1922-1923

12th May, 2017 By Phil Daly

1922-1923

1923!! At the mention of that year the eyes of the older supporters sparkle with glee as they invariably say: ?That?s the year we won the Cup?. And then they go on to sing the praises of the famous Busy B?s.

Buck, Bacon, Binks, and Brittain had been a formidable quartet in the previous season but now they were joined by W. E. Bowen, the Welsh International stand-off half, from Swansea. His brilliant displays at both stand-off and centre during the season will long be remembered, and it was a great loss to the club and to the game in general when his career was cut short owing to illness. But more of that later.

The League programme opened with a defeat at Rochdale, but six victories out of the next eight matches put the team in good heart for the task of retaining the Yorkshire Cup. G. Jackson and A. G. Thomas made their first appearances in the Leeds pack. ?Ginger? Thomas was to develop into a real stalwart and was to gain Test and County honours during his nine years at Headingley.

Featherstone Rovers, who were 1st Round opponents, could not cope with the speedy combination of the Leeds backs, and Bradford Northern, too, met with a similar fate in the next round. There were, quite naturally, visions of another Cup triumph when Batley were drawn to play at Headingley in the Semi-Final, but Leeds met with a sensational defeat by 28 points to nil. Just before the interval Stockwell had to retire from the game owing to a knee injury and Leeds had then to face terrific odds as Batley held an eight points lead. Almost the whole of the second half was played in the Leeds ?25?, as Batley applied constant pressure. Five minutes from the end the Leeds indignity was complete when Bacon was dismissed for alleged tripping. The teams were: Leeds-Walmsley; Buck, W. A. Davies, Bacon, Stockwell; Brittain, Binks; Dixon, Jackson, Hardaker, Davis, Kibbler, Ward. Batley-Robinson; Murray, Rees, Williams, Carter A.; Scott, Fowler; Carter F., Gardiner, Douglas, Ramsbottom, Brennan, Mortimer.

The displays given in January and early February did not suggest that Leeds were likely to meet with any great success in the Northern Union Cup Competition. They were, however, strengthened in February through the signing of J. A. Ashton, loose forward, from York, and J. F. Thompson, Welsh International forward, from Cross Keys. Ashton had only a short career at Headingley but his experience was a vital factor in this cup campaign. Joe Thompson was destined for the highest honours in the game, and was to wear the Leeds jersey with great distinction for eleven seasons. Other debutants included E. Armitage half-back, and A. Slater, full-back.

The 1st Round at Leigh was a tough assignment, but Leeds played with rare determination to win through by 11 points to 5, features of their display being the dominance of Binks, at the base of the scrum, and the brilliant defensive work of Walmsley at full back. Huddersfield, who were 2nd Round visitors to Headingley, were well and truly beaten by 19 points to 8, before a crowd of 34,300. The try which Bowen scored just before the end of the match was a demonstration of all the arts: a clever ground kick past the Huddersfield half-backs, a quick follow up, a smart pick-up, and a saucy dummy. York had to bow the knee at Clarence Street in the next round and chief credit for this Leeds victory must go to a lusty pack of young forwards: Pickles, Jackson, Trusler, Thompson, Davis, Ashton. The Semi-final match with Barrow at Broughton ended in a pointless draw, but Buck must long have wondered how he allowed the ball to slip from his grasp when the line was only five yards away. Bill Burgess, too, almost won the game in the very last minute with a penalty shot which just curled a foot wide. As a result of the replay, at Salford, Leeds worthily went into the Final. A remarkable feature of the game was the fact that for more than an hour neither side could score, but once Binks with a clever break had paved the way for a try by Davis, 17 more points were scored by Leeds in the last twenty minutes.

The story of the Cup Final match is given in the following press report:

CUP FINAL WON BY LEEDS

A brilliant all round victory . The second appearance of the Leeds Club in the final for the Rugby League-formerly the Northern Union-Challenge Cup, was an even more satisfactory one than was their first venture thirteen years ago. Then they defeated the Hull representatives in a replay by 26 points to 12, and so set up a scoring record for the final-a record which stood for five years until Huddersfield ran up 35 points against St. Helens. On Saturday, at Wakefield, in the twenty-third final for the Cup, Leeds, by a curious chance opposed to Hull again, went one better than their 1910 final, and scored 28 points to the solitary try registered by their opponents. The score reflected the game!

This was the first Rugby League Cup Final played on the ground of the Wakefield Club, and the League authorities had no reason to regret their choice. The number of spectators who passed through the gates was 29,350, and the cash receipts were ?2,590. Thus, though no records were broken, the results were very satisfactory. The ground was hard and dry, and the weather conditions all that could be desired. There was a slight breeze, but it gave little advantage to Hull who were favoured in the Spin of the coin. Leeds played the side which proved so decisively successful at Salford in the Barrow replay, whilst Hull had Samuel, the ex-Welsh R.U. international, at full back, in place of Rogers, who had an injured knee, and Whitty was in Batten?s berth at centre three-quarter.

Leeds? superiority was very clearly marked; indeed, so great was their advantage after they had taken the lead, that it would not have been surprising had they set up a new final scoring record. Hull were as completely vanquished as ever a side has been in a final. They were never given a chance to rouse the hopes of their many followers, for they could not cope with the speed and skill of the Leeds men, and their fate was written twenty-two minutes from the kick-off, when Buck opened the Leeds scoring account. From that point to the close, except for spasmodic Hull rallies here and there, Leeds were confident aggressors. They held a master hand in which Thompson, Davis, Binks, Bacon and Bowen especially, were the big ?cards ?-there was no one quite like them on the Hull side.

The Men of the Match.

The Leeds forward play in the loose was a revelation. Davis and Thompson, assisted manfully by Trusler and Ashton, were always moving with the ball, and so complete was their domination at times that the Hull forwards, a heavier pack, were swept away. Even the mighty Taylor could not turn the tide. Usually the outstanding forward on the field, he was dwarfed into insignificance for the greater part of the game. Behind this swift moving, deadly effective Leeds pack was the wonderfully efficient Binks. He was in a happy mood, and though Caswell was a worrier, he played easily and coolly, and always called the tune. He was usually in the vicinity of the ball or the man with the ball, and he was equally alert to snap up the ball when it became loose, or to snap up the opponent who held on to the ball.

Alongside Binks was Brittain, who played with a nasty cut over his eye for 75 minutes of the game, but, despite this, Brittain was in a sufficiently happy frame of mind to give of his best. He and Binks saw that Bacon and Bowen were given full opportunities to assert their skill and speed, whilst the two wing men, Lyons and Buck, were always worrying the Hull defence. Walmsley had the happy and unusual experience for a full back of scoring a try in a final. He kicked a long-length ball with an accuracy only rivalled by Bacon, and Samuel, the Hull full back, who did all a full back behind a beaten team could do; whilst his work with his three-quarters was as pleasing to the Leeds crowd as it was discomforting to the Hull men.

How Scores were obtained

The first fifteen minutes of the game were comparatively tame, though so early on the Leeds forwards indicated their determination by the way in which they held the heavy Hull pack. Thompson had a couple of penalty shots at goal, but in neither case did he get the range. There was a lot of kicking in these early stages, but when the Leeds backs turned to their real game they showed how great an advantage they possessed. Then the Leeds forwards, with Davis and Trusler to the fore, got their feet to the ball, and swept into the Hull quarters, and the right wing, where Bowen and Buck had a nice understanding, began to press. Buck was over once, but was called back for a forward pass. However, a similar move, a moment later, gave the Headingley men the lead. It was the ubiquitous Binks who set the line going. Like a flash the ball passed from him to Brittain, on to Bowen, and then to Buck, who darted through a baffled defence to score in a position which enabled Thompson to place a goal.

Caswell fought hard, and once, after taking the ball almost out of Walmsley?s hands, dribbled close to the line. It was a near thing, but the full back?s speed saved the situation. From this point to the interval it was Leeds? game. Their football was a long way in front of that of Hull, whose backs were anything but happy. Leeds? second try came a few minutes before half-time. A typical rush by Bacon took the ball within a few yards of the Hull line. The Leeds captain passed at the right time, and Ashton, Brittain, and Bowen again combined to outwit the defenders, and the ex-Swansea man placed the ball under the posts. Thompson?s kick was all that was necessary to give Leeds their commanding lead of ten points at half-time.

The Hull forwards had some success in the first five minutes of the second half, but Brittain, Bacon and Bowen never gave the Hull backs an inch to work in. Once more the dribbling of Davis and Thompson told its tale, and Leeds were the attackers again. A great run by Lyons, one of the most promising of wing men, illustrated the superiority of the Leeds back division, and then Davis, the forward, picking up the ball in the loose, showed the speed of the forwards by breaking clean through the Hull defence for a try under the posts. Thompson kicked his third goal. Hull were rendered helpless almost at this period. Brittain gained the fourth try, and again Thompson goaled. The match was as good as over at this point. A run by Buck on the wing resulted in an inside pass to Ashton who scored the fifth try despite the challenge of Morgan. This time Thompson?s goal kick struck the upright.

Then came Hull?s belated try. Buck and Bowen both failed to field the ball, and Stone had the chance to show his opportunism. He passed to Kennedy, who made the score. Walmsley?s try completed Hull?s rout. The full back started to run in his own half. He and Buck went down the field passing and re-passing, until finally the former Millom player made a big dash to score at the corner. Thompson landed his fifth goal, and the final whistle came with the result:- Leeds-5 goals 6 tries (28 points) Hull-1 try (3 points)

Teams:-

Leeds-Walmsley, full back; Buck, Bowen, Bacon and Lyons, three-quarter backs; Binks and Brittain, half-backs; Trusler, Jackson, Dixon, Davis, Thompson and Ashton, forwards,

Hull-Samuel, full back; Holdsworth, Whitty, Kennedy and Stone, three-quarter backs; Caswell and Gwynne, half backs; Oliver, Bowman, Beasty, Morgan, Taylor and Garrett, forwards.

Referee-Mr. F. Mills, Oldham. Touch Judges-Mr. A. Brown, Wakefield, and Mr. A. Holbrook, Warrington.

Stadium Partner

Competition

Technical Partner

Technical Partner

Main Partner

Main Partner

Associate Partners

Tetleys
Berrys
Leeds Beckett University
SMUK
Dynamic
Chadwick Lawrence
Caddick Developments
Vale Services
Ipsum
NIC Group
Sedulo
ACS
Johnstone
Bartercard
Axis Group
Evolve Lettings
Best Western
Naked Wines
Apache Automotive
Seat Unique
Ponte
Wetherby Whaler
Pickups Self Storage
Heatable
Nuffield