Rugby League War of the Roses


The Origin Series, previously War of the Roses, was the inter-county rugby league matches between representative teams from Yorkshire and Lancashire, the areas where rugby league has traditionally been most popular in England.

History

The first War of the Roses was contested in 1895 between Yorkshire and Lancashire since rugby league was founded in Yorkshire and mostly played in the heartlands of Yorkshire and Lancashire. It was held almost annually until 1991 and occasionally was contested in a series.
In 1985, an annual fixture between Lancashire and Yorkshire was proposed as a replacement for the County Championship which had last been played in 1982–83. The fixture became known as the Rodstock War of the Roses, and the first game was played in September 1985. The series lasted until 1991, when it was scrapped due to lack of interest.
The fixture was revived in 2001 under the name of the Origin Series, inspired by the success of Australia's State of Origin series between New South Wales and Queensland.
Player eligibility for the Origin Series was based on the player's region of birth, but players born outside of Yorkshire and Lancashire were also eligible for selection, based on the region where they first played rugby league at professional level.
The Origin Series was reduced to a one-off Origin Game in 2003 due to the British hosting the touring Australia, New Zealand A and as well the kick off of the Rugby League European Nations Cup. So together with the Challenge Cup, WCC and Rugby Super League, the Rugby Football League felt that too many Origin matches would be too much strain on the top players. The tournament was then rested due to apathy from rugby league supporters.
The series has in effect been replaced by the International Origin series, where England take on the "Exiles" – a team composed of the best overseas players in Super League.

Results

Total matchesYorkshireLancashireDrawn
8934359

YearWinnerAttendanceVenue
1895Yorkshire9,059 Watersheddings, Oldham
1896Lancashire5,300 Fartown, Huddersfield
1896Lancashire15,000 Watersheddings, Oldham
1897Yorkshire11,000 Park Avenue, Bradford
1898Yorkshire8,000 New Barnes, Salford
1899Lancashire9,000 Thrum Hall, Halifax
1900Lancashire18,000 Athletic Grounds, Rochdale
1902Draw12,235 The Boulevard, Kingston upon Hull
1902Draw14,286 The Willows, Salford
1903Lancashire11,000 Headingley, Leeds
1904Yorkshire8,500 Watersheddings, Oldham
1905Lancashire8,000 The Boulevard, Kingston upon Hull
1906Lancashire5,000 The Willows, Salford
1907Yorkshire7,000 Thrum Hall, Halifax
1908Lancashire6,000 The Boulevard, Kingston upon Hull
1909Yorkshire6,000 The Boulevard, Kingston upon Hull
1910Lancashire2,000 Central Park, Wigan
1912Draw3,199 Thrum Hall, Halifax
1912Draw4,000 Watersheddings, Oldham
1913Yorkshire3,500 Fartown, Huddersfield
1919Lancashire5,000 The Willows, Salford
1920Yorkshire7,000 The Boulevard, Kingston upon Hull
1921Yorkshire4,000 Athletic Grounds, Rochdale
1922Draw8,000 The Boulevard, Kingston upon Hull
1923Lancashire8,000 Watersheddings, Oldham
1924Lancashire6,000 Thrum Hall, Halifax
1925Lancashire13,000 Knowsley Road, St. Helens
1926Lancashire9,000 Belle Vue, Wakefield
1927Lancashire12,000 Wilderspool, Warrington
1928Lancashire6,520 Thrum Hall, Halifax
1930Draw4,300 Athletic Grounds, Rochdale
1930Draw9,000 Belle Vue, Wakefield
1931Lancashire10,049 Wilderspool, Warrington
1932Yorkshire4,000 Belle Vue, Wakefield
1933Yorkshire2,000 Watersheddings, Oldham
1934Draw1,500 Headingley, Leeds
1935Lancashire6,700 Naughton Park, Widnes
1936Lancashire7,648 Wheldon Road, Castleford
1938Lancashire3,653 Athletic Grounds, Rochdale
1938Lancashire3,000 Headingley, Leeds
1942Yorkshire5,000 Crown Flatt, Dewsbury
1945Lancashire11,059 Station Road, Swinton
1946Yorkshire5,000 Parkside, Hunslet
1947Lancashire6,270 Central Park, Wigan
1949Lancashire7,000 Thrum Hall, Halifax
1949Lancashire15,000 Wilderspool, Warrington
1950Yorkshire6,547 Fartown, Huddersfield
1951Yorkshire11,573 Hilton Park, Leigh
1953Draw8,400 The Boulevard, Kingston upon Hull
1953Draw12,870 Hilton Park, Leigh
1954Yorkshire8,500 Odsal, Bradford
1955Lancashire8,000 Watersheddings, Oldham
1956Lancashire8,500 The Boulevard, Kingston upon Hull
1957Yorkshire6,200 Naughton Park, Widnes
1958Yorkshire5,000 The Boulevard, Kingston upon Hull
1958Yorkshire8,500 Hilton Park, Leigh
1958Yorkshire6,417 Hilton Park, Leigh
1960Lancashire15,054 Belle Vue, Wakefield
1961Lancashire4,970 Hilton Park, Leigh
1962Yorkshire7,956 Belle Vue, Wakefield
1963Lancashire11,200 Knowsley Road, St. Helens
1964Yorkshire6,331 The Boulevard, Kingston upon Hull
1965Yorkshire5,847 Station Road Swinton
1966Lancashire10,528 Headingley, Leeds
1968Draw8,932 Naughton Park, Widnes
1968Draw6,656 The Boulevard, Kingston upon Hull
1969Lancashire4,652 The Willows, Salford
1971Yorkshire2,000 Wheldon Road, Castleford
1971Yorkshire2,000 Wheldon Road, Castleford
1971Yorkshire5,019 Hilton Park, Leigh
1972Yorkshire2,343 Wheldon Road, Castleford
1973Lancashire3,307 Naughton Park, Widnes
1974Draw1,219 Lawkholme Lane, Keighley
1974Draw3,114 Naughton Park, Widnes
1975Yorkshire700 Central Park, Wigan
1977Draw2,740 Wheldon Road, Castleford
1977Draw5,056 Naughton Park, Widnes
1978Lancashire4,283 Naughton Park, Widnes
1979Yorkshire2,744 Wheldon Road, Castleford
1980Lancashire1,593 Naughton Park, Widnes
1981Yorkshire1,222 Wheldon Road, Castleford
1982Yorkshire1,738 Hilton Park, Leigh
1985Yorkshire6,743 Central Park, Wigan
1986Yorkshire5,983 Headingley, Leeds
1987Yorkshire9,748 Central Park, Wigan
1988Yorkshire8,244 Headingley, Leeds
1989Yorkshire10,182 Central Park, Wigan
1991Yorkshire6,454 Headingley, Leeds
2001Lancashire10,253 JJB Stadium, Wigan
2002Lancashire7,352 Wheldon Road, Castleford
2002Lancashire9,283 Headingley, Leeds
2003Yorkshire6,454 Odsal, Bradford

International touring teams

Both Lancashire and Yorkshire have played numerous matches against touring Australian and New Zealand teams. From the 1967–68 Kangaroo Tour, both Lancashire and Yorkshire were taken off the Australian's itinerary with the only county side they played being Cumbria. The two teams also played in the only Rugby League County Championship in 1974–75.

Lancashire

Yorkshire

Women's Rugby League

In 2015, the RFL department of Women's Rugby League announced that they would stage the inaugural Women's "War of the Roses", between Lancashire Ladies and Yorkshire Ladies. The match, which took place at Thatto Heath Crusaders, St. Helens, saw Yorkshire Ladies and Lancashire Ladies share the honours after a 22–22 draw, with an attendance of around 500.
The match, held on 18 October 2015, followed a Lancashire Girls vs Yorkshire Girls under 18s match, which finished 34–0 in favour of the Yorkshire side.

Results

Origin Legends

In 2017, Rugby AM announced a charity game between Yorkshire and Lancashire legends at Headingley Stadium in Leeds, which saw Yorkshire defeat Lancashire 14–12.
The following year Yorkshire retained their Origin Legends title with a 32–14 victory over Lancashire in Castleford. 28
August 2019 saw the return of the game at Headingley and notable players including Gary Connolly, Denis Betts and Sean Long for Lancashire and Jason Robinson, Stuart Fielden and Rob Burrow for Yorkshire. The game was won 21–18 by Lancashire