1968 BBC2 Floodlit Trophy


1968 was the fourth occasion on which the BBC2 Floodlit Trophy competition had been held.

This year was a new name on the trophy after Castleford's three year winning streak came to an end.

Wigan won the trophy by beating St. Helens by the score of 7-4

The match was played at Central Park, Wigan,. The attendance was 13,479 and receipts were £3,291

This was to be Wigan's only success in the competition.

Background

This season saw no changes in the entrants, no new members and no withdrawals, the number remaining at eighteen.

However the format was changed slightly with the games in the preliminary round being on a two-legged home and away basis.

This preliminary round now involved four clubs, to reduce the numbers to sixteen, followed by a straightforward knock out competition.

Competition and Results

Preliminary Round - First Leg

Involved 2 matches and 4 Clubs
Game NoFixture DateHome TeamScoreAway TeamVenueaggAttRecNotesRef
P1Mon 9 Sep 1968Wakefield Trinity11-15CastlefordBelle Vue
P1Tue 10 Sep 1968St. Helens21-5BarrowKnowsley Road

Preliminary Round -Second Leg

Involved 2 matches with the same 4 Clubs with reverse fixtures
Game NoFixture DateHome TeamScoreAway TeamVenueaggAttRecNotesRef
P2Mon 23 Sep 1968Castleford18-0Wakefield TrinityWheldon Road33-111
P2Mon 23 Sep 1968Barrow18-11St. HelensCraven Park23-322672

Round 1 - First Round

Involved 8 matches and 16 Clubs
Game NoFixture DateHome TeamScoreAway TeamVenueAttRecNotesRef
1Tue 1 Oct 1968Leeds24-19SalfordHeadingley
2Tue 8 Oct 1968Wigan10-7CastlefordCentral Park2
3Mon 14 Oct 1968Hull F.C.22-13WidnesBoulevard3
4Mon 14 Oct 1968St. Helens12-10SwintonKnowsley Road4900
5Tue 15 Oct 1968Leigh27-19Hull Kingston RoversHilton Park
6Tue 15 Oct 1968Rochdale Hornets16-14OldhamAthletic Grounds4
7Tue 22 Oct 1968Keighley8-11HuddersfieldLawkholme Lane27955
8Tue 29 Oct 1968Warrington30-12HalifaxWilderspool

Round 2 -Quarter Finals

Involved 4 matches with 8 clubs
Game NoFixture DateHome TeamScoreAway TeamVenueAttRecNotesRef
1Tue 5 Nov 1968Rochdale Hornets7-23WiganAthletic Grounds2
2Tue 12 Nov 1968Leigh25-11LeedsHilton Park
3Tue 19 Nov 1968Warrington18-5HuddersfieldWilderspool
4Tue 26 Nov 1968St. Helens14-10Hull F.C.Knowsley Road

Round 3 – Semi-Finals

Involved 2 matches and 4 Clubs
Game NoFixture DateHome TeamScoreAway TeamVenueAttRecNotesRef
1Tue 3 Dec 1968Wigan9-7LeighCentral Park2
2Tue 10 Dec 1968St. Helens29-6WarringtonKnowsley Road

Final

Teams and Scorers

Wigan№St. Helens
teams
Colin Tyrer1Cen Williams
Bill Francis2Frank Wilson
Eric Ashton3Billy Benyon
Bill Ashurst4Frank Myler
Peter Rowe5John Wills
Cliff Hill6Alan Whittle
Johnny Jackson7Tommy Bishop
John Stephens8John Warlow
Colin Clarke9Bill Sayer
Keith Mills10Cliff Watson
Terry Fogerty11John Mantle
Kevin O'Loughlin12Brian Hogan
Doug Laughton13Kel Coslett
Geoff Lyon14Eric Prescott
A. N. Other15Eric Chisnall
Eric AshtonCoachCliff Evans
-
7score4
2HT4
Scorers
Tries
Cliff Hill T
Goals
Colin Tyrer GKel Coslett
Referee Eric Clay

Scoring - Try = three points - Goal = two points - Drop goal = two points

The road to success

This tree excludes any preliminary round fixtures

General information for those unfamiliar

The Rugby League BBC2 Floodlit Trophy was a knock-out competition sponsored by the BBC and between rugby league clubs, entrance to which was conditional upon the club having floodlights. Most matches were played on an evening, and those of which the second half was televised, were played on a Tuesday evening.

Despite the competition being named as 'Floodlit', many matches took place during the afternoons and not under floodlights, and several of the entrants, including Barrow and Bramley did not have adequate lighting. And, when in 1973, due to the world oil crisis, the government restricted the use of floodlights in sport, all the matches, including the Trophy final, had to be played in the afternoon rather than at night.

The Rugby League season always ran from around August-time through to around May-time and this competition always took place early in the season, in the Autumn, with the final taking place in December