St Helens R.F.C.–Wigan Warriors rivalry
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The St Helens R.F.C. – Wigan Warriors rivalry is a historic local rivalry between the rugby league clubs St Helens and the Wigan Warriors, based in North West England. The rivalry is born out of relative proximity of the two towns, but as two of the most successful clubs in British rugby it has become a marquee event in the calendar.
Other names | Wigan Saints Derby The Good Friday Derby The Boxing Day Derby The Original Derby The Derby |
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Location | North West England |
Teams | St. Helens Wigan Warriors |
First meeting | 16 November 1895 |
Latest meeting | Super League XXVII Wigan Warriors 30–10 St Helens |
Stadiums | Totally Wicked Stadium DW Stadium |
Statistics | |
Meetings total | 377 |
Most wins | Wigan (216) |
All-time series (RFL-1 and SL only) | 257 |
Regular season series | 243 |
Largest victory | St. Helens 75 – 0 Wigan[1] |
The sporting term of "Derby" or "Derbies" as used in all other sporting rivalries originates from this sporting fixture as a result of its early association with the Earl of Derby and the Stanley family's estate in Knowsley.[2]
Initially at least one fixture was played on Boxing Day annually and was known as the Boxing Day Derby, later the second fixture settled on Good Friday. Following the leagues decision to move the competition from winter to the summer the Good Friday Derby remains the one traditionally fixed game in the calendar.