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Sheffield Eagles
The Sheffield Eagles are a professional rugby league club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They play home games at The MEPS International Home of Football Stadium in Dronfield, Derbyshire, and compete in the Championship, the second tier of British rugby league.
Sheffield's only major honour was winning the 1998 Challenge Cup, they have won the Second Division twice.
The clubs traditional home colours are red, white and gold and they share a rivalry with Doncaster.
In 1982, Huddersfield captain and chairman of the Players' Union, Gary Hetherington, missed out on a coaching job at York F.C. He decided to form his own club in Sheffield. The original plan to enter the Second Division in 1983–84 fell apart when Sheffield United pulled back from their promise to let the new team play its home games at Bramall Lane.
The club eventually joined the Second Division in 1984, coached by Alan Rhodes, they played at the Owlerton Stadium. A competition was run in the Sheffield Star newspaper to find a name for the new club and "Sheffield Eagles" was the winner. The first Eagles league game was on 2 September 1984 when they beat Rochdale Hornets, 29–10. The match took place the day after the club's sponsor went bust. Hetherington was both manager and player in the first season, building the team using experienced players from traditional areas. He also began signing up promising young players, one of whom was Mark Aston, later to be a critical part of the Eagles' survival as a club and current head coach.
By November the club was close to folding because of financial problems. Sheffield beat Wakefield Trinity to set up a John Player Special Trophy first round tie against Leeds Rhinos. This lucrative game generated enough cash to see out the season.
On the field the club progressed steadily, improving their league position until in 1988/89 they finished third in the league table and made it to the Second Division Premiership final at Old Trafford. In the final they outplayed Swinton, beating them by 43–18 and gaining promotion to the top flight of rugby league. Sheffield's record attendance at Owlerton was set at 3,636 for a third-round Challenge Cup game against Oldham in 1989.
In the wake of the Hillsborough disaster, stadium safety became an issue in British sport and Owlerton was declared unfit to stage professional rugby league. Eagles were forced to play their home games at seven different venues including Hillsborough itself, Bramall Lane, Recreation Ground, Oakwell Stadium and Belle Vue. They survived one season in the top flight but were then relegated. This was a temporary decline as they immediately regained their place in the First Division, winning the Second Division title and Premiership. The Eagles slowly established themselves as a top flight club.
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Sheffield Eagles
The Sheffield Eagles are a professional rugby league club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They play home games at The MEPS International Home of Football Stadium in Dronfield, Derbyshire, and compete in the Championship, the second tier of British rugby league.
Sheffield's only major honour was winning the 1998 Challenge Cup, they have won the Second Division twice.
The clubs traditional home colours are red, white and gold and they share a rivalry with Doncaster.
In 1982, Huddersfield captain and chairman of the Players' Union, Gary Hetherington, missed out on a coaching job at York F.C. He decided to form his own club in Sheffield. The original plan to enter the Second Division in 1983–84 fell apart when Sheffield United pulled back from their promise to let the new team play its home games at Bramall Lane.
The club eventually joined the Second Division in 1984, coached by Alan Rhodes, they played at the Owlerton Stadium. A competition was run in the Sheffield Star newspaper to find a name for the new club and "Sheffield Eagles" was the winner. The first Eagles league game was on 2 September 1984 when they beat Rochdale Hornets, 29–10. The match took place the day after the club's sponsor went bust. Hetherington was both manager and player in the first season, building the team using experienced players from traditional areas. He also began signing up promising young players, one of whom was Mark Aston, later to be a critical part of the Eagles' survival as a club and current head coach.
By November the club was close to folding because of financial problems. Sheffield beat Wakefield Trinity to set up a John Player Special Trophy first round tie against Leeds Rhinos. This lucrative game generated enough cash to see out the season.
On the field the club progressed steadily, improving their league position until in 1988/89 they finished third in the league table and made it to the Second Division Premiership final at Old Trafford. In the final they outplayed Swinton, beating them by 43–18 and gaining promotion to the top flight of rugby league. Sheffield's record attendance at Owlerton was set at 3,636 for a third-round Challenge Cup game against Oldham in 1989.
In the wake of the Hillsborough disaster, stadium safety became an issue in British sport and Owlerton was declared unfit to stage professional rugby league. Eagles were forced to play their home games at seven different venues including Hillsborough itself, Bramall Lane, Recreation Ground, Oakwell Stadium and Belle Vue. They survived one season in the top flight but were then relegated. This was a temporary decline as they immediately regained their place in the First Division, winning the Second Division title and Premiership. The Eagles slowly established themselves as a top flight club.