trophy.
Their victory created some tremendously positive publicity in France and in the Catalan region of Spain, which culminated in the decision by Barcelona FC to make their Camp Nou Stadium available for the Dragons’ home game against Wigan on Saturday 18 May, although the RFL’s decision to ask the Dragons for a six-figure bond in order to compete again in 2019 has cast a significant shadow over what should have been a triumphant day for Rugby League as a whole.
2019 Tonga beat Australia
The Tongans produced one of the greatest shocks in Rugby League history by taking down world champions Australia 16-12 in Auckland in front of a pulsating crowd of 25,257 at Eden Park on 2 November.
They came back from six points down at half-time to defeating Australia for the first time in their history, in what was Australia’s first defeat to a side other than New Zealand, England or Great Britain since going down to France in 1978.
With this victory the Tongans completed a famous triumvirate against the three tier 1 nations of international Rugby League, having beaten New Zealand 28-22 in the World Cup in 2017, then beating Great Britain 14-6 in Hamilton a week before beating Australia.
Their raucous sea of supporters dressed in red was sent into raptures when Tevita Pangai Junior crashed over off for the winning try to give the Tongans a four-point lead.
The Kangaroos had entered the match as hot favourites, but the Tongans breathed new life into the international game and they will come to the 2021 World Cup ranked alongside Australia, New Zealand and England as one of the competition favourites.
The government of Tonga declared a public holiday on Friday November 15 to celebrate the victory, while Kristian Woolf, the coach who had overseen it, headed to St Helens to take over as the club’s head coach after the departure of Justin Holbrook.
2020 World Health Organisation declares a global pandemic
The major issue affecting Rugby League during 2020 was undoubtedly the Coronavirus pandemic.
The outbreak was labelled as a pandemic by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on 11 March, a date that was criticised in some quarters for being too late to react when the virus had already taken a firm hold in many countries. The first person now known to have tested positive for the virus was a 75-year-old Nottinghamshire woman who was tested on 21 February and subsequently died of the disease.
On 11 March WHO chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that the number of cases outside China had increased 13-fold in two weeks. He said he was “deeply concerned” by “alarming levels of inaction”.
He called on governments to change the course of the outbreak by taking “urgent and aggressive action”.
Governments had to “strike a fine balance between protecting health, minimising disruption and respecting human rights”.
“We’re in this together to do the right things with calm and protect the citizens of the world. It’s doable,” he said.
Sporting bodies around the world reacted by closing down their competitions, with the last Super League game being played on 15 March.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the first national lockdown on 23 March, asking people to stay at home in order to ease pressure on the NHS.
As it turned out, the Super League competition would be dormant for four and a half months, returning on 2nd August, while the NRL was able to return on 28 May.
It was a season like no other in Rugby League history.
2021 Australia and New Zealand withdraw from World Cup
In a sensational development, Australia and New Zealand withdrew from the Rugby League World Cup in July, citing concerns over player welfare and safety.
With Covid remaining an issue throughout the world, both nations pulled out of a tournament that was due to start in October, giving just three months’ notice and with no consultation.
The Australians and New Zealanders called for a postponement until 2022.
ARLC chairman Peter V’landys said that “the risks to the safety, health and wellbeing of the players and officials travelling from Australia to participate in the tournament this year are insurmountable”. His words were echoed by NZRL chief Greg Peters, who claimed that players’ wellbeing “cannot be guaranteed to our satisfaction”.
RFL Chairman Simon Johnson fumed over the decision, asking why other teams and athletes from those countries were able to travel the world for major sporting events while their Rugby League sides could not.
“The difficultly I think for us is that this selfish, parochial and cowardly decision is one that needn’t have been taken,” he said.
“The Rugby League World Cup organisers have bent over backwards to offer every assurance to the Australians and to the Kiwis.
“This is something that their Rugby League authorities believe is insurmountable, while other sports and athletes seem to have no problem.”
With two of three strongest nations in the men’s draw, and the only two winners of the competition since 1972, not taking part, it was inevitable that the tournament would then have to be postponed.
2022 France to host 2025 World Cup
France were announced as hosts of the 2025 Rugby League World Cup in January.
The French Federation revealed the news several days before a full launch in Paris, which was opened by the then French prime minister Jean Castex.
It meant that the 17th edition of the World Cup would return to the country which held the first in 1954. France is also the home of Paul Barrière, who first proposed a Rugby League World Cup and whose name now adorns the men’s trophy.
Initially the 2025 World Cup was to be played in North America, with the United States and Canada conditionally awarded it in 2016.
But within two years the American dream went up in smoke due to financial concerns and the bidding process was reopened, with France the only nation to apply.
“France is a land of major sporting events, which represent a tremendous asset for economic appeal and social cohesion in our regions,” said M Castex at the launch.
“The Rugby League World Cup, which will be organised in 2025 by France, is a great opportunity for the many regions and cities that wish to engage in this dynamic and I support it wholeheartedly.”
The tournament will be the biggest yet by going one better on England’s hosting in 2022, adding a youth competition for under-19s to the existing men’s, women’s and wheelchair categories.
Organisers are planning for 128 matches in 40 cities in October and November 2025, with the French government expected to announce measures to support the competition early this year.
2023 The grades are in
The first glimpse of Super League’s future was unveiled in October when the first club grades were released.
The grading system, as proposed by the game’s strategic partner IMG, sees clubs ranked on various on- and off-field metrics to determine top-flight participation.
Before being put in place for 2025, clubs were given indicative grades for 2024, with seven earning Grade A status which would guarantee a Super League place.
Leeds Rhinos finished top of the table of professional clubs, with Wigan Warriors, St Helens, Catalans Dragons, Warrington Wolves, Hull KR and Hull FC also getting the top grade.
The rest of Super League’s twelve teams will be made up of the highest clubs rated as Grade B, which in the indicative gradings were Salford Red Devils, Huddersfield Giants, Toulouse Olympique, Wakefield Trinity and Leigh Leopards.
It suggests that both Toulouse and Wakefield are on course to return to Super League in 2025, while Castleford Tigers’ status is at risk and London Broncos, ranked 24th, are almost certain to be relegated after 2024.
For other clubs, the short or long road to Super League has been mapped out, as has a future for the sport, which is yet to fully convince many supporters or those within the game.
2024 Rugby League’s debut in Las Vegas
Peter V’landys and Andrew Abdo, the Chairman and CEO of the NRL, were celebrating on the first weekend of March after the successful and historic staging of the opening two games of the NRL season at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
It was the first time any NRL game had been played outside Australia and New Zealand and, despite extreme weather conditions, which saw gusts of wind of 111km/hr reported nearby, the two games drew an official attendance of 40,746, with an estimated 15,000 travelling from Australia.
Manly defeated South Sydney 36-24 before Sydney Roosters beat Brisbane 20-10, with the enclosed stadium protecting the teams and the crowd from the inclement weather outside.
“Amazing, so many months in the planning and then to see it all brought to life,” said Abdo.
“The players had a great time, but more importantly the fans had a great time. Peter’s vision was for growth coming out of Covid, thinking about how we could make the game stronger and more sustainable, taking us to new markets. We got 40,000 this year and we want 50,000 next year.”
V’landys agreed that he was looking to make the weekend even bigger in 2025.
“We’ve now built the foundation and we’re going to improve next year.
“It’s going to take three or four years, but I am now more confident than ever that we can make tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars that will go back into the grass roots.”
One interested spectator from England was Rhodri Jones, the managing director of RL Commercial, who was impressed by what he saw.
“There was obvious relevance to RL Commercial in the NRL’s Las Vegas promotion, and it also presented an opportunity to catch up with NRL officials to develop our collaborative relationship,” Jones told League Express.
“It’s been a highly successful weekend, in terms of the global profile of Rugby League – and we congratulate the NRL for that.”
And the result of all that was that the Las Vegas event will expand in 2025 to include a Super League game between Wigan and Warrington and a Women’s international game between England and Australia.
We’ll be counting down the 50 most significant moments of 2025 over the next five days on Total Rugby League.