1947–48 Challenge Cup

The 1947–48 Challenge Cup was the 47th staging of rugby league's oldest knockout competition, the Challenge Cup.[1]

1947–48 Challenge Cup
Duration5 Rounds
Number of teams32
Broadcast partnersBBC TV
Winners Wigan
Runners-up Bradford Northern
Lance Todd Trophy Frank Whitcombe

The final was contested by Wigan and Bradford Northern at Wembley Stadium, and was the first ever rugby league match to be televised. Wigan won the match 8–3, with Bradford's Frank Whitcombe receiving the Lance Todd Trophy – the first time the trophy had been awarded to a player on the losing team.

First round
Date Team One Score One Team Two Score Two
07 FebBarrow18Halifax4
07 FebBatley0Dewsbury2
07 FebBramley3Vine Tavern3
07 FebFeatherstone Rovers3Leigh18
07 FebHuddersfield6Bradford Northern2
07 FebHull FC23Swinton2
07 FebHull Kingston Rovers12Oldham5
07 FebKeighley11Risehow & Gillhead0
07 FebLeeds23York9
07 FebLiverpool0Belle Vue Rangers9
07 FebRochdale Hornets13Pemberton Rovers0
07 FebSt Helens48Buslingthorpe0
07 FebSalford2Wakefield Trinity13
07 FebWarrington10Workington Town0
07 FebWidnes5Hunslet3
07 FebWigan27Castleford0
12 FebPemberton Rovers0Rochdale Hornets11
14 FebBelle Vue Rangers10Liverpool8
14 FebBradford Northern15Huddersfield2
14 FebBuslingthorpe2St Helens13
14 FebCastleford7Wigan19
14 FebDewsbury10Batley4
14 FebHalifax17Barrow4
14 FebHunslet5Widnes3
14 FebLeigh10Featherstone Rovers6
14 FebOldham22Hull Kingston Rovers4
14 FebRisehow & Gillhead10Keighley2
14 FebSwinton12Hull FC2
14 FebVine Tavern6Bramley17
14 FebWakefield Trinity20Salford15
14 FebWorkington Town0Warrington7
14 FebYork0Leeds13
19 FebWidnes0Hunslet3
21 FebBramley10Vine Tavern2

Second round
Date Team One Score One Team Two Score Two
28 FebBarrow2Keighley6
28 FebDewsbury2Hunslet2
28 FebHull FC22Bramley0
28 FebOldham5St Helens0
28 FebRochdale Hornets3Belle Vue Rangers2
28 FebWakefield Trinity3Bradford Northern3
28 FebWarrington8Leigh2
28 FebWigan17Leeds3
06 MarBradford Northern9Wakefield Trinity2
06 MarHunslet11Dewsbury0

Quarter-finals
Date Team One Score One Team Two Score Two
13 MarBradford Northern30Oldham0
13 MarHunslet5Hull FC0
13 MarKeighley4Rochdale Hornets6
13 MarWarrington10Wigan13

Semi-finals
3 April 1948
Hunslet 7 – 14 Bradford Northern

Final
1 May 1948
Wigan 8 – 3 Bradford Northern
Try: Hilton, Barton
Goal: Ward		 Report
 Try: Edwards
Wembley Stadium, London
Attendance: 91,465
Referee: George Phillips (Widnes)[2]
Player of the Match: Frank Whitcombe[3]
FB1Martin Ryan
RW2Gordon Ratcliffe
RC3Ted Ward
LC4Ernie Ashcroft
LW5Jack Hilton
SO6Cecil Mountford
SH7Tommy Bradshaw
PR8Ken Gee
HK9Joe Egan (c)
PR10Frank Barton
SR11Les White
SR12Billy Blan
LF13Bill Hudson
Coach:
Jim Sullivan
FB1Billy Leake
RW2Eric Batten
RC3Des Case
LC4Ernest Ward (c)
LW5Alan Edwards
SO6Willie Davies
SH7Donald Ward
PR8Frank Whitcombe
HK9Vic Darlison
PR10Herbert Smith
SR11Barry Tyler
SR12Trevor Foster
LF13Ken Traill
Coach:
Dai Rees

Coverage

The final was broadcast live on BBC television, with George Duckworth providing commentary,[4] and was the first time a rugby league match had ever been televised.[5] The match was only broadcast to viewers in the London area, as the first television transmitter in the North of England was not completed until 1951.[6]

References
  1. "Challenge Cup 1947/48". Rugby League Project.
  2. "1st May 1948: Wigan 8 Bradford Northern 3 (1948 Challenge Cup Final)". cherryandwhite.co.uk. RLFANS.COM. Archived from the original on 7 September 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2015.
  3. "Wigan's Challenge Cup Victory: Bradford Beat Themselves in Game of Many Errors Wigan 8, Bradford 3". The Manchester Guardian. 3 May 1948. p. 6.
  4. "Rugby League Challenge Cup Final: Bradford Northern v. Wigan". BBC Genome. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  5. "Key Dates & Anniversaries". The Rugby Football League. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2015.
  6. "From the archive, 10 October 1951: The North gets its first television transmitter". The Guardian. 10 October 2015. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
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