The Leeds Rhinos – Wakefield Trinity rivalry is a West Yorkshire Derby born from locality and competitive history. The two sides play an annual pre-season friendly, the Festive Challenge, every Boxing Day to celebrate their rivalry.
 The 2008 Festive Challenge | |
| Location | West Yorkshire, England |
|---|---|
| Teams |  Leeds Rhinos Wakefield Trinity |
| First meeting | 21 February 1903 (Leeds Rhinos 13–0 Wakefield Trinity) |
| Latest meeting | 27 March 2021 (Leeds Rhinos 28–22 Wakefield Trinity) |
| Stadiums | Headingley Belle Vue |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 123 |
| Most wins | Leeds Rhinos (84) |
Head-to-head record edit
- Statistics correct as of 19/5/21[1]
In all competitions, competitive and uncompetitive:
| Played | Leeds | Drawn | Wakefield |
|---|---|---|---|
| 123 | 83 | 6 | 34 |
Meetings in major finals edit
- 1932–33 Yorkshire Cup Final: Leeds 8–0 Wakefield
- 1934–35 Yorkshire Cup Final: Leeds 5–5 Wakefield
- Replay 1: Leeds 2–2 Wakefield
- Replay 2: Leeds 13–0 Wakefield
- 1947–48 Yorkshire Cup Final: Wakefield 7–7 Leeds
- Replay 1: Wakefield 8–7 Leeds
- 1958–59 Yorkshire Cup Final: Leeds 24–20 Wakefield
- 1961–62 Yorkshire Cup Final: Wakefield 19–9 Leeds
- 1964–65 Yorkshire Cup Final: Wakefield 18–2 Leeds
- 1967–68 Challenge Cup Final: Leeds 11–10 Wakefield
- 1973–74 Yorkshire Cup Final: Leeds 7–2 Wakefield
Collective Honours edit
- As of the end of the 2021 season
| Leeds Rhinos | Honour | Wakefield Trinity | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | No. | No. | Rank | |
| 3rd | 11 | League Championships | 2 | 14th |
| 2nd | 14 | Challenge Cup | 5 | 7th |
| 4th | 2 | Premiership | 0 | — |
| 3rd | 2 | League Cup | 0 | — |
| — | 0 | Charity Shield | 0 | — |
| 3rd | 3 | World Club Challenge | 0 | — |
| 1st | 15 | Yorkshire League | 7 | 3rd |
| 1st | 17 | Yorkshire Cup | 10 | 4th |
| 5th | 1 | BBC2 Floodlit Trophy | 0 | — |
Festive Challenge edit
| Sport | Rugby league |
|---|---|
| Number of teams | 2 |
| Country |  (RFL) |
| Holders | Wakefield Trinity (4th title) |
| Most titles | Leeds Rhinos (7 titles) |
The Festive Challenge is an annual friendly rugby match played between Leeds Rhinos and Wakefield Trinity that is played on Boxing Day.[2][3]
History edit
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Festive Challenge 2014
Before the summer era of rugby league, games were regularly played on Boxing Day as part of the domestic league fixtures.
The 2010 event was postponed to New Year's Day due to poor weather.
In 2017, the fixture was moved to Belle Vue, the first time it was played away from Headingley, due to the redevelopment of Headingley Stadium.
Results edit
This section appears to be slanted towards recent events. (May 2021) |
| Year | Winner | Score | Runners up | Venue |
| 2009 | Leeds Rhinos
|
32–12 | Wakefield Trinity Wildcats
|
Headingley Stadium |
| 2010[a] | Leeds Rhinos
|
40–22 | Wakefield Trinity Wildcats
| |
| 2011 | Leeds Rhinos
|
26–10 | Wakefield Trinity Wildcats
| |
| 2012 | Leeds Rhinos
|
40–26 | Wakefield Trinity Wildcats
| |
| 2013 | Leeds Rhinos
|
18–18 | Wakefield Trinity Wildcats
| |
| 2014 | Leeds Rhinos
|
50–28 | Wakefield Trinity Wildcats
| |
| 2015 | Wakefield Trinity Wildcats
|
14–6 | Leeds Rhinos
| |
| 2016 | Wakefield Trinity
|
30–6 | Leeds Rhinos
| |
| 2017 | Leeds Rhinos
|
17–10 | Wakefield Trinity
|
Belle Vue |
| 2018 | Leeds Rhinos
|
10–4[4] | Wakefield Trinity
|
Headingley Stadium |
| 2019 | Wakefield Trinity
|
30–4[5] | Leeds Rhinos
| |
| 2020 | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |||
| 2021 | Leeds Rhinos
|
34–6[6] | Wakefield Trinity
|
Headingley Stadium |
| 2022 | Wakefield Trinity
|
32–20[7] | Leeds Rhinos
| |
| 2023 | Leeds Rhinos
|
41–22[8] | Wakefield Trinity
|
Winners edit
| Team | Wins | Years | |
| 1 | Leeds Rhinos
|
9 | 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2023 |
| 2 | Wakefield Trinity
|
4 | 2015, 2016, 2019, 2022 |
Sponsors edit
| Period | Sponsor | Name |
| 2009 | Cravendale | Cravendale Festive Challenge |
| 2011–2013 | Heatshot | Heatshot Festive Challenge |
| 2014 | Tetley's | Tetley's Festive Challenge |
| 2015– | Wetherby Whaler | Wetherby Whaler Festive Challenge |
See also edit
Notes edit
- ^ Postponed to New Year's Day 2011
References edit
- ^ "Leeds Rhinos - Head to Head - Rugby League Project".
- ^ "Rhinos name strong side for Wetherby Whaler Festive Challenge". Archived from the original on 24 December 2015.
- ^ Andy Charles. "Wakefield Wildcats beat Leeds Rhinos in Boxing Day friendly". Sky Sports.
- ^ https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/sport/rugby-league/leeds-rhinos-10-wakefield-trinity-4-rhinos-hit-back-retain-festive-challenge-honours-176622%3famp [dead link]
- ^ @leedsrhinos (26 December 2019). "📺 Rising star Alex Sutcliffe was in outstanding form on Boxing Day as the Rhinos defeated Wakefield 30-4 in the Wet…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Leeds Rhinos 34-6 Wakefield Trinity: Player ratings and major talking points". 26 December 2021.
- ^ https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_DBWPbNcJYI
- ^ https://www.leeds-live.co.uk/sport/rugby-league/five-key-takeaways-leeds-rhinos-28349833
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