2019 RFL 1895 Cup

The 2019 RFL 1895 Cup, known as the 2019 AB Sundecks 1895 Cup for sponsorship reasons, is the inaugural tournament for the RFL 1895 Cup, a rugby league football competition for clubs in the United Kingdom. The tournament was played between League 1 and Championship teams between May and August 2019. The format of the tournament was confirmed in December 2018, and consisted of five rounds. In round 1 eight League 1 teams played in a knock out round. Round 2 introduced the 12 English teams from the Championship who with the winners from round 1 will play eight ties. The quarter-finals and semi-finals followed in June and July, with the final played at Wembley Stadium on 24 August, with the Challenge Cup final also being played on this day.[1]

2019 RFL 1895 Cup
Duration5 Rounds
Number of teams20
Winners Sheffield Eagles
Runners-up Widnes Vikings
Biggest home win Doncaster 70–6
West Wales Raiders (5 May 2019)
Biggest away win Halifax 8–52
Sheffield Eagles (5 June 2019)
Ray French Award Anthony Thackeray
(Sheffield Eagles)

The competition commenced in May without sponsorship but in June it was announced that the cup would be sponsored by AB Sundecks, owned by former Leigh Centurions chairman Derek Beaumont.[2]

Teams

The teams participating in the inaugural 1895 Cup are as follows:

League 1

As some of the games in the later stages were scheduled for midweek, Coventry Bears, London Skolars and North Wales Crusaders decided against entering the competition for logistical reasons.[3]

Championship

Toulouse Olympique and Toronto Wolfpack were ineligible to enter the competition as the clubs are not full members of the Rugby Football League.

First round

The first round ties were played on 4–5 May. The draw was made at Odsal Stadium on 12 March immediately after the draw for the fourth round of the Challenge Cup.[4] The tie between Hunslet and Workington was streamed live on the RFL's OurLeague app.[5]

Home Score Away Match Information
Date and Time Venue Referee Attendance
Newcastle Thunder 38–12 Keighley Cougars 4 May 2019, 14:30 Kingston Park T. Crashley 340
Hunslet 28–31 Workington Town 4 May 2019, 15:00 South Leeds Stadium C. Smith 296
Doncaster 70–6 West Wales Raiders 5 May 2019, 15:00 Keepmoat Stadium C. Worsley 248
Oldham 48–12 Whitehaven 5 May 2019, 15:00 Whitebank Stadium J. Roberts 369
Source:[6]

Second round

The second round was played between 2–5 June. The draw was made on 5 May.[7]

Home Score Away Match Information
Date and Time Venue Referee Attendance
Batley Bulldogs 38–18 Rochdale Hornets 2 June 2019 15:00 Mount Pleasant B. Pearson 700
Dewsbury Rams 44–26 Swinton Lions 2 June 2019 15:00 Tetleys Stadium J. Smith 453
Leigh Centurions 62–12 Workington Town 2 June 2019 15:00 Leigh Sports Village A. Sweet 1,660
Oldham 12–24 Doncaster 2 June 2019 15:00 Vestacare Stadium M. Rossleigh 283
York City Knights 30–16 Newcastle Thunder 2 June 2019 15:00 Bootham Crescent N. Bennett 796
Barrow Raiders 50–6 Bradford Bulls 5 June 2019 19:30 Craven Park J. Child 1,161
Halifax 8–52 Sheffield Eagles 5 June 2019 20:00 Cougar Park T. Grant 312
Widnes Vikings 22–16 Featherstone Rovers 5 June 2019 20:00 Halton Stadium G. Dolan 1,515
Source:[8]

Quarter-finals

The quarter-finals were played during the week starting June 24.

Home Score Away Match Information
Date and Time Venue Referee Attendance
Doncaster 28–32 Sheffield Eagles 26 June 2019 19:30 LD Nutrition Stadium C. Worsley 374
Leigh Centurions 19–18 Barrow Raiders 26 June 2019 19:30 Totally Wicked Stadium G. Hewer 1,012
York City Knights 16–17[lower-alpha 1] Batley Bulldogs 26 June 2019 19:30 Bootham Crescent T. Grant 1,395
Widnes Vikings 54–6 Dewsbury Rams 26 June 2019 20:00 Select Security Stadium M. Mannifield 1,458
Source:[9]
  1. After golden-point extra time

Semi-finals

The semi-finals were played on Sunday 28 July.

Home Score Away Match Information
Date and Time Venue Referee Attendance
Leigh Centurions 8–12 Widnes Vikings 28 July 2019, 15:00 Leigh Sports Village B. Thaler 4,460
Sheffield Eagles 18–2 Batley Bulldogs 28 July 2019, 15:00 Olympic Legacy Park G. Hewer 727
Source:[9]

Final

The final was played at Wembley Stadium on 24 August. Sheffield Eagles beat Widnes Vikings 36–18 after being 12–18 down at half-time. The inaugural winner of the Ray French Award was Sheffield's Anthony Thackeray.

Home Score Away Match Information
Date and Time Venue Referee Attendance
Sheffield Eagles 36–18 Widnes Vikings 24 August 2019, 17:45 Wembley Stadium C. Kendall Not separately recorded[lower-alpha 1]
Source:[9]
  1. Due to the game being played directly after the challenge cup final, the official attendance was 62,717

References
  1. "1895 Cup entrants confirmed". Rugby Football League. 20 December 2018. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
  2. "Beaumont backs 1895 Cup as new title partner". 31 May 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  3. "1895 Cup entrants and details announced". Love Rugby League. 20 December 2018. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
  4. "1895 Cup First Round Draw Details". RFL. 8 March 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
  5. "Our League to stream selected Challenge Cup and 1895 Cup fixtures". 21 March 2019. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
  6. "1895 Cup Round One". Rugby Leaguer & League Express (3, 172). 6 May 2019. p. 39.
  7. "1895 Cup second round ties revealed". Love Rugby League. 6 May 2019. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  8. "1895 Cup Round Two". Rugby Leaguer & League Express (3, 176). 2 June 2019. p. 35.
  9. Butcher, Tim & Spencer, Daniel, eds. (2019). Rugby League Yearbook 2019–2020. League Publications. p. 308. ISBN 978-1901-347388.
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