{{Short description|New Zealand competition}} {{update|date=January 2019}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}

The '''Rugby League Cup''' is a New Zealand rugby league trophy that is contested between districts on a challenge basis. The trophy is used to be known as the '''Northern Union Challenge Cup'''.<ref name=e66 />

It is the oldest rugby league competition in New Zealand.<ref name="TeAra1">{{cite journal |last1=Coffey |first1=John |title=Rugby league overview |journal=Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand | url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/rugby-league/page-1 |date=5 September 2013 |page=1}}</ref>

==History== {{Expand section|date=November 2020}} thumb|300px|New Zealand rugby league team in 1913

New Zealand rugby league was born with events such as the All Golds tour of England,<ref name="TeAra2">{{cite journal |last1=Coffey |first1=John |title=Origins of rugby league |journal=Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand | url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/rugby-league/page-2 |date=5 September 2013 |page=2}}</ref> and matches in Wellington and Auckland in 1908.<ref name="TeAra3">{{cite journal |last1=Coffey |first1=John |title=Arrival in New Zealand |journal=Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand | url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/rugby-league/page-3 |date=5 September 2013 |page=3}}</ref> John Coffey writes in ''Te Ara'', "The Auckland Rugby League was formed in July 1909, and North Shore played City as the forerunner to an inter-club competition that started in 1910. By this time, league was also being played in Taranaki, Rotorua, Hawke’s Bay, Nelson, Marlborough and Southland."<ref name="TeAra3"/>

The Cup was made in Bradford and donated to Auckland for inter-provincial competition by the touring 1910 Great Britain Lions.<ref name=akl100>Coffey, John and Bernie Wood ''Auckland, 100 years of rugby league, 1909-2009'', 2009. {{ISBN|978-1-86969-366-4}}, p.39.</ref>

The Cup was first contested in 1911, when Auckland successfully defended it four times.<ref name=baycup>[http://www.hawkesbaytoday.co.nz/sport/news/rugby-league-bay-crowned-cup-kings/3748803/ Bay crowned cup kings] ''Hawke's Bay Today'', 17 September 2007</ref> The Cup was held by Auckland until 1922.<ref name="TeAra5">{{cite journal |last1=Coffey |first1=John |title=Domestic competition: Rugby League Cup |journal=Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand | url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/rugby-league/page-5 |date=5 September 2013 |page=5}}</ref>

Auckland are the current holders of the Cup after they defeated Canterbury in a one-off match on 4 June 2012.{{update inline|date=November 2020}} This was marked as a "centennial" match.<ref>{{cite web |title=Collection of rugby league programmes. 1950s, 1970, 2012 |url=https://natlib.govt.nz/records/38426073?search%5Bi%5D%5Bplace_authority_id%5D=-328352&search%5Bpath%5D=items |website=National Library of New Zealand}}</ref>

==Past winners== ===Year by year=== {|style="margin:1em auto;" |- valign="top" | {| class="wikitable" !Year!!Champions |- |1910||rowspan=11| *Auckland<ref>{{cite news | title =Representative Match/Auckland V Hawke's Bay | page =9 | work=The New Zealand Herald| volume=LVI| issue=17235 | date = 11 August 1911 | url =https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZH19190811.2.111.1 | access-date = 18 August 2019}}</ref> |- |1911 |- |1912 |- |1913 |- |1914 |- |1915 |- |1916 |- |1917 |- |1918 |- |1919 |- |1920 |- |1921|| *Auckland |- |1922|| *South Auckland |- |1923|| *South Auckland |- |1924|| *South Auckland |- |1925|| *South Auckland *Auckland |- |1926|| *Auckland |- |1927|| *Auckland *South Auckland |- |1928|| *South Auckland *Auckland (June<ref name=akl100/>) |- |1929|| *Auckland |- |1930|| *South Auckland |- |1931|| *North Auckland |- |1932|| *South Auckland |- |1933|| *West Coast |- |1934|| *West Coast *Canterbury (18 August<ref name=cxiii>Coffey, John. ''Canterbury XIII'', Christchurch, 1987.</ref>) |- |1935|| *Canterbury |- |1936|| *Canterbury *West Coast |- |1937||rowspan=2| *West Coast |- |1938 |- |} | {| class="wikitable" !Year!!Champions |- align=center |colspan=2|World War II |- |1946|| *West Coast |- |1947|| *West Coast *Wellington<ref name=wrl>[http://www.sportingpulse.com/assoc_page.cgi?c=1-4979-0-0-0&sID=155965 History Of Wellington Rugby League Association] Wellington Rugby League</ref> |- |1948|| *Wellington<ref name=wrl /> |- |1949|| *Wellington<ref name=wrl /> |- |1950|| *Auckland |- |1951|| *Auckland |- |1952|| *Auckland *Wellington *Auckland |- |1953||rowspan=2| *Auckland |- |1954 |- |1955|| *Auckland *West Coast *Auckland |- |1956||rowspan=4| *Auckland |- |1957 |- |1958 |- |1959 |- |1960|| *Auckland<ref name=e66>[http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/1966/rugby-league-football/1 Rugby League Football] ''An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand'', edited by A. H. McLintock. 1966</ref> *West Coast *Auckland<ref name=e66 /> |- |1961|| *Auckland<ref name=e66 /> |- |1962|| *Auckland *Canterbury *West Coast<ref name=e66 /> |- |1963|| *West Coast *Canterbury<ref name=e66 /> |- |1964|| *Canterbury *Auckland<ref name=e66 /> |- |1965||rowspan=2| *Auckland<ref name=e66 /> |- |1966 |- |1967|| *Auckland |- |1968|| *Auckland *West Coast *Canterbury |- |1969|| Renamed Rugby League Cup.<ref name=wrl/> *Canterbury *West Coast |- |1970|| *West Coast *Canterbury |} | {| class="wikitable" !Year!!Champions |- |1971|| *Canterbury *Wellington *West Coast |- |1972|| *West Coast |- |1973|| *West Coast |- |1974|| *West Coast *Canterbury |- |1975|| *Canterbury *Taranaki *Waikato |- |1976|| *Waikato |- |1977|| *Taranaki |- |1978|| *Taranaki |- |1979|| *Taranaki |- |1980|| *Wellington *Canterbury |- |1981|| *Canterbury |- |1982|| *Canterbury *Wellington |- |1983||rowspan=2| *Wellington |- |1984 |- |1985|| *Wellington *Taranaki<ref name=bite /> *Canterbury<ref>{{cite web |title=FLASHBACK FRIDAY: CANTERBURY WINS 1985 RUGBY LEAGUE CUP (August 30, 2019) |url=https://canterburyrugbyleague.co.nz/2019/08/flashback-friday-canterbury-wins-1985-rugby-league-cup/ |website=Canterbury Rugby League – Home to the Canterbury Bulls}}</ref> |- |1986|| *Canterbury *Auckland |- |1987||rowspan=3| *Auckland |- |1988 |- |1989 |- |1990|| *Auckland *Canterbury (29 April<ref name=nzrl90>Lion Red Rugby League Annual 1990 ''New Zealand Rugby League'', 1990.</ref>) *Wellington |- |1991|| *Wellington *Auckland *Canterbury |- |1992|| *Canterbury *Wellington (17 May<ref name=p130>Lion Red Rugby League Annual 1992 ''New Zealand Rugby League'', 1992. p.130</ref>) *Canterbury |} | {| class="wikitable" !Year!!Champions |- |1993|| *Canterbury<ref name=93p137>''Lion Red Rugby League Annual 1993'', New Zealand Rugby Football League, 1993. p.137</ref> |- |1994|| *Canterbury |- |1995|| *Canterbury *Auckland |- |1996|| *Auckland |- |1997|| *Auckland *Canterbury (June<ref name=97p317 />) *Waikato (12 October<ref name=97p317>Coffey, John and Bernie Wood ''Auckland, 100 years of rugby league, 1909-2009'', 2009. {{ISBN|978-1-86969-366-4}}, p.317.</ref>) |- |1998|| *Waikato |- |1999|| *Waikato *Taranaki (24 April<ref name=bite>[http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-23973355.html Sharks put bite on Waikato Cougars]{{dead link|date=February 2019|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} ''Taranaki Daily News'', 26 April 1999</ref>) |- |2000|| *Taranaki *Coastline<ref name=orcas>{{cite news |url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=210128 |title=Rugby League: Orcas give Mariners incentive for Challenge Cup |date=22 August 2001 |agency=Rotorua Daily Post |work=The New Zealand Herald |access-date=6 November 2011}}</ref> |- |2001|| *Coastline<ref name=orcas/> *Tasman<ref>[http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-14378729.html Orcas fired up to retain league cup]{{dead link|date=February 2019|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} ''The Nelson Mail'', 7 September 2002</ref> |- |2002|| *Tasman *Otago (8 September<ref>[http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-14380155.html Otago snatches cup from muddled Orcas ]{{dead link|date=February 2019|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} ''The Nelson Mail'', 10 September 2002</ref>) |- |2003||rowspan=2| *Otago |- |2004 |- |2005||rowspan=2| *Gisborne Tairawhiti |- |2006 |- |2007|| *Gisborne Tairawhiti *Hawke's Bay (15 September)<ref name=baycup /> *Canterbury |- |2008|| *Canterbury *Auckland (28 September)<ref>Coffey, John and Bernie Wood ''Auckland, 100 years of rugby league, 1909-2009'', 2009. {{ISBN|978-1-86969-366-4}}, p.357.</ref> |- |2009|| *Auckland *Canterbury (23 August)<ref>[http://www.aucklandleague.co.nz/display_page.asp?item=333 Bulls regain league cup] ''The Press'', 24 August 2009</ref><ref name=nobull>Geoff Longley [http://www.sportingpulse.com/assoc_page.cgi?client=16-4977-0-0-0&sID=64815&&news_task=DETAIL&articleID=12287793&sectionID=64815 It's go the South Island, No Bull] ''The Press'', 4 June 2010</ref> |- |2010||rowspan=2| *Canterbury |- |2011 |- |2012|| *Auckland (4 June)<ref>[http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/sport/rugby-league/6590649/League-cup-match-returns-to-spiritual-home-in-June League cup match returns to spiritual home in June] ''The Press'', 17 March 2012</ref><ref>[http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/sport/7041936/Auckland-spoil-Bulls-coachs-finale/ Auckland spoil Bulls coach's finale] ''The Press'', 5 June 2012</ref> |} |}

==See also== {{Portal|Sports}}

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links==

{{Rugby League in New Zealand}}

Category:Rugby league competitions in New Zealand