Hull FC 6-0 Wakefield Trinity — 1913/14 Challenge Cup Final

Thrum Hall, Halifax · Attendance: 19,000

Data last verified: 11 August 2026.

1913/14 Challenge Cup Final: Hull FC 6-0 Wakefield Trinity, at Thrum Hall, Halifax.

Sourcing caveat: Goal-kickers and referee not identified for either team. Full line-ups for both teams (added on a fourth research pass) were located on the Wikipedia article already cited above, which does not individually label player positions; the groupings below (fullback; four three-quarters; two half-backs; six forwards) follow the standard-for-the-era listing order, except centre Billy Batten and wingers Jack Harrison and Alfred Francis, independently confirmed at those positions (Batten via his own Wikipedia biography from an earlier pass; Harrison and Francis as this final's own try scorers, already recorded above). Jim Devereux's slot in the source table falls among the half-backs rather than the centres, unlike the 1909/10 final where his own biography specifically confirms centre — his position in this specific match is therefore not independently confirmed and is given only per the table's listing order.

Scorers

Hull FCTries: Jack Harrison (4 minutes from time); Alfred Francis
Wakefield TrinityNo scorers recorded.

Teams

Hull FCWakefield Trinity
RogersFullbackLeonard Land
Jack HarrisonWingBenjamin Johnson
Billy BattenCentreBilly Lynch
Herb GilbertCentreTommy Poynton
Alfred FrancisWingBruce Howarth
Jim DevereuxHalf-backJonty Parkin
Billie AndersonHalf-backWilliam Milligan
Tom HerridgeForwardAlbert Dixon
William HolderForwardArthur "Nealy" Crosland
Dick TaylorForwardWilliam Beattie
Percy OldhamForwardHerbert Kershaw
Joe HammillForwardErnest Parkin
Steve DarmodyForwardArthur Burton

Match officials

Referee—

Match report

Hull FC won the Challenge Cup for the first time in their fourth final appearance, beating Wakefield Trinity 6-0 at Thrum Hall, Halifax on 18 April 1914, after a scoreless first half. Jack Harrison scored the decisive try just four minutes from time, with Alfred Francis adding a second try in the closing stages to seal the win. A Hull side featuring Billy Batten and Jim Devereux impressed the Athletic News, which praised Batten's “courage and determination” as an inspiration to his teammates. It ended a run of three previous final losses for Hull (1908, 1909, 1910) and came in the final Challenge Cup before the First World War interrupted the competition. The Rugby League Challenge Cup is rugby league's oldest and most prestigious knockout competition, first contested in 1896/97 under what was then the Northern Union. Its history has been interrupted only by the two World Wars, with four editions lost between 1915/16 and 1918/19 and one more in 1939/40; the finals played either side of those gaps, and during the Second World War itself, were sometimes contested as regional or two-legged fixtures under wartime emergency arrangements rather than the usual single showpiece match. For much of the competition's early history the final rotated around northern club and representative grounds such as Headingley, Fartown, Central Park and the Athletic Ground, Rochdale, before Wembley Stadium became the final's permanent home from 1928/29 onward (with a short break during Wembley's 2000-2007 reconstruction, when finals were staged at Murrayfield, Twickenham and the Millennium Stadium instead). This was the 18th Challenge Cup final played, and, under the name “Hull FC,” the 1st Challenge Cup title for the club. The result is recorded in this site's full results table alongside every other Challenge Cup final played since the competition's 1896/97 inception, cross-referenced against the venue and attendance figures gathered for that table.

Round by round

Round 1

ResultVenueAttendanceDate
Barrow 6–11 Broughton RangersCavendish Park—1914-02-28
Bramley 4–13 HalifaxBarley Mow—1914-02-28
Castleford 8–27 WiganWheldon Road—1914-02-28
Elland 2–7 Featherstone Rovers——1914-02-28
Huddersfield 119–2 Swinton ParkFartown—1914-02-28
Hull Kingston Rovers 62–0 MillomCraven Street—1914-02-28
Hull FC 8–5 SalfordThe Boulevard—1914-02-28
Leeds 39–0 KeighleyHeadingley—1914-02-28
Leigh 0–9 OldhamMather Lane—1914-02-28
Rochdale Hornets 9–3 HunsletAthletic Ground—1914-02-28
Runcorn 16–6 Bradford NorthernCanal Street—1914-02-28
St Helens 27–4 Wigan HighfieldKnowsley Road—1914-02-28
Wakefield Trinity 2–0 SwintonBelle Vue—1914-02-28
Warrington 3–3 BatleyWilderspool—1914-02-28
Widnes 16–0 DewsburyLowerhouse Lane—1914-02-28
York 45–0 GlassonWigginton Road—1914-02-28

Round 1 Replay

ResultVenueAttendanceDate
Batley 6–5 WarringtonMount Pleasant—1914-03-03

Round 2

ResultVenueAttendanceDate
Broughton Rangers 24–4 YorkThe Cliff—1914-03-14
Featherstone Rovers 3–27 Hull FCPost Office Road—1914-03-14
Halifax 11–0 BatleyThrum Hall—1914-03-14
Hull Kingston Rovers 2–17 HuddersfieldCraven Street—1914-03-14
Rochdale Hornets 3–3 St HelensAthletic Ground—1914-03-14
Runcorn 2–13 WiganCanal Street—1914-03-14
Wakefield Trinity 9–8 LeedsBelle Vue—1914-03-14
Widnes 8–0 OldhamLowerhouse Lane—1914-03-14

Round 2 Replay

ResultVenueAttendanceDate
St Helens 0–10 Rochdale HornetsKnowsley Road—1914-03-18

Round 3

ResultVenueAttendanceDate
Halifax 0–13 Hull FCThrum Hall—1914-03-21
Huddersfield 21–10 WidnesFartown—1914-03-21
Rochdale Hornets 7–9 Broughton RangersAthletic Ground—1914-03-21
Wakefield Trinity 9–6 WiganBelle Vue—1914-03-21

Semi-Final

ResultVenueAttendanceDate
Broughton Rangers 3–3 Wakefield TrinityAthletic Ground100001914-04-04
Huddersfield 3–11 Hull FCHeadingley300001914-04-04

Semi-Final Replay

ResultVenueAttendanceDate
Wakefield Trinity 5–0 Broughton RangersFartown76561914-04-08

Final

ResultVenueAttendanceDate
Hull FC 6–0 Wakefield TrinityThrum Hall, Halifax190001914-04-18

Early rounds feature amateur and community clubs alongside professional ones; team names are linked only where this site has a team page for that exact club, matching the same safety-first approach used for the Final's own results table.

Sources

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