Central Park (Wigan)
Encyclopedia
Central Park was a rugby league
stadium in Wigan
, England. It was the home of Wigan RLFC
before the club moved to the JJB Stadium in 1999. Its final capacity was 18,000.
14–8.
The first rugby league
international was played between England
and Other Nationalities
at Central Park on 5 April 1904, Other Nationalities won 9-3 in the experimental -less 12-a-side game, with Wigan players David "Dai" Harris
, and Eli Davies
in the Other Nationalities team.
The visit of St. Helens on 27 March, 1959 produced Central Park's record attendance of 47,747, and set a record for a rugby league
regular season league game in Britain. Wigan won the game 19–14, holding off a Saints' comeback after having led 14–0.
Floodlights were installed on 120ft high pylons in summer 1967 so that the club could play in the BBC2 Floodlit Trophy
.
The final game at Central Park was on Sunday 5 September 1999. Wigan beat St Helens by 28 points to 20, 96 years and 364 days after the first game against Batley was played. The site is now a car park for a Tesco
supermarket.
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
stadium in Wigan
Wigan
Wigan is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Douglas, south-west of Bolton, north of Warrington and west-northwest of Manchester. Wigan is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its administrative centre. The town of Wigan had a total...
, England. It was the home of Wigan RLFC
Wigan Warriors
Wigan Warriors is an English rugby league club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester. The club's first team squad competes in the engage Super League and the team are the current Challenge Cup holders as of the 27th August 2011....
before the club moved to the JJB Stadium in 1999. Its final capacity was 18,000.
History
On 6 September 1902, Wigan played at Central Park for the first time in the opening match of the newly formed First Division. An estimated crowd of 9,000 spectators saw Wigan beat BatleyBatley Bulldogs
Batley Bulldogs are an English professional rugby league club from Batley, West Yorkshire. They currently play in the Co-operative Championship. Batley is one of the original twenty-two rugby football clubs that formed the Northern Rugby Football Union in 1895...
14–8.
The first rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
international was played between England
England national rugby league team
The England national rugby league team represent England in international rugby league football tournaments. The team has now seen a revival, having largely formed from the Great Britain team, who also represented Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The team is run under the auspices of the Rugby Football...
and Other Nationalities
Other Nationalities rugby league team
The Other Nationalities rugby league team regularly played international, and also county, rugby league football teams in Europe from 1904 to 1975. The team, created in 1904 to play England in the first ever rugby league international match, was at first made up of Welsh and Scottish players...
at Central Park on 5 April 1904, Other Nationalities won 9-3 in the experimental -less 12-a-side game, with Wigan players David "Dai" Harris
David Harris (rugby)
David "Dai" Thomas Harris was a Welsh blacksmith's assistant, and rugby union and professional rugby league footballer of the 1900s who at club level played rugby union for Treherbert RFC, playing at Centre, i.e. number 12 or 13, and at representative level played rugby league for Other...
, and Eli Davies
Eli Davies
Eli Davies was a Welsh professional rugby league footballer of the 1900s who at representative level played for Other Nationalities, and at club level for Wigan, playing at /, i.e. number 6.-International honours:...
in the Other Nationalities team.
The visit of St. Helens on 27 March, 1959 produced Central Park's record attendance of 47,747, and set a record for a rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
regular season league game in Britain. Wigan won the game 19–14, holding off a Saints' comeback after having led 14–0.
Floodlights were installed on 120ft high pylons in summer 1967 so that the club could play in the BBC2 Floodlit Trophy
BBC2 Floodlit Trophy
The BBC2 Floodlit Trophy was a competition for British rugby league clubs held between 1965 and 1980. It was designed specifically for television, and the then director of BBC2, broadcaster David Attenborough, was instrumental in its creation...
.
The final game at Central Park was on Sunday 5 September 1999. Wigan beat St Helens by 28 points to 20, 96 years and 364 days after the first game against Batley was played. The site is now a car park for a Tesco
Tesco
Tesco plc is a global grocery and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Cheshunt, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest retailer in the world measured by revenues and the second-largest measured by profits...
supermarket.