The Rugby league matches between St. Helens and Wigan are local derbies with the two clubs being fierce rivals, both on and off the pitch. The sporting term of 'Derby' or 'Derbies' originates from this sporting fixture.
History
St Helens and Wigan are two of the original twenty-two northern rugby clubs that broke away from the Rugby Football Union to form the Northern Union in 1895, which gave birth to the modern day sport of rugby league. The two clubs first met in the very first season of the new code and drew the first ever encounter at St Helens' Knowsley Road ground nil points a piece. Over the years the two clubs have become very successful. Wigan are the most successful club in British rugby league, having won 22 league championshipsand 19Challenge Cup titles. St Helens are the second most successful team with 14 league titles and 12 Challenge Cup wins. In all competitions, the clubs have played each other over 300 times and the rivalry has grown to become rugby league's biggest derby encounter with fans of each club passionately disliking their derby rivals. Although, unlike in football rivalries, crowd trouble at the games is rare. Both sides would traditionally meet on Boxing Day, but with the start of the summer era in British rugby league in 1996, the two clubs have played each other every Good Friday, leading to these encounters being known as the Good Friday derby. Wigan enjoyed an 8-game winning streak between 2010 and 2017 in the Good Friday clash against Saints, until St Helens ran out 21-18 winners in the 2018 edition. Before then, you'd have to go back to 2008 for the last time Saints beat Wigan on Good Friday as the 2009 clash which Saints won was played on Maundy Thursday due to a clash with Wigan Athletic. In finals rugby league, the clubs have contested four league championship matches with St Helens claiming the title at Wigan's expense on three occasions to Wigan's one grand final success over Saints in 2010. In total, Wigan have defeated St Helens in competitive rugby league 183 times with St Helens winning 123 of the clubs' encounters. There has also been 17 draws in matches between the clubs.
The term 'Derby' applied to only two sporting events originally. The 19th Earl of Derby, confirmed that his family had lent their name to two sporting events - the horserace at Epsom and the Rugby League Fixtures between Wigan Warriors and St Helens. With Wigan town at one end of their Knowsley estate and St Helens town from the other, he named the fixture 'The Derby'. This fixture then became widely known as The Derby with other games between local rivals in various sports adopting the term.
Head to Head
Competitive matches
Friendlies
War Emergency League matches
The Rugby league Wartime Emergency League meetings during the first and second World Wars did not count as competitive matches and thus, no league titles were officially awarded during this time.
Overall record
In all competitions, competitive and uncompetitive:
