Every club north of the River Trent was contacted and invited to
take part in the competition. For many reasons clubs declined, some
feeling the project was professionalising the game. Others found
they would not be able to travel to Blackpool, play and then get
home in a single day. In the end just eight clubs participated and
these were mainly local.
The plan was to play the Final between Christmas Day and New
Year's Day to ensure a bumper crowd. One game was to be played each
week leading up to the final tie. The Draw was made (somewhat fixed
to say the least):
- Chorley v Southport Olympic
- Manchester Athletic v Walton
- Rossendale v Whitworth
- Preston Olympic v Preston North End (now a football club)
The first tie was played on Saturday 19th October 1878 when
Chorley beat Southport Olympic. The second game a week later would
prove problematic. Towards the end of the game Walton claimed to
have scored the winning try but the Manchester team objected. As
both umpires could not agree the argument raged on and resulted in
Walton walking off the field in protest. Fish had no idea just what
to do so decided to forward the matter on to the Rugby Football
Union (RFU) for a decision. The third tie saw Rossendale overcome
Whitworth and the final tie Preston Olympic defeat Preston North
End.
Fish now had a problem, namely he had five semi-finalists and
could do nothing until the RFU contacted him. They did in December,
and ruled that Walton having left the field before the referee had
blown for time had forfeited the game. The problem was that the
most severe winter weather had set in and all sport was put on hold
due to the frozen grounds. Fish decided the Semi-Finals and Final
would be played over the Easter Holiday. It is for this reason that
the cup is engraved 1878 but the final tie was played in 1879.
The Semi-Finals saw Rossendale defeat Manchester Athletic,
followed by Chorley overcoming Preston Olympic. The Final attracted
a crowd of over 3,000 to the Raikes Hall Gardens where Chorley took
the honours by a try and a field goal to a minor. Humphrey
captained the Chorley side and his brother Leopold Joseph Bonny
Whittle played full back. Leopold's medal and its original case are
in the Cup, which is held at Astley Hall in Chorley.
About the Author - Tom Mather was born
in Wigan in 1947 and so became a supporter of rugby league from a
very early age. He taught in England for over thirty five years and
has an M.A. in Educational Psychology and Research. He now lives in
NSW Australia following his retirement. For over sixty years he has
been involved with Rugby of both codes and has written extensively
about the period around the schism of 1895. In addition he has
written many books covering the tours to Australia and New Zealand
by the English Rugby League teams, and also reciprocal tours by
Australia.
Publications by Tom Mather are available to buy now.
