# 1985–86 John Player Special Trophy

This was the fifteenth season of the competition. The League Cup was again known as the John Player Special Trophy this season for sponsorship reasons.
Wigan won the final, beating Hull Kingston Rovers by the score of 11-8. The match was played at Elland Road, Leeds. The attendance was 17,573 and receipts were £66714.

## Background

This season saw several changes in the entrants :- 1 Bridgend Blue Dragons and Southend Invicta both folded 2 and the invitation to two junior clubs continued This involved a decrease in entrants to thirty-six, in turn resulting in a 4 match, 8 club preliminary round to reduce the number of clubs taking part in the first round proper to thirty-two There were no drawn matches throughout the tournament

## Competition and results
### Preliminary round

Involved 4 matches and 8 Clubs
| Game No | Fixture Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue | Att | Notes |
| 1 | Sun 10 Nov 1985 | Carlisle | 6-24 | Rochdale Hornets | Brunton Park | 752 | |
| 2 | Sun 10 Nov 1985 | Featherstone Rovers | 10-14 | Warrington | Post Office Road | 1803 | |
| 3 | Sun 10 Nov 1985 | Keighley | 24-6 | Jubilee Hotel (Featherstone) | Lawkholme Lane | 1007 | 1 |
| 4 | Sun 10 Nov 1985 | West Hull | 10-24 | Castleford | Boulevard | 2500 | 2 |

### Round 1 - First Round

Involved 16 matches and 32 Clubs
| Game No | Fixture Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue | Att | Notes |
| 1 | Sat 23 Nov 1985 | Halifax | 2-11 | Hull Kingston Rovers | Thrum Hall | 4147 | |
| 2 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | Barrow | 5-2 | Leeds | Craven Park | 4886 | |
| 3 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | Batley | 2-70 | Leigh | Mount Pleasant | 1543 | 3 |
| 4 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | Blackpool Borough | 22-24 | Wakefield Trinity | Borough Park | 683 | |
| 5 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | Bramley | 8-46 | Oldham | McLaren Field | 2738 | |
| 6 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | Doncaster | 22-20 | Runcorn Highfield | Bentley Road Stadium/Tattersfield | 375 | |
| 7 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | Fulham | 13-20 | Warrington | Chiswick Poly Sports Grd | 1493 | |
| 8 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | Hunslet | 20-12 | Workington Town | Elland Road | 726 | |
| 9 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | Keighley | 20-10 | Huddersfield Barracudas | Lawkholme Lane | 1264 | 4 |
| 10 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | St. Helens | 42-6 | Dewsbury | Knowsley Road | 5364 | |
| 11 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | Salford | 18-12 | Rochdale Hornets | The Willows | 2844 | |
| 12 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | Sheffield Eagles | 16-24 | Bradford Northern | Owlerton Stadium | 1342 | |
| 13 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | Whitehaven | 7-12 | Widnes | Recreation Ground | 3097 | |
| 14 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | Wigan | 26-0 | Mansfield Marksman | Central Park | 10040 | 5 |
| 15 | Sun 24 Nov 1985 | York | 12-10 | Castleford | Clarence Street | 3765 | |
| 16 | Sun 27 Nov 1985 | Hull F.C. | 44-0 | Swinton | Boulevard | 3797 | |

### Round 2 - Second Round

Involved 8 matches and 16 Clubs
| Game No | Fixture Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue | Att |
| 1 | Sat 30 Nov 1985 | Widnes | 30-6 | Bradford Northern | Naughton Park | 2222 |
| 2 | Sun 1 Dec 1985 | Hull F.C. | 30-10 | Salford | Boulevard | 5659 |
| 3 | Sun 1 Dec 1985 | Hull Kingston Rovers | 8-7 | Oldham | Craven Park (1) | 7069 |
| 4 | Sun 1 Dec 1985 | Leigh | 48-6 | Hunslet | Hilton Park | 3267 |
| 5 | Sun 1 Dec 1985 | St. Helens | 36-20 | Doncaster | Knowsley Road | 4092 |
| 6 | Sun 1 Dec 1985 | Wakefield Trinity | 21-30 | Wigan | Belle Vue | 7360 |
| 7 | Sun 1 Dec 1985 | Warrington | 34-14 | Barrow | Wilderspool | 3705 |
| 8 | Sun 1 Dec 1985 | York | 21-16 | Keighley | Clarence Street | 2511 |

### Round 3 -Quarter Finals

Involved 4 matches with 8 clubs
| Game No | Fixture Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue | Att |
| 1 | Sat 7 Dec 1985 | Warrington | 22-26 | Wigan | Wilderspool | 6737 |
| 2 | Sun 8 Dec 1985 | Hull Kingston Rovers | 24-16 | York | Craven Park (1) | 6228 |
| 3 | Sun 8 Dec 1985 | Widnes | 31-35 | Leigh | Naughton Park | 6153 |
| 4 | Wed 11 Dec 1985 | St. Helens | 57-14 | Hull | Knowsley Road | 7536 |

### Round 4 – Semi-Finals

Involved 2 matches and 4 Clubs
| Game No | Fixture Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue | Att | Rec | Notes | Ref |
| 1 | Sat 14 Dec 1985 | Wigan | 36-8 | Leigh | Knowsley Road | 10509 | | | |
| 2 | Sat 21 Dec 1985 | Hull Kingston Rovers | 22-4 | St. Helens | Headingley | 3856 | | | |

### Final

* 11 January 1986
| Wigan | 11 – 8 | Hull Kingston Rovers |
| Tries: Wane, Ford Goals: Stephenson Drop goals: Dowling | | Tries: Lydiat, Laws |
* Elland Road, Leeds Attendance: 17,573 Referee: John Holdsworth (Kippax) Player of the Match: Paul Harkin

#### Teams and scorers

| Wigan | № | Hull Kingston Rovers |
| | Teams | |
| Steve Hampson | 1 | John Lydiat |
| Ray Mordt | 2 | Garry Clark |
| David Stephenson | 3 | Mike Smith |
| Ellery Hanley | 4 | John Dorahy |
| Henderson Gill | 5 | David Laws |
| Steve Ella | 6 | Gordon Smith |
| Mike Ford | 7 | Paul Harkin |
| Greg Dowling | 8 | Peter Johnston |
| Nicky Kiss | 9 | David Watkinson |
| Shaun Wane | 10 | Asuquo "Zook" Ema |
| Graeme West | 11 | Chris Burton |
| Andy Goodway | 12 | Andy Kelly |
| Ian Potter | 13 | Gavin Miller |
| Shaun Edwards (for Henderson Gill on 74th minute) | 14 | Ian Robinson (for Peter Johnston 74 min) |
| Nick Du Toit (for Ian Potter Half Time) | 15 | ? Not used |
| Colin Clarke and Alan McInnes | Coach | Roger Millward |

### Prize money

As part of the sponsorship deal and funds, the prize money awarded to the competing teams for this season is as follows :-
| Finish Position | Cash Prize | No. receiving prize | Total Cash |
| Winner | ? | 1 | ? |
| Runner-up | ? | 1 | ? |
| semi-finalist | ? | 2 | ? |
| loser in Rd 3 | ? | 4 | ? |
| loser in Rd 2 | ? | 8 | ? |
| Loser in Rd 1 | ? | 16 | ? |
| Loser in Prelim Round | ? | ? | ? |
| Grand Total | | | |
Note - the author is unable to trace the award amounts for this season. Can anyone help ?

### The road to success

This tree excludes any preliminary round fixtures
| First round | First round | First round | Second round | Second round | Second round | Third round | Third round | Third round | | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | | Final | Final | Final |
| Fulham | Fulham | 13 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Warrington | Warrington | 20 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Warrington | Warrington | 20 | Warrington | Warrington | 34 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Barrow | Barrow | 14 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Barrow | Barrow | 5 | Barrow | Barrow | 14 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Leeds | Leeds | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Leeds | Leeds | 2 | | | | Warrington | Warrington | 22 | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | Wigan | Wigan | 26 | | | | | | | | |
| Blackpool Borough | Blackpool Borough | 22 | | | | | | | Wigan | Wigan | 26 | | | | | | | | |
| Wakefield Trinity | Wakefield Trinity | 24 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Wakefield Trinity | Wakefield Trinity | 24 | Wakefield Trinity | Wakefield Trinity | 21 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Wigan | Wigan | 30 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Wigan | Wigan | 26 | Wigan | Wigan | 30 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Mansfield Marksman | Mansfield Marksman | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Mansfield Marksman | Mansfield Marksman | 0 | | | | | | | | Wigan | Wigan | 36 | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | Leigh | Leigh | 8 | | | | |
| Whitehaven | Whitehaven | 7 | | | | | | | | | | | Leigh | Leigh | 8 | | | | |
| Widnes | Widnes | 12 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Widnes | Widnes | 12 | Widnes | Widnes | 30 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Bradford Northern | Bradford Northern | 6 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Sheffield Eagles | Sheffield Eagles | 16 | Bradford Northern | Bradford Northern | 6 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Bradford Northern | Bradford Northern | 24 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Bradford Northern | Bradford Northern | 24 | | | | Widnes | Widnes | 31 | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | Leigh | Leigh | 35 | | | | | | | | |
| Batley | Batley | 2 | | | | | | | Leigh | Leigh | 35 | | | | | | | | |
| Leigh | Leigh | 70 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Leigh | Leigh | 70 | Leigh | Leigh | 48 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Hunslet | Hunslet | 6 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Hunslet | Hunslet | 22 | Hunslet | Hunslet | 6 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Workington Town | Workington Town | 12 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Workington Town | Workington Town | 12 | | | | | | | | | | | | Wigan | Wigan | 11 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Hull Kingston Rovers | Hull Kingston Rovers | 8 |
| Halifax | Halifax | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Hull Kingston Rovers | Hull Kingston Rovers | 8 |
| Hull Kingston Rovers | Hull Kingston Rovers | 11 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Hull Kingston Rovers | Hull Kingston Rovers | 11 | Hull Kingston Rovers | Hull Kingston Rovers | 8 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Oldham | Oldham | 7 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Bramley | Bramley | 8 | Oldham | Oldham | 7 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Oldham | Oldham | 46 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Oldham | Oldham | 46 | | | | Hull Kingston Rovers | Hull Kingston Rovers | 24 | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | York | York | 16 | | | | | | | | |
| York | York | 12 | | | | | | | York | York | 16 | | | | | | | | |
| Castleford | Castleford | 10 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Castleford | Castleford | 10 | York | York | 21 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Keighley | Keighley | 16 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Keighley | Keighley | 20 | Keighley | Keighley | 16 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Huddersfield Barracudas | Huddersfield Barracudas | 10 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Huddersfield Barracudas | Huddersfield Barracudas | 10 | | | | | | | | Hull Kingston Rovers | Hull Kingston Rovers | 22 | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | St. Helens | St. Helens | 4 | | | | |
| St. Helens | St. Helens | 42 | | | | | | | | | | | St. Helens | St. Helens | 4 | | | | |
| Dewsbury | Dewsbury | 6 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Dewsbury | Dewsbury | 6 | St. Helens | St. Helens | 36 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Doncaster | Doncaster | 20 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Doncaster | Doncaster | 22 | Doncaster | Doncaster | 20 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Runcorn Highfield | Runcorn Highfield | 20 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Runcorn Highfield | Runcorn Highfield | 20 | | | | St. Helens | St. Helens | 57 | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | Hull | Hull | 14 | | | | | | | | |
| Hull | Hull | 44 | | | | | | | Hull | Hull | 14 | | | | | | | | |
| Swinton | Swinton | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Swinton | Swinton | 0 | Hull | Hull | 30 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Salford | Salford | 10 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Salford | Salford | 18 | Salford | Salford | 10 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Rochdale Hornets | Rochdale Hornets | 12 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

## Notes and comments

1 * Jubilee Hotel are a Junior (amateur) club from Featherstone 2 * West Hull are a Junior (amateur) club from Hull 3 * highest score, highest score by away team, and highest winning margin - all between professional clubs, to date 4 * RUGBYLEAGUEproject and Huddersfield Heritage give the score as 20-10 but Wigan official archives gives it as 20-18 5 * Mansfield Marksman have moved from Mansfield and are now playing at North Street, Alfreston 6 * Elland Road, Leeds, is the home ground of Leeds United A.F.C. with a capacity of 37,914 (The record attendance was 57,892 set on 15 March 1967 for a cup match Leeds v Sunderland). The ground was originally established in 1897 by Holbeck RLFC who played there until their demise after the conclusion of the 1903-04 season