Rugby league in South Yorkshire before World War Two

2025-12-08T13:50:35+00:00

Goldthorpe British Legion rugby league club emerged in 1925 based at the Ivy Leaf club, a social club in the village that had links to other Ivy Leaf ex-servicemen’s clubs, across the country. The Ivy Leaf club, as well as fielding a rugby league team, also organised whippet racing. An unlikely combination!

The Goldthorpe club played in the Castleford and District League in the 1925/26 season, but unfortunately, only played rugby league for one season before switching to soccer in May 1926.

In the 1926/27 season Grimethorpe, another Barnsley district club, joined the Wakefield and District Junior and Workshops League. Grimethorpe really struggled to compete, the club's only league points coming from two draws. It is hardly surprising, given its lack of success that Grimethorpe rugby league club also only lasted one season.

Wakefield and District Junior and Workshops League

1926/27

In April 1927 at a special meeting held in Rossington, near Doncaster the chairman of the Castleford District League announced that a Doncaster District League was to be formed and that any clubs within a twenty mile radius of Doncaster would be eligible to join. Following the announcement it was expected that six Doncaster area clubs: Askern Welfare, Armthorpe, Carcroft, Edlington, Kirk Sandall and Rossington would be joined in the new league by the two Barnsley district clubs Goldthorpe and Grimethorpe. That did not happen as both of the Barnsley district rugby league clubs had folded. The six Doncaster area clubs formed the Doncaster District League and began playing fixtures in September 1927.

The new district league remained active as a standalone league until 1933 when it joined up with the Castleford League to form the Castleford and Doncaster Junior League. Over the rest of the decade the number of active clubs in the Doncaster area decreased so that by 1939 only Askern Welfare and Kirk Sandall were still playing fixtures.

Read more about South Yorkshire rugby in: Rugby in Barnsley 1874 - 2024 click the link here to buy the book.

Goldthorpe British Legion rugby league club