# 1978–79 John Player Trophy

This was the eighth season for rugby league's League Cup competition, which was now known as the John Player Trophy for sponsorship reasons.
Widnes won the final against Warrington by the score of 16-4. The match was played at Knowsley Road, St Helens, Merseyside. The attendance was 10,743 and receipts were £11709.

## Background

This season saw no changes in the entrants, no new members and no withdrawals, the number remaining at eighteen. Bad weather - Due to an exceptionally inclement (i.e. frost, snow etc.) winter there were very few Rugby League matches played during the months of January and February

## Competition and results
### Round 1 - First Round

Involved 16 matches and 32 Clubs
| Game No | Fixture Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue | Att | Notes |
| 1 | Fri 22 Sep 1978 | Castleford | 18-10 | Swinton | Wheldon Road | | |
| 2 | Fri 22 Sep 1978 | Salford | 25-7 | Rochdale Hornets | The Willows | | |
| 3 | Sat 23 Sep 1978 | Leigh Miners W. | 9-21 | Halifax | Hilton Park | 1621 | 1 |
| 4 | Sat 23 Sep 1978 | St. Helens | 16-11 | Leeds | Knowsley Road | 4700 | |
| 5 | Sun 24 Sep 1978 | Barrow | 8-26 | Bradford Northern | Craven Park | | |
| 6 | Sun 24 Sep 1978 | Doncaster | 2-30 | Wigan | Bentley Road Stadium/Tattersfield | 1332 | |
| 7 | Sun 24 Sep 1978 | Huddersfield | 10-21 | Widnes | Fartown | | |
| 8 | Sun 24 Sep 1978 | Hull Kingston Rovers | 67-11 | Oldham | Craven Park (1) | | 2 |
| 9 | Sun 24 Sep 1978 | Keighley | 20-4 | York | Lawkholme Lane | | |
| 10 | Sun 24 Sep 1978 | Leigh | 13-13 | Huyton | Hilton Park | | |
| 11 | Sun 24 Sep 1978 | Milford | 5-38 | Dewsbury | McLaren Field | 3129 | 3 |
| 12 | Sun 24 Sep 1978 | New Hunslet | 7-17 | Hull F.C. | Elland Road Greyhound Stadium | | |
| 13 | Sun 24 Sep 1978 | Wakefield Trinity | 27-2 | Batley | Belle Vue | | |
| 14 | Sun 24 Sep 1978 | Warrington | 14-4 | Blackpool Borough | Wilderspool | | 4 |
| 15 | Sun 24 Sep 1978 | Whitehaven | 3-9 | Featherstone Rovers | Recreation Ground | | |
| 16 | Sun 24 Sep 1978 | Workington Town | 17-8 | Bramley | Derwent Park | | |

### Round 1 - First Round - Replays

Involved 1 match and 2 Clubs
| Game No | Fixture Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue | Att | Rec | Notes | Ref |
| 1 | Tue 26 Sep 1978 | Huyton | 8-10 | Leigh | Alt Park, Huyton | | | | |

### Round 2 - Second Round

Involved 8 matches and 16 Clubs
| Game No | Fixture Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue | Att | Notes |
| 1 | Sat 2 Dec 1978 | Widnes | 11-10 | St. Helens | Naughton Park | 5030 | |
| 2 | Sun 3 Dec 1978 | Castleford | 20-9 | Workington Town | Wheldon Road | | |
| 3 | Sun 3 Dec 1978 | Featherstone Rovers | 0-7 | Warrington | Post Office Road | | |
| 4 | Sun 3 Dec 1978 | Hull F.C. | 12-18 | Bradford Northern | Boulevard | | |
| 5 | Sun 3 Dec 1978 | Hull Kingston Rovers | 16-14 | Salford | Craven Park (1) | | |
| 6 | Sun 3 Dec 1978 | Keighley | P | Wigan | Lawkholme Lane | | 5 |
| 7 | Sun 3 Dec 1978 | Leigh | 17-8 | Dewsbury | Hilton Park | | |
| 8 | Sun 3 Dec 1978 | Wakefield Trinity | 15-10 | Halifax | Belle Vue | | |

### Round 2 - Second Round Replays

Involved 1 match and 2 Clubs - and due to the first match being postponed because of extremely inclement weather
| Game No | Fixture Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue | Att | Rec | Notes | Ref |
| 1 | Wed 6 Dec 1978 | Keighley | 9-5 | Wigan | Lawkholme Lane | | | | |

### Round 3 -Quarter Finals

Involved 4 matches with 8 clubs
| Game No | Fixture Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue |
| 1 | Sun 17 Dec 1978 | Bradford Northern | 16-13 | Wakefield Trinity | Odsal |
| 2 | Sun 17 Dec 1978 | Hull Kingston Rovers | 23-10 | Castleford | Craven Park (1) |
| 3 | Sun 17 Dec 1978 | Keighley | 4-15 | Widnes | Lawkholme Lane |
| 4 | Sun 17 Dec 1978 | Warrington | 27-0 | Leigh | Wilderspool |

### Semi-finals

Involved 2 matches and 4 Clubs Bad weather - Due to an exceptionally inclement (i.e. frost, snow etc.) winter there were very few Rugby League matches played during the months of January and February
| Game No | Fixture Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue | Notes |
| 1 | Sat 27 Jan 1979 | Warrington | P | Hull Kingston Rovers | Wilderspool | 6 |
| 2 | Wed 24 Jan 1979 | Widnes | 21-3 | Bradford Northern | Naughton Park | |
| 3 | Sun 1 Apr 1979 | Warrington | 9-5 | Hull Kingston Rovers | Wilderspool | |

### Final

The final was originally scheduled to take place on 27 January 1979, but was rescheduled due to the postponement of the semi-final matches. The final took place on 28 April 1979, a week before the Challenge Cup final.
| Fixture Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team | Venue | Att | Rec | Notes | Ref |
| Saturday 28 April 1979 | Widnes | 16–4 | Warrington | Knowsley Road | 10743 | 11709 | 8, 9 | |

#### Teams and scorers

| Widnes | No. | Warrington |
| | teams | |
| David Eckersley | 1 | Derek Finnegan/Finnigan |
| Stuart Wright | 2 | Michael "Mike"/"Mick" Kelly |
| Mal Aspey | 3 | Steve Hesford |
| Eric Hughes | 4 | Billy Benyon |
| Mick Burke | 5 | Dave Sutton |
| David Moran | 6 | Ken Kelly |
| Reg Bowden (c) | 7 | Parry Gordon |
| Jim Mills | 8 | Roy Lester |
| Keith Elwell | 9 | Tony Waller |
| Glyndwr "Glyn" Shaw | 10 | Mike Nicholas |
| Alan Dearden | 11 | Brian Case |
| David Hull | 12 | Tommy Martyn |
| Mick Adams | 13 | Alan Gwilliam |
| ? Not used | 14 | Eddie Hunter (for Ken Kelly) |
| ? Not used | 15 | ? Not used |
| | Coach | |
| 16 | score | 4 |
| 2 | HT | 2 |
| | Scorers | |
| | Tries | |
| Stuart Wright (1) | T | |
| David Hull (1) | T | |
| | Goals | |
| Mick Burke (3) | G | Steve Hesford (2) |
| | Drop Goals | |
| Keith Elwell (2) | DG | |
| Mick Adams (2) | DG | |
| Referee | | G. Frederick "Fred" Lindop (Wakefield) |
| Man of the match | | David Eckersley - Widnes - Fullback |
| Competition Sponsor | | John Player |
Scoring - Try = three points - Goal = two points - Drop goal = one point

### Prize money

As part of the sponsorship deal and funds, the prize money awarded to the competing teams for this season was as follows:
| Finish Position | Cash Prize | No. receiving prize | Total Cash |
| Winner | £8,000 | 1 | £8,000 |
| Runner-up | £3,500 | 1 | £3,500 |
| Semi-finalist | £1,750 | 2 | £3,500 |
| Loser in Rd 3 | £900 | 4 | £3,600 |
| Loser in Rd 2 | £700 | 8 | £5,600 |
| Loser in Rd 1 | £550 | 16 | £8,800 |
| Grand Total | Grand Total | Grand Total | £33,000 |

### 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 |
| Keighley | Keighley | 20 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| York | York | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| York | York | 4 | Keighley | Keighley | 9 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Wigan | Wigan | 5 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Doncaster | Doncaster | 2 | Wigan | Wigan | 5 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Wigan | Wigan | 30 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Wigan | Wigan | 30 | | | | Keighley | Keighley | 4 | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | Widnes | Widnes | 15 | | | | | | | | |
| Huddersfield | Huddersfield | 10 | | | | | | | Widnes | Widnes | 15 | | | | | | | | |
| Widnes | Widnes | 21 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Widnes | Widnes | 21 | Widnes | Widnes | 11 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | St. Helens | St. Helens | 10 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| St. Helens | St. Helens | 16 | St. Helens | St. Helens | 10 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Leeds | Leeds | 11 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Leeds | Leeds | 11 | | | | | | | | Widnes | Widnes | 21 | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | Bradford Northern | Bradford Northern | 3 | | | | |
| New Hunslet | New Hunslet | 7 | | | | | | | | | | | Bradford Northern | Bradford Northern | 3 | | | | |
| Hull F.C. | Hull F.C. | 17 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Hull F.C. | Hull F.C. | 17 | Hull F.C. | Hull F.C. | 12 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Bradford Northern | Bradford Northern | 18 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Barrow | Barrow | 8 | Bradford Northern | Bradford Northern | 18 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Bradford Northern | Bradford Northern | 26 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Bradford Northern | Bradford Northern | 26 | | | | Bradford Northern | Bradford Northern | 16 | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | Wakefield Trinity | Wakefield Trinity | 13 | | | | | | | | |
| Wakefield Trinity | Wakefield Trinity | 27 | | | | | | | Wakefield Trinity | Wakefield Trinity | 13 | | | | | | | | |
| Batley | Batley | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Batley | Batley | 2 | Wakefield Trinity | Wakefield Trinity | 15 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Halifax | Halifax | 10 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Leigh Miners W. | Leigh Miners W. | 9 | Halifax | Halifax | 10 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Halifax | Halifax | 21 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Halifax | Halifax | 21 | | | | | | | | | | | | Widnes | Widnes | 16 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Warrington | Warrington | 4 |
| Whitehaven | Whitehaven | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Warrington | Warrington | 4 |
| Featherstone Rovers | Featherstone Rovers | 9 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Featherstone Rovers | Featherstone Rovers | 9 | Featherstone Rovers | Featherstone Rovers | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Warrington | Warrington | 7 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Warrington | Warrington | 14 | Warrington | Warrington | 7 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Blackpool Borough | Blackpool Borough | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Blackpool Borough | Blackpool Borough | 4 | | | | Warrington | Warrington | 27 | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | Leigh | Leigh | 0 | | | | | | | | |
| Leigh | Leigh | 13 (10) | | | | | | | Leigh | Leigh | 0 | | | | | | | | |
| Huyton | Huyton | 13 (8) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Huyton | Huyton | 13 (8) | Leigh | Leigh | 17 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Dewsbury | Dewsbury | 8 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Milford | Milford | 5 | Dewsbury | Dewsbury | 8 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Dewsbury | Dewsbury | 38 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Dewsbury | Dewsbury | 38 | | | | | | | | Warrington | Warrington | 9 | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | Hull Kingston Rovers | Hull Kingston Rovers | 5 | | | | |
| Hull Kingston Rovers | Hull Kingston Rovers | 67 | | | | | | | | | | | Hull Kingston Rovers | Hull Kingston Rovers | 5 | | | | |
| Oldham | Oldham | 11 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Oldham | Oldham | 11 | Hull Kingston Rovers | Hull Kingston Rovers | 16 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Salford | Salford | 14 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Salford | Salford | 26 | Salford | Salford | 14 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Rochdale Hornets | Rochdale Hornets | 7 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Rochdale Hornets | Rochdale Hornets | 7 | | | | Hull Kingston Rovers | Hull Kingston Rovers | 23 | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | Castleford | Castleford | 10 | | | | | | | | |
| Castleford | Castleford | 18 | | | | | | | Castleford | Castleford | 10 | | | | | | | | |
| Swinton | Swinton | 10 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Swinton | Swinton | 10 | Castleford | Castleford | 20 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Workington Town | Workington Town | 9 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Workington Town | Workington Town | 17 | Workington Town | Workington Town | 9 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Bramley | Bramley | 8 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

## Notes and comments

1 * Leigh Miners' Welfare are a Junior (amateur) club from Leigh (formed by merger of Astley & Tyldesley and Hope Rangers - and now renamed as Leigh Miners Rangers) 2 * new record score between professional clubs in the competition - at the time, beating the previous record of 9-51 set when Blackpool Borough lost at home to Leeds by 9-51 in season 1972–73 3 * Milford are a Junior (amateur) club from Leeds 4 * Warrington official archives show the game as being played on 30 September but RUGBYLEAGUEproject and Wigan official archives shows it as played on 24 September
5 * Postponed due to frozen pitch 6 * Postponed due to frozen pitch - was due to be televised by BBC 7 * Postponed due to the postponement of the Semi Final ties caused by frost and other extremely inclement weather. 8 * The Final had been due to be played on Saturday 27 January but was put back due to backlog of semi-finl ties caused by enforced postponement due to extreme inclement weather 9 * Knowsley Road was the home of St Helens R.F.C. from 1890 until its closure in 2010. The final capacity was 17,500 although the record attendance was 35,695 set on 26 December 1949 for a league game between St Helens and Wigan.