Current season or competition: 2024 Wheelchair Challenge Cup | |
Sport | Wheelchair rugby league |
---|---|
Instituted | 2015 [1] |
Inaugural season | 2015 |
Country | England France Scotland Wales |
Winners | Catalans Dragons (2023) |
Most titles | Halifax Panthers (4 titles) |
Broadcast partner | BBC Red Button (final only) |
Related competition | RFL Wheelchair Super League |
The Wheelchair Challenge Cup is a wheelchair rugby league competition organised by the Rugby Football League.
The Wheelchair Challenge Cup was established in 2015. [1] Originally the tournament was played using a knockout format. Halifax defeated Medway Dragons 120–40 in the opening round of the 2015 competition [2] and went on to win the final against Mersey Storm [3] [4] before completing the double by winning the league championship. [5] Another double followed for Halifax in 2016 which included a 92–48 win over Leeds Rhinos in the cup final. Leeds had scored over 100 points their previous two rounds but faced a Halifax side who had not lost a match since June 2015. [6] [7] Halifax repeated the double again in the 2017 season with a 110–48 cup final win over Leeds that included 15 tries by Jack Brown. [8] Other notable matches included a 160–0 win for Leeds over Argonauts in the opening round and the first all-Scottish match in the competition between Dundee Dragons and Glasgow Panthers in the quarter-finals. [9]
In 2018, a plate competition was introduced which was intended to reduce the number of one-sided fixtures being played. The two plate finalists qualified for the quarter-finals of the cup though the finals of both competitions were played on the same day. [10] Hereford Harriers defeated North Wales Crusaders for the plate and Halifax won the cup competition for the fourth time by defeating Dundee Dragons 62–18 in the final. [11] In 2019, the plate was replaced by Challenge Trophy played as a separate competition competition for teams outside of the Super League. Leeds Rhinos won 74–46 against Argonauts to win the cup for the first time. [12]
In the draw for the 2020 cup, which contained only six teams, two were given byes to the semi-final, [13] but following the cancellation of the 2020 competition a new format was introduced in 2021 with the teams playing in a round-robin tournament. [14] The top two teams qualified for the final which was a repeat of the 2019 final with Leeds retaining the title with a 60–26 victory. [15] The following year it was the top four from the round-robin stage that qualified for the semi-finals. French team, Catalans Dragons, made their début in the competition, but lost in the final to Leeds who claimed the cup for the third time. [16] [17] The 2023 competition saw the top two teams advance to the final. Catalans and Leeds were both unbeaten in the qualifiers and drew 4–4 against each other to set up a rematch in the final which Catalans won 66–20 to add the Challenge Cup to their French Championship and Coupe de France titles. [18] [19] [20]
From 2024, the Challenge Cup reverted to a straight knockout format, like the running game, for the five Super League sides, Catalans Dragons, and the Challenge Trophy finalists. [21] [22]
Round One | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | |||||||||||||||
Halifax | 120 | |||||||||||||||||
Medway Dragons | 40 | |||||||||||||||||
Halifax | W | |||||||||||||||||
Halifax | W | |||||||||||||||||
Leyland Warriors | ||||||||||||||||||
Leyland Warriors | 120 | |||||||||||||||||
Gravesend Dynamite | 22 | Halifax | W | |||||||||||||||
Mersey Storm | ||||||||||||||||||
Mersey Storm | W | |||||||||||||||||
Leeds Rhinos | ||||||||||||||||||
Sources: [lower-alpha 1] [2] [3] [4] [23]
Round 1 | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||||||
Halifax | 24 | ||||||||||||||
Gravesend Dynamite | 102 | Gravesend Dynamite | 0 | ||||||||||||
Hereford Harriers | 32 | Halifax | 84 | ||||||||||||
Bradford Bulls | 35 | ||||||||||||||
Hull F.C. | 52 | ||||||||||||||
Bradford Bulls | 72 | Bradford Bulls | 62 | ||||||||||||
Dundee Dragons | 34 | Halifax | 92 | ||||||||||||
Leeds Rhinos | 48 | ||||||||||||||
Leeds Rhinos | 144 | ||||||||||||||
Glasgow Panthers | 66 | Glasgow Panthers | 4 | ||||||||||||
Keighley Cougars | 18 | Leeds Rhinos | 104 | ||||||||||||
Medway Dragons | 48 | ||||||||||||||
Medway Dragons | 48 | ||||||||||||||
Folkestone Spitfires | 124 | Folkestone Spitfires | 26 | ||||||||||||
Dartford Vipers | 4 |
Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
Leyland Warriors | 28 | |||||||||
Halifax | 58 | |||||||||
Halifax | 72 | |||||||||
Dundee Dragons | 12 | |||||||||
Dundee Dragons | 58 | |||||||||
Glasgow Panthers | 28 | |||||||||
Halifax | 18 | |||||||||
Leeds Rhinos | 62 | |||||||||
Leeds Rhinos | 96 | |||||||||
Mersey Storm | 40 | |||||||||
Leeds Rhinos | 84 | |||||||||
Medway Dragons | 66 | |||||||||
Medway Dragons | 46 | |||||||||
North Wales Crusaders | 36 | |||||||||
Sources: [lower-alpha 2] [8] [27] [28]
Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
Dundee Dragons | 46 | |||||||||
Medway Dragons | 10 | |||||||||
Dundee Dragons | 24 | |||||||||
St Helens | 0 | |||||||||
Hereford Harriers | 42 | |||||||||
St Helens | 44 | |||||||||
Dundee Dragons | 18 | |||||||||
Halifax | 62 | |||||||||
Leyland Warriors | 24 | |||||||||
Halifax | 92 | |||||||||
Halifax | 68 | |||||||||
Leeds Rhinos | 42 | |||||||||
Argonauts | ||||||||||
Leeds Rhinos | ||||||||||
Sources: [lower-alpha 3] [lower-alpha 4] [10] [11] [30] [31] [32] [33]
Round One | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
30 June | ||||||||||
Argonauts | 104 | |||||||||
21 July | ||||||||||
St Helens | 4 | |||||||||
Argonauts | 78 | |||||||||
30 June | ||||||||||
North Wales Crusaders | 27 | |||||||||
North Wales Crusaders | 64 | |||||||||
17 August | ||||||||||
Hereford Harriers | 51 | |||||||||
Leeds Rhinos | 74 | |||||||||
Argonauts | 46 | |||||||||
30 June | ||||||||||
Leeds Rhinos | 62 | |||||||||
Halifax | 48 | |||||||||
Final | ||||
1 | Leeds Rhinos | 60 | ||
2 | Argonauts | 26 |
Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
1 | Leeds Rhinos | 36 | |||||||
4 | Halifax Panthers | 6 | |||||||
Leeds Rhinos | 48 | ||||||||
Catalans Dragons | 34 | ||||||||
2 | Catalans Dragons | 30 | |||||||
3 | Wigan Warriors | 6 |
Final | ||||
1 | Catalans Dragons | 66 | ||
2 | Leeds Rhinos | 20 |
Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
27 April | ||||||||||
Leeds Rhinos | 86 | |||||||||
18 May | ||||||||||
Hereford Harriers | 12 | |||||||||
Leeds Rhinos | 30 | |||||||||
27 April | ||||||||||
Wigan Warriors | 48 | |||||||||
Wigan Warriors | 70 | |||||||||
1 June | ||||||||||
Halifax Panthers | 32 | |||||||||
Wigan Warriors | ||||||||||
4 May | ||||||||||
Catalans Dragons | ||||||||||
London Roosters | 108 | |||||||||
18 May | ||||||||||
Edinburgh Giants | 4 | |||||||||
London Roosters | 12 | |||||||||
11 May | ||||||||||
Catalans Dragons | 74 | |||||||||
Hull FC | 6 | |||||||||
Catalans Dragons | 78 | |||||||||
Year | Winning team | Score | Losing team | Venue | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | Halifax | ?–? | Mersey Storm | unknown | [3] [4] |
2016 | Halifax | 92–48 | Leeds Rhinos | Huddersfield Sports Centre | [24] [41] |
2017 | Halifax | 110–48 | Leeds Rhinos | [8] | |
2018 | Halifax | 62–18 | Dundee Dragons | Richard Dunn Sports Centre, Bradford | [11] |
2019 | Leeds Rhinos | 74–46 | Argonauts | English Institute of Sport, Sheffield | [12] |
2020 | Tournament cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | ||||
2021 | Leeds Rhinos | 60–26 | Argonauts | English Institute of Sport, Sheffield | [15] |
2022 | Leeds Rhinos | 48–34 | Catalans Dragons | Allam Arena, Hull | [17] [42] |
2023 | Catalans Dragons | 66–20 | Leeds Rhinos | English Institute of Sport, Sheffield | [19] |
Team | Winners | Runners-up |
---|---|---|
Halifax Panthers | 4 | 0 |
Leeds Rhinos | 3 | 3 |
Catalans Dragons | 1 | 1 |
Argonauts | 0 | 2 |
Dundee Dragons | 0 | 1 |
Mersey Storm | 0 | 1 |
In 2018, the Rugby Football League introduced a Plate competition as part of the Challenge Cup. [10] It was planned to continue in 2019, [43] but was instead replaced by the inaugural Wheelchair Challenge Trophy. [44] The Challenge Trophy is played alongside the Challenge Cup, for teams outside the Super League. This was originally played as a separate competition, [45] but in 2024 it was announced that the two finalists would qualify to take part in the Challenge Cup. [22]
Year | Winning team | Score | Losing team | Venue | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018 | Hereford Harriers | 63–32 | North Wales Crusaders [lower-alpha 3] | Richard Dunn Sports Centre, Bradford | [11] |
2019 | Gravesend Dynamite | 75–48 | Hull FC | English Institute of Sport, Sheffield | [34] |
2020 | Tournament cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | ||||
2021 | Gravesend Dynamite | 19–12 | Warrington Wolves | Warrington | |
2022 | Gravesend Dynamite | 82–40 | Mersey Storm | Allam Arena, Hull | [46] |
2023 | Gravesend Dynamite | 88–8 | Sheffield Eagles | English Institute of Sport, Sheffield | [47] |
2024 | Hereford Harriers | 17–16 | Edinburgh Giants | National Basketball Performance Centre, Manchester | [48] [49] |
Team | Winners | Runners-up |
---|---|---|
Gravesend Dynamite | 4 | 0 |
Hereford Harriers | 2 | 0 |
Edinburgh Giants | 0 | 1 |
Hull | 0 | 1 |
Mersey Storm | 0 | 1 |
North Wales Crusaders | 0 | 1 |
Sheffield Eagles | 0 | 1 |
Warrington Wolves | 0 | 1 |
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