The 1908 Challenge Cup was the 12th staging of

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 ...

's oldest knockout competition, the

Challenge Cup The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involves a ...

. Run by the

Northern Rugby Football Union Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a r ...

, 32 teams took part between 29 February and 25 April 1908.

Hunslet Hunslet () is an inner-city area in south Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is southeast of the city centre and has an industrial past. It is situated in the Hunslet and Riverside ward of Leeds City Council and Leeds Central parliamentary ...

won the competition after defeating

Hull F.C. Hull Football Club, commonly referred to as Hull or Hull F.C., is a professional rugby league football club established in 1865 and based in West Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The club plays in the Super League competition and wer ...

in the final.

Calendar

The 32 team knockout tournament was held over five rounds.

First round

Second round

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Final

The final was contested by

and

at Fartown in

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into t ...

. The final was played on Saturday 25 April 1908, where Hunslet beat

14-0 at Fartown in front of a crowd of 18,000. Hull's 14-0 in the final to win their first Cup in their first final. Teams: Hunslet: Herbert Place, Fred Farrar, Billy Eagers,

Walter Goldthorpe Walter may refer to: People * Walter (name), both a surname and a given name * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968) * Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born ...

Billy Batten William Batten (26 May 1889 – 26 January 1959) was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1900s, 1910s and 1920s. He played at representative level for Great Britain, England and Yorkshire, and at club level for Hun ...

Albert Goldthorpe Albert Edward Goldthorpe (3 November 1871 – 8 January 1943) was an English rugby footballer from the period around 1895's schism in English rugby, which led to the formation of rugby league football around the turn of the century. Career One ...

Fred Smith Fred, Frederic, or Frederick Smith may refer to: In literature *Frederick Smith, 2nd Earl of Birkenhead (1907–1975), British peer and biographer *Frederick Smith, 3rd Earl of Birkenhead (1936–1985), British peer and author * Frederick E. Smith ...

, Harry Wilson,

Bill Brookes William Brookes (birth unknown – death unknown), also known by the nickname of "Tubby", was a professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1900s. He played at representative level for England, and at club level for Outwood Church AR ...

, Bill Jukes,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Seco ...

"Jack" Randall, John Higson, Tom Walsh Hull: Harry Taylor, L. Parry, G. T. Cottrell, F. J. Cook, (E. or Ned) Rogers,

Harry Wallace Harry Wright Wallace (11 September 1885 – 30 April 1973) was a British Labour Party politician. He was Assistant Secretary of the Union of Post Office Workers. At the 1924 general election, he was unsuccessful Labour candidate at Bury in ...

Billie Anderson Billie may refer to: People * Billie Allen (1925-2015), American actress * Billie Bird (1908-2002), American actress and comedian * Billie Burke (1884-1970), American actress * Billie Joe Armstrong (born 1972), American singer and guitarist ...

, Tom Herridge, J. Owen, W. J. Carroll, G. Kilburn, H. Fulton,

William Holder William Holder FRS (1616 – 24 January 1698) was an English clergyman and music theorist of the 17th century. His most notable work was his widely known 1694 publication ''A Treatise on the Natural Grounds and Principles of Harmony''. Life H ...

References

External links

Challenge Cup official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:1908 Challenge Cup Challenge Cup