Rugby Football League Championship First Division

The Rugby Football League Championship First Division was the top division of rugby league in England between 1895 and 1996, when it was replaced by the Super League.

Not to be confused with RFL Championship.
See also: List of British rugby league champions

RFL Championship First Division
SportRugby league
Instituted1895
Inaugural season1895–96
Ceased1996
Replaced bySuper League
Countries England
 Wales
Most titles Wigan (22 titles)
Relegation toRFL Second Division

History

1895–1904: Foundations
Main article: History of rugby league

The first season of rugby league (1895–96) saw all the breakaway clubs play in a single league competition. The addition of new teams and the problems of travelling led to the league being split in two for the following season; into the Yorkshire League and the Lancashire League. This arrangement lasted until the 1901–02 season, when the top clubs from each league resigned and formed a single new competition. The following season the remaining clubs in the Yorkshire and Lancashire Leagues were re-organised to form a second division.

1905–1970: Restructure

In 1905–06 the two divisions were re-combined into a single competition. Clubs played all the teams in their own county on a home-and-away basis, results counting towards the re-formed Yorkshire and Lancashire Leagues. They also organised inter-county fixtures on an individual basis; all results were collated into a single table for the Championship. In order to even up the competition a top-four play-off series was used to determine the Championship.

Apart from the interventions of the two world wars, this system was retained until the 1962–63 season, when the league briefly returned to a two divisional system. This lasted only two years, and in the 1964–65 season they returned to one large division subdivided into county leagues. The play-offs were expanded to the top 16 teams and the Harry Sunderland Trophy was introduced as the man-of-the-match award for the decider.

1970–1995: Premiership and reintroducing Second Division

In the 1973–74 season they once again went back to two divisions. The play-off and the Yorkshire and Lancashire League were abandoned, and a new play-off type competition, the Premiership, was introduced however the team finishing top of the Championship were crowned champions. During this period in the late 1980s and early 1990s Wigan dominated both the Championship and Challenge Cup.

Champions
See also: Rugby Football League Championship Final
Season
Champions Score Runners-up League Leaders
1895–96 Manningham N/A Halifax N/A
1896–97
County Championships
1897–98
1898–99
1899–1900
1900–01
1901–02 Broughton Rangers N/A Salford N/A
1902–03 Halifax Salford
1903–04 Bradford F.C. Salford
1904–05 Oldham Bradford F.C.
1905–06 Leigh Hunslet
1906–07 Halifax 18–3 Oldham Halifax
1907–08 Hunslet 12–7 Oldham Oldham
1908–09 Wigan 7–3 Oldham Wigan
1909–10 Oldham 13–7 Wigan Oldham
1910–11 Oldham 20–7 Wigan Wigan
1911–12 Huddersfield 13–5 Wigan Huddersfield
1912–13 Huddersfield 29–2 Wigan Huddersfield
1913–14 Salford 5–3 Huddersfield Huddersfield
1914–15 Huddersfield 35–2 Leeds Huddersfield
1915-16 Official competition suspended due to First World War
1916-17
1917-18
1918–19
County Championships
1919–20 Hull F.C. 3–2 Huddersfield Huddersfield
1920–21 Hull F.C. 16–14 Hull Kingston Rovers Hull Kingston Rovers
1921–22 Wigan 13–2 Oldham Oldham
1922–23 Hull Kingston Rovers 15–5 Huddersfield Hull F.C.
1923–24 Batley 13–7 Wigan Wigan
1924–25 Hull Kingston Rovers 9–5 Swinton Swinton
1925–26 Wigan 22–10 Warrington Wigan
1926–27 Swinton 13–8 St Helens Recs St Helens Recs
1927–28 Swinton 11–0 Featherstone Rovers Swinton
1928–29 Huddersfield 2–0 Leeds Huddersfield
1929–30 Huddersfield 10–0 Leeds St Helens
1930–31 Swinton 14–7 Leeds Swinton
1931–32 St. Helens 9–5 Huddersfield Huddersfield
1932–33 Salford 15–5 Swinton Salford
1933–34 Wigan 15–3 Salford Salford
1934–35 Swinton 14–3 Warrington Swinton
1935–36 Hull F.C. 21–2 Widnes Hull F.C.
1936–37 Salford 13–11 Warrington Salford
1937–38 Hunslet 8–2 Leeds Hunslet
1938–39 Salford 8–6 Castleford Salford
1939–40
Official competition suspended due to Second World War
1940–41
1941–42
1942–43
1943–44
1944–45
1945–46 Wigan N/A Huddersfield N/A
1946–47 Wigan Dewsbury
1947–48 Warrington 15–5 Bradford Northern Wigan
1948–49 Huddersfield 13–12 Warrington Warrington
1949–50 Wigan 20–2 Huddersfield Wigan
1950–51 Workington Town 26–11 Warrington Warrington
1951–52 Wigan 13–6 Bradford Northern Bradford Northern
1952–53 St. Helens 24–14 Halifax St. Helens
1953–54 Warrington 8–7 Halifax Halifax
1954–55 Warrington 7–3 Oldham Warrington
1955–56 Hull F.C. 10–9 Halifax Warrington
1956–57 Oldham 15–14 Hull F.C. Oldham
1957–58 Hull F.C. 20–3 Workington Town Oldham
1958–59 St. Helens 44–22 Hunslet St. Helens
1959–60 Wigan 27–3 Wakefield Trinity St. Helens
1960–61 Leeds 25–10 Warrington Leeds
1961–62 Huddersfield 14–5 Wakefield Trinity Wigan
1962–63 Swinton N/A St. Helens N/A
1963–64 Swinton Wigan
1964–65 Halifax 15–7 St. Helens St. Helens
1965–66 St. Helens 35–12 Halifax St. Helens
1966–67 Wakefield Trinity 21-9 St. Helens Leeds
1967–68 Wakefield Trinity 17–10 Hull Kingston Rovers Leeds
1968–69 Leeds 16–14 Castleford Leeds
1969–70 St. Helens 24–12 Leeds Leeds
1970–71 St. Helens 16–12 Wigan Wigan
1971–72 Leeds 9–5 St. Helens Leeds
1972–73 Dewsbury 22–13 Leeds Warrington
1973–74 Salford N/A St. Helens N/A
1974–75 St. Helens Wigan
1975–76 Salford Featherstone Rovers
1976–77 Featherstone Rovers St. Helens
1977–78 Widnes Bradford Northern
1978–79 Hull Kingston Rovers Warrington
1979–80 Bradford Northern Widnes
1980–81 Bradford Northern Warrington
1981–82 Leigh Hull F.C.
1982–83 Hull F.C. Hull Kingston Rovers
1983–84 Hull Kingston Rovers Hull F.C.
1984–85 Hull Kingston Rovers St. Helens
1985–86 Halifax Wigan
1986–87 Wigan St. Helens
1987–88 Widnes St. Helens
1988–89 Widnes Wigan
1989–90 Wigan Leeds
1990–91 Wigan Widnes
1991–92 Wigan St. Helens
1992–93 Wigan St. Helens
1993–94 Wigan Bradford Northern
1994–95 Wigan Leeds
1995–96 Wigan Leeds

Winning records by club
Club Winners Runners-up Winning seasons
1 Wigan1791908/09, 1921/22, 1925/26, 1933/34, 1945/46, 1946/47, 1949/50, 1951/52, 1959/60, 1986/87, 1989/90, 1990/91, 1991/92, 1992/93, 1993/94, 1994/95, 1995/96
2 St. Helens7111931/32, 1952/53, 1958/59, 1965/66, 1969/70, 1970/71, 1974/75
Huddersfield61911/12, 1912/13, 1914/15, 1928/29, 1929/30, 1948/49, 1961/62
3 Salford651913/14, 1932/33, 1936/37, 1938/39, 1973/74, 1975/76
Hull F.C.41919/20, 1920/21, 1935/36, 1955/56, 1957/58, 1982/83
Swinton21926/27, 1927/28, 1930/31, 1934/35, 1962/63, 1963/64
4 Hull Kingston Rovers531922/23, 1924/25, 1978/79, 1983/84, 1984/85
5 Oldham451904/05, 1909/10, 1910/11, 1956/57
Halifax1902/03, 1906/07, 1964/65, 1985/86
6 Leeds3101960/61, 1968/69, 1971/72
Warrington71947/48, 1953/54, 1954/55
Widnes41977/78, 1987/88, 1988/89
7 Bradford241979/80, 1980/81
Hunslet §21907/08, 1937/38
Wakefield Trinity1966/67, 1967/68
Leigh01905/06, 1981/82
8 Featherstone Rovers121976/77
Bradford F.C. §11903/04
Workington Town1950/51
Dewsbury1972/73
Manningham §01895/96
Broughton Rangers1901/02
Batley1923/24
9 Castleford02-
St Helens Recs §1
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