1997 Super League (UK) season

This article is about the men's British rugby league competition. For the Australian Super League, see 1997 Super League (Australia) season. For the second division of professional football in Greece, see Super League Greece 2.
Super League II
LeagueSuper League
Duration22 Rounds
Teams12
Highest attendance19,137
Leeds Rhinos vs Bradford Bulls (29 July)
Lowest attendance500
Paris Saint-Germain vs Salford Reds (2 July)
Broadcast partnersSky Sports
1997 Season
ChampionsBradford Bulls
1st Super League title
3rd British title
Premiership winnersWigan Warriors
Man of SteelEngland James Lowes
Top point-scorer(s)England Andrew Farrell (243)
Top try-scorer(s)New Zealand Nigel Vagana (17)
Promotion and relegation
Promoted from Division OneHuddersfield Giants
Hull Sharks
Relegated to Division OneOldham Bears
Resigned from League
DissolvedParis Saint-Germain

Stones Bitter Super League II was the official name for the year 1997's Super League championship season, the 103rd season of top-level professional rugby league football in Britain, and the second to be played in summer.

Teams

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Twelve teams were selected to play in the second Super League season, however Salford Reds were promoted into the League, taking the place of relegated Workington Town.

Legend
  Reigning Champions
  Challenge Cup Holders
  Promoted
Team Stadium Capacity City/Area
Bradford Bulls Odsal 27,000 Bradford, West Yorkshire
Castleford Tigers Wheldon Road 11,750 Castleford, West Yorkshire
Halifax Blue Sox Thrum Hall 9,832 Halifax, West Yorkshire
Leeds Rhinos Headingley 21,500 Leeds, West Yorkshire
London Broncos The Stoop 11,000 Twickenham, Greater London
Oldham Bears Boundary Park 13,500 Oldham, Greater Manchester
Paris Saint-Germain Sébastien Charléty Stadium 20,000 Paris, France
Salford Reds The Willows 11,363 Salford, Greater Manchester
Sheffield Eagles Don Valley Stadium 25,000 Sheffield, South Yorkshire
St. Helens Knowsley Road 17,500 St Helens, Mersyside
Warrington Wolves Wilderspool 9,200 Warrington, Cheshire
Wigan Warriors Central Park 18,000 Wigan, Greater Manchester

Rules changes

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The import limit was raised from five to six, while the non-traditional markets of London and Paris were still exempted from it in an attempt to grow the game.[1]

Establishment of Super League (Europe) Ltd.

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In September 1996, the twelve Super League clubs announced the formation of a separate company, Rugby League (Europe) Ltd., to oversee the circuit's activities. Bradford chairman Chris Caisley was named chairman of RLE.[2] In December 1997, the company hired Colin Myler of Widnes, a former Daily Mirror editor and member of an old rugby league family, as chief executive.[3] In June 1997, RLE added Peter Deakin, a former player who had studied sports management in the U.S. before overseeing Bradford' communication, as marketing director.[4] The RFL, not particularly keen on another emancipatory act on the part of Super League, only contributed £150,000 to the company's initial budget.[5] After the Australasian Super League abandoned its name to merge into the National Rugby League, Rugby League (Europe) was renamed as Super League (Europe) in November 1997.[6]

Notable events

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League affairs

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Amidst the Super League's teething issues, speculations continued regarding future reforms. The place of traditional small market teams remained a hot topic. While the idea of contracting some teams was gaining a measure of acceptance,[7] a working party led by RFL chairman Rodney Walker suggested reducing the number of clubs at the bottom of the pyramid, while returning to a two-tier structure and enlarging the Super League to 14 or 16 clubs. This was poorly received by the game's more progressive observers due to the Super League's already palpable lack of depth, as seen during the World Club Championship.[8] Meanwhile, a document circulated internally by Rugby League Europe discussed further streamlining the Super League by axing clubs like Castleford, Halifax and Oldham and in favor of expansion markets such as Glasgow, Leicester, South Wales or even Dublin. Caisley and RFL chief executive Maurice Lindsay strongly denied any firm commitment to this option.[9][10]

Despite the funds provided by News Ltd., the greater cost of running a Super League team put many teams in the red, and the introduction of a salary cap was mooted during a meeting of executives in July.[11] At the end of the season, the Paris Saint-Germain team, which had brought the league some of its most favorable headlines, was dissolved for failure to generate sufficient income.[12][13] Relegated Oldham went into administration with more than £1 million in liabilities. The club entered voluntary liquidation in October.[14] Its assets including its name and history were retained for a second Oldham club which entered the third tier for the 1998 season. Its chairman John Quinn called for a freeze of the relegation system, a measure that Widnes and Keighley had successfully fought to repel at the Super League's inception.[15] The season also ended on a negative note for the RFL itself, with losses of £1 million, the governing body's first operational deficit in its 102-year history.[16]

The tensions between chief executive Lindsay, the advocate of a perceived Super League elite, and chairman Walker, who had the favors of the rank-and-file clubs, escalated throughout the season. Lindsay became a candidate for the presidency of The Tote, inviting rumors of his departure from the sport, but ended up not being chosen.[17] In late summer, he was also targeted by an article from tabloid The Sun, detailing more than £100,000 in personal expenses over the previous two years.[18] Unrest was such that Murdoch's right-hand man Rob Cowley was dispatched from Australia to help pacify the situation, which actually marked the first in-person meeting with a high level News executive since the signing of the Super League agreement twenty-eight months earlier.[18] In the run-up to the RFL's September meeting, Walker indicated his desire to curb the dominance of Lindsay's faction within the RFL, with much power concentrated into the hands of a four-man board of directors overseen by the latter.[19] An at-large board was re-installed, to be led by a newly elected chairman, a position for which Walker ran unopposed.[18][20] Shortly after, RFL project coordinator Neil Tunnicliffe was promoted to the position of deputy chief executive, working alongside Lindsay.[7][21]

Other

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At the end of 1996, a fan survey was organized to help chose a permanent nickname for Leeds RLFC, the last Super League member not to have one. The team had sporadically used the folk name "Loiners", but it never caught on. It subsequently became known as the Rhinos.[22] In May, Sheffield became the first publicly traded British rugby club of either code, although the introduction was met with a lackluster response. Ownership attributed it to disappointing on-field performance, while analysts blamed it on the sport's limited profile in the city.[23] With the advent of professional rugby union, a number of league players were now tempted back into the ranks of the fifteen-man code by lucrative winter offers. Wigan reacted by prohibiting such short-term contracts.[24] Following dealings with a pair of unscrupulous agents, the Super League reached out to the Rugby League Professional Players' Association to join forces in the creation of a register of approved agents.[25] Halifax attracted negative attention during a trip to the south of France (where their game against Paris had been relocated to take advantage of holiday crowds). They were accused of damaging six rooms and the swimming pool of a Béziers hotel following their loss to the French club.[26] The RFL's Strategic Planning Commission led by technical director Joe Lydon put forward a proposal to officially recognize farm team agreements between Super League and Division One clubs, acknowledging the relationships that already existed on a case-by-case basis between Bradford and Dewsbury, as well as between Leeds and Bramley. The initiative, which would have allowed up to five players to shuttle between parent and affiliate clubs each week, was shut down by FASDA (the entity representing Division One and Division Two clubs).[20]

Table

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At the end of the season, the Bradford Bulls were crowned Super League champions by virtue of finishing the season at the top of the table.[27]

Pos Team
 Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Relegation
1 Bradford Bulls (C) 22 20 0 2 769 397 +372 40
2 London Broncos 22 15 3 4 616 418 +198 33
3 St Helens 22 14 1 7 592 506 +86 29
4 Wigan 22 14 0 8 683 398 +285 28
5 Leeds Rhinos 22 13 1 8 544 463 +81 27
6 Salford Reds 22 11 0 11 428 495 −67 22
7 Halifax Blue Sox 22 8 2 12 524 549 −25 18
8 Sheffield Eagles 22 9 0 13 415 574 −159 18
9 Warrington Wolves 22 8 0 14 437 647 −210 16
10 Castleford Tigers 22 5 2 15 334 515 −181 12
11 Paris Saint-Germain 22 6 0 16 362 572 −210 12
12 Oldham Bears (R) 22 4 1 17 461 631 −170 9 Relegated to Division One
Source: Rugby League Project
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Points difference; 3) Number of points scored;
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated

Premiership

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Main article: 1997 Rugby League Premiership

During the year a secondary title, known as the Stone's Premiership, was also played for the last time. All twelve Super League teams qualified for and competed in a knockout play-off series. In the 28 September final held at Manchester's Old Trafford, Wigan Warriors beat rivals St. Helens 33–20 thanks to a Harry Sunderland Trophy-winning performance by captain Andy Farrell.[28] Following this season, it was abolished and replaced with the Super League Grand Final which would determine the Champions rather than the current first past the post system.

International series

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A post-season Super League Test series between Australia and Great Britain was also held in England.[12]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Korporaal, Glenda (18 February 1997). "Euro Super on edge over imbalance of power". Sydney Morning Herald. p. 38.
  2. ^ "Revamped Super League denies RL breakaway". Daily Post. Liverpool. 20 September 1996. p. 41  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  3. ^ Burke, David (December 11, 1996). "Swinton sign kiwi ace". Manchester Evening News. p. 53  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  4. ^ Hulme, Mike (June 12, 1997). "Rugby League". Bolton Evening News. p. 54  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  5. ^ Wilson, Andy (9 March 1997). "Blurred edges to global vision". The Observer. London. p. Sport 11.
  6. ^ Mascord, Steve (November 17, 1997). "Competition decision due 'in two weeks'". The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 28  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  7. ^ a b Wilson, Andy (16 October 1997). "Carlisle merger signals rethink". The Guardian. London. p. 27.
  8. ^ Wilson, Andy (22 June 1997). "After the slaughter, bring out the axe". The Observer. London. p. 4 (Sport)  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  9. ^ Robinson, John (13 July 1997). "Super League slaughter". The People. London. p. 60.
  10. ^ Fitzpatrick, Paul (15 July 1997). "Clubs control own destiny". The Guardian. London. p. 22  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  11. ^ Dowson, George (16 July 1997). "Cap the cash". Manchester Evening News. p. 51  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  12. ^ a b Slot, Owen (26 October 1997). "Trying to keep the Super in League". The Daily Telegraph. London. p. 10s  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  13. ^ Wilson, Andy (4 November 1997). "Huddersfield in, Paris out". The Guardian. London. p. 25.
  14. ^ "Directors pull out as Bears debts rise". The Advertiser. Oldham. 9 October 1997. p. 36  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  15. ^ "Quinn super plea". Manchester Evening News. 18 October 1997. p. 23  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  16. ^ Heads, Ian (4 January 1998). "Disaster-plagued Lindsay on borrowed time". Sydney Morning-Herald. p. 102  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  17. ^ Wilson, Andy (13 July 1997). "Why mud-spattered Mo must go". The Observer. London. p. 2 (Sport)  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  18. ^ a b c Wilson, Andy (7 September 1997). "Iron man with golden grip". The Observer. p. 45  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  19. ^ Fieldhouse, John (2 September 1997). "Waudby quits board with warning". Hull Daily Mail. p. 52.
  20. ^ a b Walker, Nick (4 October 1997). "Lydon loan idea gets thumbs down". Liverpool Echo/Football Echo. p. 26  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  21. ^ Burke, David (16 October 1997). "Expand the Super League". Manchester Evening News. p. 56  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  22. ^ Fisher, Michael (November 13, 1996). "Wigan deny sale of ground for £4m". The Daily Telegraph. London. p. 41  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  23. ^ Clark, Andrew (May 22, 1997). "The Eagles have landed with a bump". The Sunday Telegraph. London. p. 27  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  24. ^ "Wigan ban players from taking union contracts". The Daily Telegraph. 9 October 1997. p. 41  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  25. ^ "Call for agents' register". Birmingham Post. 1 November 1997. p. 12  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  26. ^ Wilson, Andy (August 26, 1997). "Halifax hit by hotel bill for 'high spirits'". The Guardian. London. p. 23  – via newspapers.com (subscription required) .
  27. ^ "Bradford Bulls Honours List". Bradford Bulls official website. 2007-01-26. Archived from the original on 2007-02-05. Retrieved 2007-08-02.
  28. ^ Dave Hadfield (29 September 1997) Farrell keeps Wigan's trophy cabinet stocked The Independent
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