1980–81 Rugby Football League season
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The 1980–81 Rugby Football League season was the 86th season of professional rugby league football in Britain. Sixteen teams competed from August 1980 until May 1981 for the Slalom Lager Championship.
DurationAugust 1980- May 1981
TeamsFirst Division: 16
Second Division: 15
Second Division: 15
ChampionsBradford Northern (2nd title)
| 1980–81 Rugby Football League season | |
|---|---|
| League | Slalom Lager Championship |
| Duration | August 1980- May 1981 |
| Teams | First Division: 16 Second Division: 15 |
| First Division | |
| Champions | Bradford Northern (2nd title) |
| Premiership winners | Hull Kingston Rovers |
| Man of Steel Award |  Ken Kelly |
| Top point-scorer | Steve Hesford (310) |
| Top try-scorer | Terry Richardson (28) |
| Promotion and relegation | |
| Promoted from Second Division | |
| Relegated to Second Division | |
| Second Division | |
| Champions | York |
| Runners-up | Wigan |
| Top try-scorer | John Crossley Jr. (35) |
| Joined league | Fulham |
Season summary
- Bradford Northern won the Championship for the second consecutive season.
- York won the Second Division, finishing ahead of Wigan who competed outside the top flight for the first time. Fulham joined the competition in Division Two, being promoted in their first season.
- Hull Kingston Rovers won the Premiership.
First Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PP | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bradford Northern (C) | 30 | 20 | 1 | 9 | 447 | 345 | 129.6 | 41 | Qualification for Premiership first round |
| 2 | Warrington | 30 | 19 | 1 | 10 | 459 | 330 | 139.1 | 39 | |
| 3 | Hull Kingston Rovers | 30 | 18 | 2 | 10 | 509 | 408 | 124.8 | 38 | |
| 4 | Wakefield Trinity | 30 | 18 | 2 | 10 | 544 | 454 | 119.8 | 38 | |
| 5 | Castleford | 30 | 18 | 2 | 10 | 526 | 459 | 114.6 | 38 | |
| 6 | Widnes | 30 | 16 | 2 | 12 | 428 | 356 | 120.2 | 34 | |
| 7 | Hull | 30 | 17 | 0 | 13 | 442 | 450 | 98.2 | 34 | |
| 8 | St Helens | 30 | 15 | 1 | 14 | 465 | 370 | 125.7 | 31 | |
| 9 | Leigh | 30 | 14 | 1 | 15 | 416 | 414 | 100.5 | 29 | |
| 10 | Leeds | 30 | 14 | 0 | 16 | 388 | 468 | 82.9 | 28 | |
| 11 | Barrow | 30 | 13 | 0 | 17 | 405 | 498 | 81.3 | 26 | |
| 12 | Featherstone Rovers | 30 | 12 | 0 | 18 | 467 | 446 | 104.7 | 24 | |
| 13 | Halifax (R) | 30 | 11 | 0 | 19 | 385 | 450 | 85.6 | 22 | Relegated to Second Division |
| 14 | Salford (R) | 30 | 10 | 1 | 19 | 473 | 583 | 81.1 | 21 | |
| 15 | Workington Town (R) | 30 | 9 | 3 | 18 | 335 | 457 | 73.3 | 21 | |
| 16 | Oldham (R) | 30 | 7 | 2 | 21 | 362 | 563 | 64.3 | 16 |
Source: [1]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Points scored percentage (points scored divided by points conceded)
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Points scored percentage (points scored divided by points conceded)
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Second Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PP | Pts | Promotion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | York (C, P) | 28 | 23 | 0 | 5 | 649 | 331 | 196.1 | 46 | Promoted to First Division |
| 2 | Wigan (P) | 28 | 20 | 3 | 5 | 597 | 293 | 203.8 | 43 | |
| 3 | Fulham (P) | 28 | 20 | 0 | 8 | 447 | 237 | 188.6 | 40 | |
| 4 | Whitehaven (P) | 28 | 19 | 1 | 8 | 409 | 250 | 163.6 | 39 | |
| 5 | Huddersfield | 28 | 18 | 1 | 9 | 429 | 310 | 138.4 | 37 | |
| 6 | Swinton | 28 | 17 | 2 | 9 | 440 | 302 | 145.7 | 36 | |
| 7 | Keighley | 28 | 14 | 1 | 13 | 445 | 501 | 88.8 | 29 | |
| 8 | Hunslet | 28 | 13 | 1 | 14 | 447 | 430 | 104.0 | 27 | |
| 9 | Bramley | 28 | 13 | 1 | 14 | 433 | 431 | 100.5 | 27 | |
| 10 | Rochdale Hornets | 28 | 13 | 0 | 15 | 406 | 418 | 97.1 | 26 | |
| 11 | Batley | 28 | 12 | 0 | 16 | 328 | 405 | 81.0 | 24 | |
| 12 | Dewsbury | 28 | 11 | 1 | 16 | 346 | 364 | 95.1 | 23 | |
| 13 | Doncaster | 28 | 5 | 0 | 23 | 250 | 562 | 44.5 | 10 | |
| 14 | Blackpool Borough | 28 | 4 | 1 | 23 | 212 | 419 | 50.6 | 9 | |
| 15 | Huyton | 28 | 2 | 0 | 26 | 211 | 796 | 26.5 | 4 |
Source: [2]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Points scored percentage (points scored divided by points conceded)
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Points scored percentage (points scored divided by points conceded)
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted
Premiership
16 May 1981 |
| Hull Kingston Rovers | 11 – 7 | Hull F.C. |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Hogan, Hartley, Smith Goals: Hubbard |
[3] |
Tries: Crane Goals: Woods (2) |
Statistics
The following are the top points scorers in all competitions in the 1980–81 season.[4]
|
Most tries
|
Most goals (including drop goals)
|