JJB Sports Super League III was the official name for the year 1998's

Super League The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...

championship season, the 104th season of top-level professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

football in Britain, and the third season played in summer. The League format changed in 1998 and the championship became a playoff series to determine the Super League champions, similar to the way the Premiership was played for the previous 23 seasons. This meant the first Final to determine the British champions since the 1972–73 season. The team which finished on the top of the table were, from this season, awarded the

League Leaders' Shield The League Leaders' Shield is a shield awarded to the team finishing the season top of Super League in the sport of rugby league football. Currently, and for most of Super League's history, the championship is decided on the basis of a play-off se ...

, with the inaugural honours going to Wigan.

Huddersfield Giants Huddersfield Giants are an English professional rugby league club from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, the birthplace of rugby league, who play in the Super League competition. They play their home games at the John Smiths Stadium which is sh ...

, the league's bottom club was saved from relegation in 1998 due to the expansion of the league to fourteen teams in

Super League IV JJB Sports Super League IV was the official name for the year 1999's Super League championship season, the 105th season of top-level professional rugby league football in Britain, and the fourth championship run by the Super League. The start of ...

. The season culminated in the grand final between

Leeds Rhinos The Leeds Rhinos are a professional rugby league club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The club was formed in 1870 as Leeds St John's and play in the Super League, the top tier of English rugby league. They have played home matches at Headi ...

and

Wigan Warriors The Wigan Warriors are a professional rugby league club in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the Super League. Formed in 1872 as Wigan Football Club, Wigan was a founding member of the Rugby Football League, Northern Rugby ...

, which Wigan won, claiming the 1998 Championship.

Teams

Table

Play-offs

The top five clubs at the end of the 23-round regular season entered the play-offs to decide the championship. The format was to have an elimination play off between the fourth and fifth teams (the fourth team gaining home advantage) and then have a qualifying play-off between the second and third placed teams (the second placed team gaining home advantage). The winner of the qualifier would play the team finishing first in the first semi final whilst the losing team got a second chance and played against the winner of the eliminating play off between fourth and fifth. The winner of the qualifying semi final would progress to the final of the Super League championship and the losing side would get another chance and play against the winning side of the elimination semi final.

Grand final

Dream Team

The

Super League Dream Team The Super League Dream Team is an annually-selected rugby league All Star Team consisting of the players deemed to have been the best in their respective positions in the Super League competition. The team is selected by a panel of journalists an ...

for the 1998 season was: 1.

Kris Radlinski Kristian John Radlinski MBE (born 9 April 1976) is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played mainly as a . He played his entire professional career for his hometown club, Wigan Warriors, making over 300 appearances betwe ...

(Wigan) 2. Jason Robinson (Wigan) 3. Gary Connolly (Wigan) 4.

Brad Godden Bradley Godden (born 13 July 1969) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s. He played for the Newcastle Knights, Hunter Mariners, and the Leeds Rhinos as a or . Playing career Australia Godden s ...

(Leeds) 5. Anthony Sullivan (St. Helens) 6.

Iestyn Harris Iestyn Rhys Harris (born 25 June 1976), also known by the nickname of "Welsh Wizard", is a former dual-code international professional rugby league and rugby union footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s, and coach in rugby league in the ...

(Leeds) 7.

Gavin Clinch Gavin Clinch (born ) is a former Ireland international rugby league footballer who played as a in the 1990s and 2000s. Clinch played at representative level for Ireland, and at club level for Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks, Penrith Panthers, St. G ...

(Halifax) 8.

Dale Laughton Dale Laughton (born 10 October 1970) is a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s. He played at representative level for Great Britain national rugby league team, Great Britain and Scotland national rugby le ...

(Sheffield) 9.

Robbie McCormack Robbie McCormack (born 14 October 1964) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s. A New South Wales State of Origin representative hooker who started his career as a utility back, he played ...

(Wigan) 10.

Tony Mestrov Tony Mestrov is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played as a and forward in the 1990s and 2000s. He played for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles and the South Sydney Rabbitohs in Australia, and for the London Bronco ...

(Wigan) 11. Steele Retchless (London Broncos) 12.

Adrian Morley Adrian Paul Morley is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played as a and forward from the 1990s through the 2010s. A Great Britain and England international, he played for the Leeds Rhinos (with whom he won the 1999 C ...

(Leeds) 13. Andy Farrell (Wigan).

References

External links

Super League III at wigan.rlfans.com
{{1998 in rugby league 1998 in English rugby league