# Lancashire Cup (rugby union)

The Lancashire Cup was an English Rugby Football Union competition founded in 1971. It was organized by the Lancashire Rugby Football Union and was open to all eligible clubs in the Lancashire region including a number of clubs in Cheshire and Merseyside. The men's competition was discontinued at the end of 2013 as there were not enough teams willing to participate in the cup (partly due to the increased demands of league rugby).

## History

Despite the Lancashire RFU being established in 1881 and having the most successful county team in the country, club rugby union took a long time to catch on in Lancashire. While bitter rivals Yorkshire had an established county club competition (the Yorkshire Cup) which had been running since 1878, Lancashire did not have a similar competition until 1971. This lack of competitive rugby meant that Lancashire had a smaller membership of clubs when compared to its counterpart. Some of the current clubs competing seem to be based outside of Lancashire, such as Liverpool St Helens and Waterloo, but when the Lancashire RFU was founded, places like Merseyside and Liverpool were part of the county, and these teams have retained their membership.

## Final results

| Year | Winner | Score | Runner Up | Venue |
| 1971-72 | Orrell | 16 – 0 | Liverpool | St. Anthony's Road, Blundellsands |
| 1972-73 | Orrell | 32 – 7 | West Park St Helens | |
| 1973-74 | Waterloo | 12 – 9 | Broughton Park | |
| 1974-75 | Orrell | 9 – 3 | Manchester | |
| 1975-76 | Widnes | 21 – 9 | West Park St Helens | |
| 1976-77 | Liverpool | 10 – 9 | Orrell | |
| 1977-78 | Orrell | 12 - 3 | Liverpool | |
| 1978-79 | Liverpool | 10 - 6 | Orrell | |
| 1979-80 | Waterloo | 12 – 0 | Broughton Park | |
| 1980-81 | Orrell | 12 – 6 | Liverpool | |
| 1981-82 | Orrell | 17 – 12 | Liverpool | |
| 1982-83 | Orrell | 26 – 3 | Liverpool | |
| 1983-84 | Liverpool | 20 – 3 | Preston Grasshoppers | St. Anthony's Road, Blundellsands |
| 1984-85 | Waterloo | 11 - 6 | Vale of Lune | Woodlands Memorial Ground, Fylde |
| 1985-86 | Vale of Lune | 19 – 10 | Preston Grasshoppers | Woodlands Memorial Ground, Fylde |
| 1986-87 | Waterloo | 25 – 12 | Orrell | |
| 1987-88 | Orrell | 23 - 6 | Liverpool St Helens | |
| 1988-89 | Orrell | 48 - 6 | Broughton Park | Moss Lane, St. Helens |
| 1989-90 | Liverpool St Helens | 24 - 9 | Waterloo | |
| 1990-91 | Widnes | 23 – 7 | Orrell | |
| 1991-92 | Vale of Lune | 12 – 6 | Widnes | |
| 1992-93 | Waterloo | 13 - 11 | Liverpool St Helens | |
| 1993-94 | Waterloo | 19 - 6 | Orrell | |
| 1994-95 | Fylde | 15 - 11 | Manchester | |
| 1995-96 | Liverpool St Helens | 22 – 13 | Widnes | |
| 1996-97 | Orrell | 27 – 17 | Preston Grasshoppers | |
| 1997-98 | Manchester | 42 – 19 | Fylde | |
| 1998-99 | Manchester | 29 - 27 | Orrell | |
| 1999-00 | West Park St Helens | 33 – 23 | Manchester | |
| 2000-01 | Manchester | 27 - 20 | Sedgley Park | Lightfoot Green, Preston |
| 2001-02 | Sedgley Park | 31 – 3 | Fylde | Lightfoot Green, Preston |
| 2002-03 | Preston Grasshoppers | 34 – 31 | West Park St Helens | Park Lane, Whitefield |
| 2003-04 | Sedgley Park | 51 – 25 | Vale of Lune | Park Lane, Whitefield |
| 2004-05 | West Park St Helens | 22 – 13 | Preston Grasshoppers | Park Lane, Whitefield |
| 2005-06 | Preston Grasshoppers | 43 - 14 | Waterloo | Park Lane, Whitefield |
| 2006-07 | Sedgley Park | 24 – 14 | Manchester | Woodlands Memorial Ground, Fylde |
| 2007-08 | Waterloo | 30 – 19 | Sedgley Park | Park Lane, Whitefield |
| 2008-09 | Fylde | 37 – 17 | Preston Grasshoppers | Lightfoot Green, Preston |
| 2009-10 | Fylde | 15 – 7 | Preston Grasshoppers | Lightfoot Green, Preston |
| 2010-11 | Fylde | W/O | Rossendale | N/A |
| 2011-12 | Preston Grasshoppers | 30 - 10 | Sedgley Park | Woodlands Memorial Ground, Fylde |
| 2012-13 | Sedgley Park | 28 - 24 | Preston Grasshoppers | Park Lane, Whitefield |
| 2013-18 | (no competition) | | | |
| 2018-19 | | | | |
| 2019-20 | (not completed) | | | |
| 2020-21 | (no competition) | | | |
| 2021-22 | Preston Grasshoppers | 59 - 8 | Widnes | Douglas Valley, Wigan |
| 2022-23 | Blackburn | 87 - 3 | Firwood Waterloo | Hand Lane, Leigh |

## Number of wins

* Orrell (10)
* Waterloo (7)
* Liverpool/Liverpool St Helens (5)
* Fylde (4)
* Preston Grasshoppers (4)
* Sedgley Park (4)
* Manchester (3)
* Vale of Lune (2)
* West Park St Helens (2)
* Widnes (2)
* Blackburn (1)