1972-73 Northern Rugby Football League season

The 1972-73 Northern Rugby Football League season was the 77th season of rugby league football played in England. It would also be the last season whereby the championship was decided by a play-off system until Super League season 1998. Dewsbury Rams were crowned champions after defeating Leeds in the Final. The 1972-73 season was also punctuated by the 1972 Rugby League World Cup which was played in France in October and November. At the end of this season the league re-formed into two divisions. The top 16 in the championship would form Division 1 and the bottom 14 Division 2.

eason summary

This season the "4 Tackle" rule became the modern "6 tackles", although a scrum was formed at the end of the tackle count, which would later be changed to a handover. Timekeepers with a hooter siren system took responsibility from referees for controlling time in matches. Salford's David Watkins set the record for most goals (including drop goals) in a season with 221. Also, on 19 August 1972, Watkins started his record scoring streak which lasted until 25 April 1974. He totalled 929 points from 41 tries and 403 goals in 92 consecutive matches for one club.

1972-73 also saw the Wigan club celebrate its centenary, having been formed as Wigan F.C. on 21st November 1872. During the season they played a special Centenary Celebration match against an "Australians" side.

*Challenge Cup Winners: Featherstone Rovers (33-14 v Bradford)
*Players No.6 Trophy Winners: Leeds (12-7 v Salford at Fartown Ground)
*Lancashire Cup Winners: Salford (25-11 v Swinton)
*BBC2 Floodlit Trophy Winners: Leigh (5-0 v Widnes)

Hunslet disbanded at the end of the season, reforming as New Hunslet for the 1973-74 season.

Championship

Final standings

Play-offs

Round 1

*Castleford 24 beat Hull Kingston Rovers 12.
*Dewsbury 29 beat Oldham 14.
*Featherstone Rovers 14 beat Whitehaven 4.
*Leeds 45 beat Bramley 8.
*Rochdale Hornets 14 beat Salford 10.
*St Helens 29 beat Leigh 14.
*Wakefield Trinity 33 beat Widnes 6.
*Warrington 30 beat Wigan 15.

Round 2

*Dewsbury 26 beat Featherstone Rovers 7.
*Leeds 30 beat Castleford 5.
*St Helens 28 beat Wakefield Trinity 0.
*Warrington 16 beat Rochdale Hornets 9.

emi-finals

*Leeds 7 beat St Helens 2.
*Dewsbury 12 beat Warrington 7 at Wilderspool.

Final

The 1973 Final was to be the last time a play-off system would be used to determine the British champions until 1998's Super League season. The match was played on 19 May, 1973 at Bradford's Odsal Stadium between the previous season's champions, Leeds and first-time finalists, Dewsbury. Dewsbury had suffered a county cup record defeat 36-9 at the hands of Leeds in the Yorkshire Cup final earlier in the season. Also Leeds had finished 3rd on the ladder and Dewsbury 8th. However, Dewsbury opened up a 12-4 lead by the interval with tries by the hooker Mick Stephenson and Allan Agar and two goals and a drop-goal from the boot of centre Nigel Stephenson. Leeds captain Alan Hardisty was sent off for the first time in his career for a high tackle on John Bates. A second try from Mick Stephenson on 44 minutes extended Dewsbury's lead and though Leeds hit back with tries by Graham Eccles, Phil Cookson and Les Dyl, it was not to be with Nigel Stephenson converting his own try to complete a resounding 22-13 success. Leading journalist Jack Winstanley wrote at the time: "Dewsbury's win sprung from a superb team effort that paid ample tribute to the coaching and inspiration of (coach) Tommy Smales. They bewildered a jaded Leeds outfit with a series of scissors moves and dummy passes that might have looked grossly over-elaborate had they not worked to such perfection." The Harry Sunderland Trophy for man-of-the-match went to Mick Stephenson. Greg Ashcroft, Jeff Grayshon and Alan Bates also played in the champion Dewsbury side.

Challenge Cup

The 1973 Challenge Cup final was won by Featherstone Rovers who beat Bradford Northern 33-14 at Wembley before a crowd of 72,395. Great Britain scrum-half, Steve Nash put in a man-of-the-match performance to win the Lance Todd Trophy. Also playing for Featherstone that day was John Newlove.

ources

* [http://www.rlhalloffame.org.uk/records.htm All Time Records at rlhalloffame.org.uk]
* [http://wigan.rlfans.com/fusion_pages/index.php?page_id=392 1972-73 Rugby Football League season at wigan.rlfans.com]
* [http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/rugby-league/Pain-of-defeat-serves-Dewsbury.3782205.jp "Pain of defeat serves Dewsbury well to prevent any repeat performance" - article at yorkshirepost.co.uk]
* [http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/rugby-league/Playing-at-Smales-pace-sank.1223050.jp "Playing at Smales pace sank champions" - article at yorkshirepost.co.uk]