1959–60 Northern Rugby Football League season

The 1959–60 Rugby Football League season was the 65th season of rugby league football played in England. The championship, which involved thirty teams, started in August 1959 and culminated in a finals play-off series in May 1960 which resulted in a championship final between Wigan and Wakefield Trinity.

Season summary[]

• League Champions: Wigan (27–3 v Wakefield Trinity)
• Challenge Cup Winners: Wakefield Trinity (38–5 v Hull)

A number of clubs complained to the Rugby Football League over BBC televising rugby league matches live on TV, stating that it was affecting attendances.

St. Helens won the Lancashire League, and Wakefield Trinity won the Yorkshire League. Warrington beat St. Helens 5–4 to win the Lancashire County Cup, and Featherstone Rovers beat Hull F.C. 15–14 to win the Yorkshire County Cup.

Championship[]

Final Standings

Play-offs[]

Final[]

The Championship Final was played between Joe Egan' Wigan outfit against Wakefield Trinity at 3 o'clock on a warm afternoon on Saturday, 21 May 1960 at Odsal Stadium, Bradford. A crowd of 83,190 turned out for the game which was refereed by Eric Clay (Leeds).

• Wigan: 27

Tries (5): Billy Boston (2), Eric Ashton (2), Bill Sayer
Goals: Fred Griffiths (6)

• Wakefield Trinity: 3

Try: Fred Smith

Challenge Cup[]

The 1959–60 Challenge Cup tournament ended in a final between Wakefield Trinity and Hull F.C. The match was played at Wembley Stadium before a crowd of 79,773, with Wakefield Trinity winning 38 – 5. Despite being on the losing team, Hull's hooker, Tommy Harris was awarded the Lance Todd Trophy for his man-of-the-match performance.

Neil Fox of Wakefield Trinity scored a Cup Final record 20 points (two tries and seven goals) in the final for Wakefield, a feat that would not be repeated for another 39 years 1999.

Kangaroo Tour[]

September until December also saw the appearance of the Australian team in England on their 1959–60 Kangaroo Tour. Other than the three test Ashes series against Great Britain (won 2–1 by Australia), the Kangaroos played 21 matches against club and county representative sides.

The Kangaroos were coached by "The Little Master" Clive Churchill and were captained by Welsh born Balmain Tigers fullback Keith Barnes.

As of 2017, this remains the last time that Great Britain or England won The Ashes on home soil.

game	Date	Result	Venue	Attendance
1	12 September	Australia def. Leeds 44–20	Headingley, Leeds	14,629
2	15 September	Australia def. Rochdale Hornets 27–14	Athletic Grounds, Rochdale	10,155
3	18 September	Australia def. Warrington 30–24	Wilderspool, Warrington	17,112
4	23 September	Lancashire def. Australia 30–22	Knowsley Road, St. Helens	15,743
5	26 September	Australia def. Salford 22–20	The Willows, Salford	11,008
6	28 September	Yorkshire def. Australia 47–15	Clarence Street, York	7,338
7	1 October	Australia def. Widnes 45–15	Naughton Park, Widnes	9,381
8	3 October	Australia def. Oldham 25–14	Watersheddings, Oldham	17,630
9	7 October	Leigh def. Australia 18–17	Hilton Park, Leigh	11,932
10	10 October	Australia def. St. Helens 15–2	Knowsley Road, St. Helens	29,156
11	17 October	Australia def.  Great Britain 22–14	Station Road, Swinton	35,224
12	22 October	Australia def. Whitehaven / Workington Town XIII 13–8	Recreation Ground, Whitehaven	7,463
13	24 October	Barrow def. Australia 12–9	Craven Park, Barrow	8,488
14	26 October	Australia def. Hull F.C. / Hull Kingston Rovers XIII 29–9	The Boulevard, Hull	15,944
15	4 November	Australia def. Bradford Northern 28–9	Odsal, Bradford	4,126
16	7 November	Australia def. Halifax 17–5	Thrum Hall, Halifax	8,274
17	11 November	Featherstone Rovers def. Australia 23–15	Post Office Road, Featherstone	7,671
18	14 November	Wigan def. Australia 16–9	Central Park, Wigan	24,466
19	21 November	Great Britain def.  Australia 11–10	Headingley, Leeds	30,301
20	25 November	Australia def. Swinton 25–24	Station Road, Swinton	5,021
21	28 November	Wakefield Trinity def. Australia 20–10	Belle Vue, Wakefield	17,615
22	2 December	Australia def. Huddersfield 21–7	Fartown, Huddersfield	2,349
23	5 December	Australia def. Hunslet 12–11	Parkside, Hunslet	8,061
24	12 December	Great Britain def.  Australia 18–12	Central Park, Wigan	26,089

Sources[]

• 1959–60 Northern Rugby Football League season at wigan.rlfans.com