The 1947–48

Rugby Football League The Rugby Football League (RFL) is the governing body for rugby league in England. Founded in 1895 as the Northern Rugby Football Union following 22 clubs resigning from the Rugby Football Union, it changed its name in 1922 to the Rugby Footb ...

season was the 53rd season of rugby league football.

Season summary

Warrington Warrington () is an industrial town in the Borough of Warrington, borough of the same name in Cheshire, England. The town sits on the banks of the River Mersey and was Historic counties of England, historically part of Lancashire. It is east o ...

won their first Championship when they beat Bradford Northern 15–5 in the play-off final.

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. It is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its ad ...

had ended the regular season as the league leaders. The Challenge Cup Winners were

who beat Bradford Northern 8–3 in the final.

's 1948 Challenge Cup Final victory over Bradford Northern was the first ever televised Rugby League match and Cup Final – although it was shown in the Midlands only.

won the Lancashire League, and Bradford Northern won the Yorkshire League.

beat Belle Vue Rangers 10–7 to win the

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

County Cup, and

Wakefield Trinity Wakefield Trinity is a professional rugby league club in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. The club play their home fixtures at the DIY Kitchen Stadium, Belle Vue (Wakefield), Belle Vue and currently compete in the Super League, the top tier o ...

beat

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

7–7 (replay 8–7) to win the

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

County Cup.

Championship

Play-offs

Final

Challenge Cup

Wigan beat Bradford 8–3 in the final played at Wembley in front of a crowd of 91,465. This was the first Rugby League match ever attended by the reigning monarch, HM King

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952 ...

, who presented the trophy. This was also the first televised rugby league match. This was Wigan's third Cup Final win in seven Final appearances including one loss during World War II.

Frank Whitcombe Frank William Whitcombe (29 May 1913 – 17 January 1958), also known by the nickname of "The Big Man", was a Welsh rugby union, and professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s and 1940s. He played rugby union (RU) for Cardif ...

, Bradford Northern's prop forward was awarded the Lance Todd Trophy for man-of-the-match.

County cups

References

Sources

1947-48 Rugby Football League season at wigan.rlfans.comThe Challenge Cup at The Rugby Football League website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rugby Football League season, 1947-48 1947 in English rugby league 1948 in English rugby league Northern Rugby Football League seasons