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Utah Constitutional Amendment 3

Utah Constitutional Amendment 3 was an amendment to the Utah state constitution that sought to define marriage as a union exclusively between a man and woman. It passed in the November 2, 2004, election, as did similar amendments in ten other states.

The amendment, which added Article 1, Section 29, to the Utah Constitution, reads:

 * 1) Marriage consists only of the legal union between a man and a woman.
 * 2) No other domestic union, however denominated, may be recognized as a marriage or given the same or substantially equivalent legal effect.

On December 20, 2013, federal judge Robert J. Shelby of the U.S. District Court for Utah struck down Amendment 3 as unconstitutional under the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses of the U.S. Constitution.

Background
Both pro and anti amendment groups formed to sway voters. The "Don't Amend Alliance" organized in spring, much earlier than pro-amendment groups. The Alliance raised hundreds of thousands of dollars, catching supporters of the amendment by surprise. They responded with the "Yes! For Marriage" group, which only began a coordinated campaign on October 5. Nonetheless, latent support for the amendment appeared high with over 60% support for the Amendment in a Salt Lake Tribune poll conducted early October.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS church), though not officially endorsing the amendment, publicized a statement in July endorsing constitutional amendments that define marriage. On October 20, just 13 days before Utahns voted on the amendment, the LDS church officially stated that "Any other sexual relations, including those between persons of the same gender, undermine the divinely created institution of the family. The Church accordingly favors measures that define marriage as the union of a man and a woman and that do not confer legal status on any other sexual relationship." Supporters of the amendment asserted the second statement showed specific LDS support for Amendment 3. Others, including moderately conservative Latter-day Saint KSL radio talk show host Doug Wright, believed that since the new statement applied only to "sexual relations" it highlighted precisely how Amendment 3 went too far.

The Episcopal church publicly opposed the amendment.

Three candidates for Utah attorney general, including incumbent Republican Mark Shurtleff, issued a joint statement opposing the amendment on August 6. In many other political races, notably the gubernatorial race, candidates weighed in on this issue.

On November 2, 2004, Amendment 3 was approved by 66% of Utah voters, (rejected in two counties) in a closer than expected race. Governor Huntsman proposed reciprocal benefits for gay couples in reaction. The reciprocal beneficiary measure failed in the Utah Senate during the 2005 legislative session on a ten in favor to eighteen opposed poll.

On December 20, 2013 Amendment 3 was ruled unconstitutional by Federal District Court Judge Robert J. Shelby in Salt Lake City. The state government is expected to appeal.

On January 6, 2014 the United States Supreme Court issued a stay of Judge Shelby's ruling "pending final disposition," according to the order. The Court's order reinstates the state Constitutional ban and will keep it intact until after a federal appeals court has ruled on it. The order appeared to have the support of the full Court, since there were no noted dissents.

Arguments for Amendment 3
Supporters of Amendment 3 said that the amendment would do three things:

 * 1) Prevent state courts from making a ruling that current Utah marriage legislation as being unconstitutional.
 * 2) Prevent state courts from forcing recognition of out-of-state marriages.
 * 3) Prevent the creation of "counterfeit marriages", such as civil unions.

They also said the amendment would not hurt heterosexual marriage, common-law marriages, or the right to will property to whomever one wishes.

Arguments against Amendment 3
Those opposed to the amendment say that section one of the amendment is completely unnecessary since Utah already outlaws same-sex marriage. They also say the second part of the amendment "goes too far". They feel that it would invalidate common-law marriage as well as reducing rights to will property to whomever one chooses.

Results
On November 2, 2004 Amendment 3 passed by a margin of 65.8% to 33.2%. Results were 593,297 votes for and 307,488 votes against the amendment. The amendment went into effect on January 1, 2005. Utah courts in 2006 ruled that the amendment does not ban domestic partnerships and allowed Salt Lake City's domestic partnership registry to stand. In 2009, Utah Governor Jon Huntsman indicated it was his belief the amendment would not ban civil unions.

Court challenge
On March 25, 2013, three same-sex couples, including one already married in Iowa, filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Utah seeking to declare Utah's prohibition on the recognition of same-sex marriages unconstitutional under the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses of the United States Constitution. The court heard arguments on December 4. The state argued that there was "nothing unusual" in enforcing policies that encourage "responsible procreation" and the "optimal mode of child-rearing". Plaintiffs' attorney contended that the policy is "based on prejudice and bias that is religiously grounded in this state".

On December 20, 2013, District Judge Robert J. Shelby struck down the same-sex marriage ban as unconstitutional and violating same-gender couples' their rights to due process and equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment. The ruling prevents the State from enforcing Sections 30-1-2 and 30-1-4.1 of the Utah Code and Article I, § 29 of the Utah Constitution to the extent these laws prohibit a person from marrying another person of the same sex. Historian J. Seth Anderson and neuroscientist Michael Ferguson were the first same-sex couple legally married in Utah on Dec. 20, 2013. State Senator Jim Dabakis and his partner of 27 years were among the first same-sex couples to marry in the state.

Same sex marriages were performed in Salt Lake, Washington and Cache counties on December 20. Other counties declined to grant same-sex couples their request. At least one same-sex couple planned to camp overnight at the Salt Lake County Clerk's Office in anticipation of it opening at 8 a.m., one hour before the 9 a.m. hearing scheduled to hear a Motion for Stay submitted by the State of Utah in the 10th District Court. An Emergency Motion to Stay, which would have granted a stay pending the ruling on the stay that is the subject of a hearing scheduled for December 23, was denied December 22.

The United States Supreme Court issued an order on Monday, January 6, 2014, that halted same-sex marriages until an appeal is decided by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.

On January 16, Attorney General Sean Reyes named Gene C. Schaerr, former law clerk to Supreme Court Justices Warren Burger and Antonin Scalia, as lead outside counsel to make Utah's case to the Tenth Circuit. Schaerr was to be aided in the appeal by former Michigan Solicitor General John Bursch and Idaho Attorney (and former U.S. Attorney for the District of Nevada), Monte N. Stewart.

That same day, the Utah State Tax Commission announced that it will allow married same-sex couples to file joint income tax returns for 2013.

The Tenth Circuit heard oral argument on April 10, 2014. On June 25, 2014, a three-judge panel consisting of Judges Paul Joseph Kelly, Jr., Carlos F. Lucero, and Jerome Holmes of the Tenth Circuit affirmed the district court's ruling in a 2-1 decision. Judge Lucero wrote the majority opinion and was joined by Judge Holmes, with Judge Kelly authoring a dissent. The ruling was immediately stayed pending appeal. On August 5, Utah appealed the ruling to the United States Supreme Court.

On October 6, 2014, the Supreme Court denied to review Kitchen, allowing the Tenth Circuit's decision to become final. Thus, Utah was required to immediately begin licensing and recognizing same-sex marriages. This decision also became binding on federal courts throughout the Tenth Circuit, including Oklahoma, Kansas, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico (the only state that already allowed same-sex marriage prior to Kitchen).

title: Utah Constitutional Amendment 3


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Idiot's Delight (film)

Idiot's Delight is a 1939 MGM comedy drama with a screenplay adapted by Robert E. Sherwood from his 1936 Pulitzer-Prize-winning play of the same name. The production reunited director Clarence Brown, Clark Gable and Norma Shearer eight years after they worked together on A Free Soul. The play takes place in a hotel in the Italian Alps during 24 hours at the beginning of a world war. The film begins with the backstory of the two leads and transfers the later action to a fictitious Alpine country rather than Italy, which was the setting for the play. In fact, Europe was on the brink of World War II. (The studio's attempts to make the film palatable for the totalitarian states—including the hazy geographical location and the scrupulous use of Esperanto in speech and signage—were a waste of time. They banned it anyway. ) Although not a musical, it is notable as the only film in which Gable sings and dances, performing Irving Berlin's "Puttin' On the Ritz" with a sextette of chorus girls.

Plot
Harry Van, an American World War I veteran, tries to reenter show business and ends up in a faltering mentalist show with Madame Zuleika, an inept, aging alcoholic. While performing in Omaha, Nebraska, he is wooed by Irene, a trapeze artist who claims to be a refugee from the Russian Revolution and hopes to replace Harry's drunken partner in the show and as his lover. They have a romantic night, but he is suspicious of Irene's flights of fancy. The next day, Harry and Zuleika and Irene and her troupe board trains going in opposite directions.

Twenty years later, after a number of jobs, Harry is the impresario for and lead performer with Les Blondes, a troupe of six women traveling through Europe. While taking a train from Romania to Switzerland, they are stranded at an Alpine hotel in an unnamed country, whose borders are suddenly closed as war becomes imminent. The passengers watch through the hotel lounge's huge windows as dozens of bombers take off from an air field at the bottom of the valley and fly away in formation.

Among the passengers in the lounge, Harry observes Irene, a glamorous platinum blonde with an exaggerated Russian accent, who is the mistress of a wealthy armaments manufacturer, Achille Weber. Although she claims never to have been to Omaha, Harry's innuendoes show he is convinced that she is the brunette acrobat he knew there. He believes that she recognizes him, too. An agitated pacifist rants to his fellow travelers about Weber's guns, which he says are behind the war that just started, and describes for them how the planes they saw disappear over the spectacular mountains will be killing thousands of people in other countries. The pacifist is hauled away and shot by the border police, commanded by the friendly and impeccable Captain Kirvline, who mingles with the travelers while they wait at the hotel.

In their hotel suite, Irene explodes and tells Weber "the truth [she has] always wanted to tell." She blames him for the likely deaths of untold numbers of people in the war, whose victims might include the newlywed English couple, the Cherrys, they met at the hotel, all killed with the weapons that Weber sells.

The Swiss border opens again the next day, and the people at the hotel are told to continue on their journeys. They learn they had better be off as soon as possible because foreign countries are likely to retaliate today for yesterday's air raid and bomb the air field below the hotel, which could be hit by mistake. As everyone rushes to leave, Irene finds out that Weber has decided to dump her: He refuses to vouch for her flimsy League of Nations passport to Capt. Kirvline, who tells Irene she must stay at the hotel.

Having escorted Les Blondes to the Swiss border, Harry returns to stay with Irene. She admits she is the woman he met in Omaha 20 years ago, and she still loves him. Harry talks about her future, performing with him and the blondes. They hear approaching planes and are told to run to the shelter, but Irene declares she does not want to die in a cellar. As Harry tries to take her there anyway, a bomb hits the hotel and blocks their escape from the lounge.

Alternate endings
In the play, the curtain goes down on Harry and Irene as they sing "Onward, Christian Soldiers" while bombs explode outside, leaving their survival an open question. That ending was filmed, but The New York Times reported in January 1939, that preview audiences hated it. Retakes were ordered. The two surviving versions of the film's ending show the couple safe and happy after surviving the air raid.

In an ending intended for international audiences, Irene asks Harry to play a hymn, something from his childhood. They quietly sing "Abide with Me", their backs turned to the furious air battle behind them. “I've loved you all the time,” he says. “Thanks for telling me, darling,” she replies. The explosions stop. “Look Harry, they've gone away,” Irene cries, and they embrace.

In 1999, TCM aired a print that shows both endings. After “The End” a title card says: “You have just seen the original ‘International’ 1939 ending of MGM’s ‘Idiots (sic) Delight’ which is spiritual and optimistic in tone. We now present the original ‘domestic’ theatrical ending that seems to ignore the fact that the rest of the world is at war.” In the domestic (U.S., Canadian) ending, Harry and Irene talk about their plans for the future while the bombs explode outside the lobby window. They rehearse the secret code he used in his mind-reading act. The bombing stops and Irene excitedly describes their future act together while Harry plays the damaged piano. In September 2022, Watch TCM was only showing the international ending.

Cast

 * Norma Shearer as Irene
 * Clark Gable as Harry Van
 * Edward Arnold as Achille Weber
 * Charles Coburn as Dr. Waldersee
 * Joseph Schildkraut as Captain Kirvline
 * Burgess Meredith as Quillery
 * Laura Hope Crews as Madame Zuleika
 * Richard "Skeets" Gallagher as Donald Navadel (credited as Skeets Gallagher)
 * Peter Willes as Mr. Cherry
 * Pat Paterson as Mrs. Cherry
 * William Edmunds as Dumptsy
 * Fritz Feld as Pittatek
 * Virginia Grey as Shirley
 * Virginia Dale as Francine
 * Paula Stone as Beulah
 * Bernadene Hayes as Edna
 * Joan Marsh as Elaine
 * Lorraine Krueger as BeBe
 * Emory Parnell as Fifth Avenue Mounted Cop

Production
In an effort to make the play, staged entirely in the hotel lounge, less wordy and more attractive to watch on the screen, Sherwood wrote the script for MGM with 167 scenes on 42 sets.

When Warner Bros. considered filming Sherwood's play, film censor Joseph Breen, predicted it "would be banned widely abroad and might cause reprisals against the American company distributing it. The play is fundamentally anti-war propaganda, and contains numerous diatribes against militarism, fascism, and the munitions ring." MGM tried to address similar concerns, eventually hiring Italy's consul in Los Angeles as adviser. Rome agreed to cooperate on the production. In the end—although the script was supposedly approved by Fascist leader Benito Mussolini—Italy banned the film.

“Idiot's delight" refers to one of several games of solitaire or patience. In the play, Irene berates armaments manufacturer Weber (whose mistress she is) for his contribution to the war. He replies: “I am but the humble instrument of His divine will.” Her answer: “We don't do half enough justice to Him. Poor, lonely old soul. Sitting up in heaven, with nothing to do, but play solitaire. Poor, dear God. Playing idiot's delight.”. In the film, Capt. Kirvline mumbles “idiot's delight" when Harry asks him the reason for the war.

TCM.com observes: “This was the only film in which Clark Gable performed a dance number. He spent 6 weeks rehearsing the steps with the dance director George King, and practicing at home with his wife, Carole Lombard. Because of his fear of messing it up during a take, the set was closed during the filming of this sequence. When Gable had to sing ‘Puttin’ on the Ritz’ he actually had to be carried off by Les Blondes, so they saved that [scene] for last in case he was injured. On the day of the shooting Carole Lombard came to watch and was amazed that it only took one take.”

Norma Shearer's distinctive pageboy hairstyle was copied from the hairstyle worn by Lynn Fontanne when she originated the character in the Broadway production of the stage play.

Reception
A Dec. 31, 1938 review in Variety praised author Robert Sherwood for “deftly added an entertaining prolog establishing the early meeting and a one-night affair between Clark Gable and Norma Shearer in Omaha as small time vaudeville performers. This provides plenty of entertainment when the pair meet later in an Alpine hotel.”

On February 3, 1939, The New York Times critic raved in a long review: “It is with boundless enthusiasm, with uncritical hornpipes in the street, and wild huzzas of approval that finally, at long last, we hail the arrival of an adult picture on the local screen. As a profoundly bitter preview—profound because its bitterness wears the mask of comedy—of the trivial circumstances which will undoubtedly attend the beginning of the next World War, "Idiot's Delight," at the Capitol, is as timely as tomorrow's front page… by the very nature of its theme, (it) exposes the essential idiocy and pointlessness of militarism, … the suicidal greed, the monstrous complacency toward death and destruction which are not racial, but universal; not individual, but mass phenomena, as ugly and as international as hate. ….As for the chief characters, they have retained their considerable, if somewhat pat, theatrical charm, and they are still Mr. Sherwood's. … we are ready to suppose that the present American ending, on what can only be described as a note of defiant hooferism, with Gable pounding on the piano and Miss Shearer ecstatically "trucking" as the walls collapse, was the best that was cinematically available. (There is a different ending for Great Britain, with sentimental songs). Even that effect of the conventional movie fadeout, as the bombers recede, we can accept.” Recalling the play's ending, he observed: “No doubt the fine irony of Mr. Sherwood's conclusion that feeling, as the "two cheap people" burst hysterically into "Onward Christian Soldiers." that the gods were laughing would have been unseemly in a movie theatre. … Did we say that "Idiot's Delight" makes a swell movie? If you don't see it you'll be missing one of the year's events.”

Writing in The Spectator, Graham Greene observed: “Over-acting could hardly go further...”

Nelson Bell observed in The Washington Post on February 8, 1939: “Mr. Sherwood selected his title with a view to epitomizing his free notions of the motivation, in presumably high places, of armed conflict. His editorial instinct is highly emblazoned in the expression, in two words, of the only feasible basis that can exist for the precipitation of international slaughter.”

Box office
According to MGM records, the film recorded a loss of $374,000, one of only three films that Clark Gable made at MGM to lose money. The others are Parnell and Too Hot to Handle.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Idiot's Delight (film)


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Salford Red Devils

The Salford Red Devils are a professional rugby league club in Barton-upon-Irwell, Greater Manchester, England. They play home games at Salford Community Stadium and compete in Super League, the top tier of British rugby league.

Salford Red Devils have won the League Championship six times and Challenge Cup once.

The club’s traditional home colours are red white and blue. They have a local rivalry with Swinton Lions and other significant rivals with Oldham and Rochdale

Early years
The club was founded in 1873 by the boys of the Cavendish Street Chapel in Hulme, Manchester. Using a local field, the boys organised matches amongst themselves before moving to nearby Moss Side.

In an attempt to recruit new members, the link with the school was broken in 1875 and the name Cavendish Football Club was adopted. They moved to a new base on the Salford side of the River Irwell at Throstle Nest Weir in Ordsall. Two seasons later, they moved again to the west side of Trafford Road to a ground known as the Mile Field where they spent the 1877–78 season. Their next home was a field north of the former Manchester Racecourse, New Barnes. Their first season there, 1878–79, was the last to be played under the Cavendish name.

Cavendish became Salford Football Club in 1879. The first match as Salford was at Dewsbury on 4 October 1879. The following week heralded the first home match at New Barnes against Widnes, on 11 October 1879. The result was a draw with one try each.

Salford struggled to attract support as there were few local players in the team. In 1881, they almost disbanded but instead merged with the Crescent Football Club. This placed Salford firmly on the rugby map, it was an exciting period and, during the remaining 15 years as members of the Rugby Football Union, seventeen Salford players were selected for Lancashire, three by the North of England and two, Harry Eagles and Tom Kent, for England. Since the 1881 merger, only 62 matches were lost from 263 played in the remaining nine years of the decade.

In 1889, Salford moved their headquarters to the nearby London and North Western Hotel on Cross Lane. Salford switched from their traditional amber, black and scarlet hoops to red jerseys. The club became the first side to win the Lancashire League in 1892–93.

Salford along with Leigh and Wigan, were suspended for professionalism by the Rugby Football Union in 1895, and placed joint bottom of the Lancashire league. With automatic promotion and relegation, they faced dropping down a division, and potential financial ruin. That same year, the leading Lancashire and Yorkshire clubs formed the breakaway Northern Union, Salford initially remained loyal to the Rugby Football Union but in April 1896 Salford held a special meeting to discuss joining the new organisation. Only three members opposed the motion.

Salford were admitted to the Northern Union on 2 June 1896. Their first competitive Northern Union match was on Saturday, 5 September 1896, with a visit to Widnes. The Reds, competing in the Lancashire Senior Competition, lost 10–0, and only three matches were won in the League that season. Their form improved and they finished third place in 1898–99. In 1900, Salford met old local rivals, Swinton, in the Rugby League Challenge Cup Final at Fallowfield, Manchester. After a keenly fought contest, the result was a 16–8 win for Swinton.

20th century
In 1900, Salford received notice to vacate New Barnes as the Manchester Ship Canal Company had purchased the land. Salford agreed a 14-year lease on 5 acre of land belonging to the Willows Estate Company, named after the abundance of willow trees in the area. Salford made their début at the Willows on 21 December 1901, beating Swinton 2–0, the official attendance reaching 16,981. James Lomas became rugby league's first £100 transfer, from Bramley to Salford in 1901.

The club continued making progress in the Rugby League Challenge Cup, reaching the semi-final stages in 1902, 1903, 1906, 1907 and 1910. On three occasions, they succeeded in reaching the final, but lost 0–25 to Broughton Rangers in 1902, 0–7 to Halifax in 1903 and 0–5 to Bradford in 1906. The Championship also proved elusive, the Reds finishing runners-up for three consecutive seasons from 1901 to 1902. In the last of those, Salford and Bradford finished level on points with Salford having the superior scoring record. Despite that, the Reds had to take part in a deciding match at Halifax, which they lost 5–0.

The Kiwis, then known as the All Golds, visited in 1907, and Salford played them on 28 December, losing 9–2 in front of a reported 9,000 spectators. Lance Todd, who was to have such an influence at the Willows 20 years later, was in the New Zealanders' side. A year later, the Australians stopped off at the Willows on 17 October. The result was a 9–9 draw.

Salford won the Rugby Football League Championship in 1913–14. The club had financial problems and was in the hands of the official receiver but somehow in the Championship final, beat Huddersfield's "Team of All Talents" 5–3 on 25 April 1914, this was the club's first major honour.

In August 1914, the Salford Football Club Company was finally wound up and a new company, Salford Football Club (1914) Limited was formed. During the First World War, Salford continued to function, but it was a struggle. Thirty-two Salford players volunteered for the war, of which seven were killed.

The 1920s was an era of survival, on and off the field, the team opening the decade with their worst ever league placing, finishing last in 1920–21. There was a dramatic change of fortune during the summer of 1928 when Lance Todd became team manager. In his first season in charge (1928–29), "Toddy's Toddlers" went from 26th to fourth place in the table with virtually the same set of players.

Gus Risman was talent-spotted by Lance Todd, when he was 17 years old. He made his début for Salford on 31 August 1929. Other legendary names included Alan Edwards, Jack Feetham, Barney Hudson, Emlyn Jenkins, Billy Watkins and Billy Williams.

Salford were considered the leading club in the game during the 1930s, winning three League Championships, five Lancashire League Championships, four Lancashire Cups and the Rugby League Challenge Cup.

Salford won the Lancashire Cup for the first time in 1931 by beating Swinton 10–8 at the Cliff in front of a crowd of 26,471. Having been runners-up in the same competition in 1929 it was their first trophy for 17 years.

Salford captured the Rugby League Championship in 1933 by beating Swinton 15–5 in the final at Central Park, Wigan.

Salford were the first club to be invited to tour France who saw them as the premier side in the game. Their trip in October and November 1934 was to promote rugby league in the country. They won all six matches in spectacular fashion and were given their unofficial nickname; Les Diables Rouges (The Red Devils) by French journalists. The opening game was in Paris on Sunday 21 October, following an overnight ferry journey, having beaten Wigan 21–12 in the Lancashire Cup final the previous afternoon.

Salford turned its attention to baseball during the summer of 1935 as members of the National Baseball League. Matches were staged at the Willows. Several of Salford's players took part including Gus Risman. The team was called the Salford Reds.

In 1936, for a third consecutive year, Salford won the Lancashire Cup, defeating Wigan 5–2 at Wilderspool, Warrington.

Salford's highest attendance was set on 13 February 1937 when 26,470 turned up to watch Salford versus Warrington in the first round of the Rugby League Challenge Cup. The 1937 Australian touring team was beaten by Salford 11–8 at the Willows. Despite heavy rain that created muddy playing conditions, 12,000 attended.

Salford beat Barrow 7–4 in the final of the 1938 Challenge Cup at Wembley, the club's first-ever win. A famous photograph was taken of Gus Risman and the cup being carried shoulder-high round the stadium by his teammates with him being the only one without a cigarette in his hand.

In 1939, Salford became the first rugby league club to make successive visits to Wembley but were well beaten 20–3 by Halifax. On 3 September 1939, the Second World War began and the 1939–40 season was abandoned. A wartime Emergency League was organised but, at the beginning of January 1941, Salford decided to cease playing, due to poor gates. In November 1942, Lance Todd was killed in a car crash.

Post war
On 25 August 1945, Salford played their first match after the war against Castleford, winning 10–0 at the Willows. Hundreds of supporters gave up their summer weekends to help put the derelict looking ground back into good order.

In 1946, Salford appeared to be on their way to a third consecutive peacetime final, but Salford lost, unexpectedly, at home to Hunslet (15–8) at the quarter-final stage. In the second post-war season, 1946–47, Salford slid to twenty-second, a dramatic climb followed and the team finished seventh in 1948–49, and fifth in 1949–50. But it was a false dawn and the team fell into mid-table obscurity during the 1950s.

In 1950, Salford finished fifth on scoring difference to miss out on a top-4 play-off spot but it was their highest post-war finish until 1973–74.

Salford lost 4–8 to Warrington in a third-round Challenge Cup tie on 17 March 1951 at the Willows. The crowd was reported in the press as 28,000, the upper limit that had been set for the match. If correct it would be a ground record, but no official figure survives to confirm the exact attendance.

Salford won a four-team summer competition at Stanley Park in Blackpool 1952. Staged as part of Blackpool Corporation's Festival of Sport Fortnight, the Reds eliminated Barrow in the semi-final and then defeated Doncaster 26–7 in the final.

When Gus Risman quit as a player in 1954, he coached Salford for four years, before moving temporarily to Phoenix, Arizona (USA) to care for his nephew who had recently been involved in a dog mauling incident.

Saturday 26 November 1955 saw television cameras at the Willows for the first time when the second half of the match against New Zealand was broadcast live on BBC Grandstand.

Salford hosted their first floodlit game, using Manchester United's ground on Wednesday 5 November 1958 against Leeds in a match postponed from October. Leeds won 22–17.

A proposal in 1960 to create a Manchester rugby league club at the former White City Stadium on Chester Road received strong opposition from Salford and Swinton. Their protests were renewed when a match was staged there between a Manchester XIII, drawn from both Salford and Swinton and the New Zealand tourists in September 1961 and the idea was subsequently dropped.

Gus Risman returned to Salford as team manager in February 1962.

Between March and September 1962, Salford hit an all-time low with 19 consecutive defeats. Covering two seasons, it is the worst run in the club's history. Salford also suffered what was then their largest margin of defeat, when they lost 59–0 at St. Helens.

Brian Snape era
Brian Snape succeeded Jim Hammond as chairman in September 1963. Snape appointed Griff Jenkins as secretary-coach in 1964, and the Reds immediately started to climb the league ladder.

Salford built a variety club in 1966 in a bid to attract couples and parties to attend rugby matches. Between 1967 and 1972, Salford averaged over 7,000 spectators at a time when the league average was slipping below 2,000. In June 1967 the Willows switched on its floodlights for the first time in the match with Widnes on Friday 11 March 1966. From that evening, Friday night was rugby league night as the fans flocked to the Willows.

In October 1967 David Watkins joined Salford for £15,000, a then club record. Watkins scored in 92 consecutive matches for Salford from 19 August 1972 to 25 April 1974. He totalled 929 points from 41 tries and 403 goals.

In 1967, the Rugby Football League gave permission for games to be played on Sunday for the first time. The Willows staged its first Sunday fixture, a friendly with French club, Cavaillon, on 5 May 1968. It was not until the following season that the Reds were at home in their first competitive Sunday match, a second-round Challenge Cup-tie against Workington Town on 23 February 1969, Salford winning 12–5, destined for their third Wembley final which they lost 11–6 to Castleford, it was their first visit to Wembley after a gap of 30 years.

Salford's red devil nickname was immortalized when local football team Manchester United decided to replace their "Busby's Babes" nickname following the Munich crash. Matt Busby liked the sound of "Red Devils", thinking a devil was more intimidating to opponents than angelic babes and Manchester United adopted the "Red Devils" nickname.

In 1969, the BBC documentary, the Game That Got Away, held up Salford's revenue model as a blueprint for other clubs to follow.

In 1971, Salford beat the New Zealand tourists for the first time after five previous defeats.

In October 1972, Salford reached the final of the Lancashire County Cup for the first time since 1938, beating Swinton 25–11 at Wilderspool, Warrington to win their first trophy in thirty-three years. Salford reached the next three Lancashire Cup finals but failed to recapture the cup in any of them. They were also runners-up to Leeds in the 1972–73 Players No.6 Trophy. In 1973–74 and 1975–76 the club claimed two Championships and won the 1974–75 BBC2 Floodlit Trophy. The 1974 Championship was their first since 1938–39.

Salford's last major final of the Brian Snape era was the 1976 Premiership Trophy decider played at Station Road, Swinton. Salford conceded three tries in the last 12 minutes to lose 15–2. As the 1970s drew to a close, many star players had retired or were approaching the veteran stage, with no funds available to replace them.

In the 1976–77 season, the Salford versus Leeds match was abandoned just after half-time, after Chris Sanderson of Leeds suffered a fatal injury, after 38 minutes. Leeds were ahead 5–2, but the game was declared null and void and not replayed.

Stan McCormick was coach between February 1978 and March 1978. At the end of the 1977–78 season, Brian Snape left Salford, handing over the reins to his brother Keith.

Post Snape era
In May 1978, Alex Murphy was a surprise appointment as Salford coach. Years earlier he had famously referred to Salford's expensively built team as the 'Quality Street Gang'.

Salford's home league fixture with Widnes was designated as the club's 'Centenary Match' in October 1979. Watched by 11,982, the result was 16–16, Salford playing in their original jersey colours of red, amber and black hoops. In fact Salford was founded in 1873 as Cavendish, changing their name to Salford in 1879. Alex Murphy left in November 1980, he was replaced by Kevin Ashcroft.

By the end of the 1970s, the variety centre was losing money and in 1980, it was sold to the brewery Greenall Whitley. In 1981, Salford reverted to playing on Sunday afternoons.

On 3 January 1982, John Wilkinson took over as chairman. Wilkinson inherited a club living above its income, forcing him to make cost-saving measures. Mike Coulman coached Salford for the 1983–84 season.

Between July–August 1986, Salford participated in an 8-a-side touch rugby competition that included most of the senior clubs. The Reds won after beating Featherstone Rovers in the final at Elland Road, Leeds.

While the books were being balanced, steady progress was made on it, the Reds pulling off a major coup with the signing of Australian full-back Garry Jack in 1988. The Lancashire Cup final was reached in 1988, the Reds losing narrowly to favourites Wigan.

Kevin Tamati became coach in 1989. 1990 turned out to be a golden year. Salford won the Second Division Championship, losing just one game all season. In the Premiership final in front of 50,000 at Old Trafford, the Red Devils beat Halifax 27–20. They also made the final of the Lancashire Cup, losing narrowly to favourites Widnes.

In 1993 Garry Jack became head coach and manager as Tamati left. Jack was relieved from the coaching duties before being sacked as club manager in early 1995.

Summer era
In 1996, the first tier of British rugby league clubs played the inaugural Super League season and changed from a winter to a summer season. Andy Gregory had finished his playing days as player-coach at Salford in 1995. Salford finished with 21 points; six-points clear of Hull F.C. and seemingly safe from a drop into the lower leagues. However, the Rupert Murdoch-funded Super League competition proposed, as part of the deal, that some traditional clubs would merge. Salford were to merge with Oldham to form a Manchester club that would compete in Super League. When Salford visited Oldham for a match on Good Friday, 14 April, supporters of both clubs demonstrated against the idea by invading the pitch during the interval. This merger was resisted but Salford were not included in the new competition.

Salford added Reds to their name for the 1995–96 season. In 1996 Salford beat Wigan 26–16 at the Willows to produce one of the Challenge Cup's biggest shocks. It brought to an end a record run of eight successive Wembley victories by Wigan. Salford went on to reclaim their place in Super League by edging out Keighley to win the First Division.

Gregory left Salford by mutual consent in May 1999 to concentrate on his pub business in Wigan. John Harvey replaced him as head coach. Salford Reds became Salford City Reds in 1999 reportedly because Salford Council wanted their financial support for the club to be recognised, so their name was changed to emphasise the city status of Salford. The club's first match as Salford City Reds took place against Gateshead at the Willows on 18 July 1999. After the club avoided relegation at the end of the 1999 season, Harvey was given a contract for a further season. He resigned in July 2001 following a 70–4 defeat at Wigan.

Steve McCormack became the youngest Super League coach at the age of just 28 in 2001 but was sacked just 10 months later, after winning only three of 20 games. He was replaced by Karl Harrison, who had been Assistant Coach to Brian Noble at Bradford Bulls.

Salford City Reds struggled in the 2002 season and Harrison was unable to keep the club in the Super League, despite a good end to the season. Indeed, they went into the final match of the season second from bottom (only the bottom club were relegated that season). However, a home defeat by Castleford, coupled with a home win for Wakefield Trinity over Warrington, resulted in relegation for the Reds.

The 2003 season was spent in the National League 1, where the Reds – remaining as a full-time club (most other National League One teams were part-time or amateur clubs) – performed very well, losing only 2 games all season. Salford won 90–8 at Gateshead, their highest score since 1907 and then four days later Salford beat Gateshead again 100–12 in the National Cup at the Willows, a club record score. On their way to finishing top of the National League 1 table, Salford also won the Arriva Trains Cup beating Leigh in the final. Having finished on top of the National League One table, Salford entered the National League One play-offs, needing to win their match to qualify for the final. They beat Leigh in a bad-tempered match, to qualify for the National League One Grand Final. Leigh were forced into a knock-out semi-final to try to get through to the Grand Final – a play-off match they ultimately won.

Salford City Reds then comfortably beat Leigh in the Grand Final, to gain promotion to Super League after one season out. It was the sixth time out of seven meetings between the two that Salford had beaten Leigh that season (the first match ended in a draw). Leigh would follow Salford into Super League the following season. 2004 was a consolidatory season for the Reds, notably mostly for an impressive home win over St. Helens and coming from 12 points behind Castleford in a game three times in the season to win all three games, the third of which – at Castleford's "The Jungle" ground confirmed Salford's survival in the Super League and practically relegated 'Cas' in the process. In the end the Reds finished 9th.

The 2005 season saw Salford Reds sign Luke Robinson and David Hodgson from Wigan, both of whom performed excellently well for the Reds all season. Although Salford were unable to improve on the 9th-place finish of the previous season, they were regarded as one of the most improved teams in Super League and finished 6-points higher than they had the season before. However, relegation was again a real threat, as – to accommodate Catalans Dragons from France into Super League in 2006 – two clubs were relegated in 2005 instead of just one. Leigh comfortably finished bottom of the table, losing 14 games in a row. Widnes were also relegated, 6-points behind the Reds.

The 2006 Season started with wins at Warrington, and against Catalans Dragons at the Willows. Further wins over Wigan and Wakefield Trinity meant that Salford had won 4 of their opening 5 games (losing to Bradford in round 3). Salford in SLXI lost eight games by fewer than 6 points, including 1 point defeats to Leeds, Hull F.C. and Harlequins RL and 2 point defeats to Leeds and St. Helens. However, Salford's victory over Castleford on 10 September 2006, ensured that they would play in the Super League play-offs for the first time in their history in a season they had started as favourites for relegation according to most pundits. It is the club's highest position in a top division since coming fourth in 1979–80 in the old First Division. In their first-ever Super League play-off match, Salford City Reds were routed 52–6 at Odsal Stadium against Bradford on Saturday 23 September 2006.

Karl Harrison was sacked as first-team coach on 22 May 2007 following a disastrous run of form that saw the Reds win just three games and draw another in the opening 16 rounds of the 2007 Season, and left them languishing at the bottom of the League Table with a meagre 7 points. Team Director of Football, Steve Simms took over in a caretaker role for two games, winning the first against an in-form Huddersfield and only losing by a single point against then World Champions, St. Helens.

On 11 June 2007 long-term favourite to take the role, Shaun McRae was announced as the new head coach. On 15 June 2007, Salford beat Harlequins 5–2 in the first (and, to date, only) Super League game not to contain a try. On 2 September 2007, Salford were relegated from Super League when Hull Kingston Rovers beat Hull F.C. 42–6.

Super League licence era and move to Barton
McRae led the Salford side to triple success in the National League, winning the Northern Rail Cup, the League Leaders' Trophy and the Grand Final. Salford City Reds were awarded a three-year Super League licence in July 2008 as the game moved away from automatic promotion and relegation.

The Reds beat Leeds at Headingley 30–20 in 2009 to produce one of the biggest surprises of the season. Salford had only defeated Leeds away twice since 1946, the last occasion being 1977.

Shaun McRae was off ill with an undisclosed illness for most of the 2011 season, assistant coach Phil Veivers was caretaker manager and was promoted to head coach in November 2011.

The Reds were awarded a three-year licence to compete in the Super League from 2012 to 2014. They finished the 2011 Super League XVI season in 11th place.

In 2012, the club left the Willows to move into the new Salford City Stadium at Barton, Eccles. Their first league match at the new stadium was on 4 February 2012 against Castleford, who beat Reds 10–24. They finished the 2012 Super League XVII season in 11th place again.

In January 2013, the hearing of a winding-up petition over money Salford owed to HM Revenue and Customs and to players in unpaid wages was adjourned for four weeks so that new investors in the club could be sought. It was indicated that the club could be taken over by Marwan Koukash. On 31 January 2013 it was confirmed that Koukash would take over the club. Phil Veivers was sacked as coach in March 2013 after Salford lost four of their first five games, with Alan Hunte taking temporary charge until former Bradford, Great Britain and Crusaders coach Brian Noble was revealed as the new coach.

2013–Present: Salford Red Devils
Salford signed eight more players and relaunched as Red Devils on 5 September 2013, including former Castleford star halfback and international Rangi Chase, and fellow England player Gareth Hock. The former Warrington captain Adrian Morley, ex-Wakefield Trinity's Tim Smith, and Samoa internationals Francis Meli and Tony Puletua, both formerly of St. Helens, complete the signings from Super League teams. Signings from the Australian NRL were the former Parramatta Eels fullback Jake Mullaney, ex-Melbourne Storm centre Junior Sa'u and Steve Rapira, previously of New Zealand Warriors. Also signed were former Salford Academy product, Jason Walton and Greg Johnson, both from Championship side Batley.

It was confirmed in early April 2014 that Iestyn Harris, a former assistant coach at rival Super League club Wigan, would become the new head coach of Salford. Owner Marwan Koukash had been in talks with Wigan to negotiate bringing Harris to the AJ Bell Stadium but did not state his prospective role to the public. Former Salford Head Coach Brian Noble has been offered the job of Director of Football after being dismissed from his position as head coach after a mediocre start to his first full season in charge.

In 2014, it was revealed that Salford mayor Ian Stewart lent almost £200,000 to the club to keep them afloat, without consulting others at the council. Salford City Council also part-own the stadium where the club play.

In September 2015, four players, Rangi Chase, captain Harrison Hansen, Cory Paterson and Théo Fages, were released by the club by new Director of Rugby and Australian national team coach Tim Sheens.

In 2015, Salford failed to finish in the top 8 of Super League and ended up in The Qualifiers. In 2015, they finished 3rd in the table and secured Super League status for the 2016 season.

In 2016, Salford managed enough wins to finish in the top 8 of Super League, but breaches of the Salary Cap in 2014 and 2015 saw them deducted 6 points and the finished the season 10th and they were placed in The Qualifiers again. Here, they suffered numerous losses, including to the London Broncos and Leigh Centurions, who had both been in the Championship that season and could only finish 5th in the Qualifiers table. This meant they ended up in the 2016 Million Pound Game away to Hull Kingston Rovers. Despite not being in front in the entire 80 minutes, Salford scored two unconverted tries in the last 90 seconds of normal time to take the game to Golden Point extra time. Less than a minute into the extra time, Salford scored a Drop Goal to win the match and secure Super League status for 2017.

In 2018, Salford finished second last in the table and were condemned to play in the 2018 Rugby League Qualifiers. Salford managed to avoid relegation to the RFL Championship after finishing top of the qualifiers table and secured their place for the 2019 Super League season.

In 2019, Salford reached the 2019 Super League Grand Final after defeating Castleford and Wigan to reach the decider. Salford were looking to win their first championship since 1976 but faced a St Helens side who had only lost 3 games all season. Salford would go on to lose the final 23–6 at Old Trafford.

The 2020 season was heavily affected by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and, following the departure of the Toronto Wolfpack from Super League, several teams – including Salford – had results annulled. The league campaign was disappointing, but Salford did manage to reach the 2020 Challenge Cup Final, the first time they had reached the Wembley showpiece since the 1968–69 Challenge Cup. Unfortunately for Salford, a late drop goal from Luke Gale won the Challenge Cup for the Leeds Rhinos by 17–16. At the end of the 2020 season, Head Coach, Ian Watson, left the club leaving the Red Devils "surprised and disappointed by [the] decision" in order to take up the role of Head Coach at the Huddersfield Giants.

On 18 December 2020 it was announced that Salford had been fined £15,000 (half of it suspended) for failing to fulfil a fixture v Warrington Wolves in the height of the COVID-19 pandemic; Salford had informed the RFL that they had only 13 players available for selection

Salford finished the 2021 Super League season in 11th place on the table after a disastrous campaign which included an embarrassing loss against Leigh who had lost their previous 16 matches in a row. On 22 September 2021, Richard Marshall who had only been appointed head coach at the start of the year, left the club by mutual consent. Salford started the 2022 Super League season poorly winning only three of their first ten matches. After their round 15 loss to Wigan, Salford were sitting 10th place on the table. In round 16, Salford recorded one of the biggest wins in their history defeating Wakefield Trinity 74–10. The victory started Salford on a winning run as they recorded eight wins in the next eleven games including a 44–12 win over St Helens RFC. Salford would finish the regular season in 6th place and qualify for the playoffs. In the elimination playoff, Salford would upset Huddersfield 28–0. In the semi-final, Salford would lose controversially to St Helens 19–12. With less than ten minutes remaining, Salford were not awarded a penalty try after it appeared Tommy Makinson took out Salford's Tim Lafai in the act of scoring a try. Makinson was sin binned for a professional foul and the referee stated he was not convinced Lafai would have grounded the ball. Salford finished the 2023 Super League season in 7th place, missing the playoffs by two competition points.

Colours
Salford have traditionally played in predominantly red with bits of white. When the club was rebranded as the Red Devils the club colours were changed slightly with black replacing the small amount of white that appears on the home kit.

Badge
Traditionally Salford used the city's coat of arms as many other clubs did until the Super League era started in 1996 and many clubs rebranded. Salford City as they were then known added Reds to their name and a new logo. In 2014 the club rebranded again becoming the Salford Red Devils. In 2017 a new club crest was introduced, the centrepiece of the new design is the willow tree, symbolising the club's spiritual home and indeed the city – the name Salford was initially derived from Sealhford, meaning a ford by the willow trees. The devil's trident adorns the top of the crest, while there are also five workers bees, included to represent the five industrial communities that grew around the centre of the textile industry in the area. There is a nod to the rivers and canals which were the lifeblood of the region during the industrial revolution and the Lowry Millennium footbridge in Salford Quays.

This was all scrapped a couple of years later and they just brought the Devil back.

1879–1901: New Barnes
Salford's original ground was at New Barnes (sometimes spelt New Barns) on ground on the north side of Manchester Racecourse (53.47556°N, -2.29083°W). The club's first game in the Northern Union was played at this ground on 5 September 1896. In 1901 the club was forced to leave as the ground and racecourse had been purchased by the Manchester Ship Canal company for expansion of the dock area. The last game at New Barnes was on 30 November 1901.

1901–2011: The Willows
In 1900, Salford agreed a 14-year lease on 5 acre of land belonging to the Willows Estate Company, named after the abundance of willow trees in the area. They made their debut at the Willows on 21 December 1901, beating Swinton 2–0 in front of 16,981 fans. In the 1960s, the terrace was flattened at the Willows Road end to make way for the Salford Football and Social Club which was officially opened on 16 June 1966. The Willows switched on its floodlights for the first time in the match with Widnes on Friday 11 March 1966. On 26 November 1989, Salford unveiled a new £50,000 electronic scoreboard above the Willows Variety Centre.

2012–present: Salford Community Stadium
From the start of the 2012 season, Salford have played at the purpose-built Salford Community Stadium in Barton-upon-Irwell, co-owned by Peel Holdings and Salford City Council and shared with rugby union side Sale Sharks. From 2013 to 2023 the stadium was named the AJ Bell Stadium due to a naming rights deal with financial services company AJ Bell. In 2015 Salford were in talks with a landowner in Salford about building a new stadium in Salford because of rent low attendances since the current stadium is in Salford, although nothing came from these talks.

Team of the Century
In 2001, Salford selected a team consisting of the greatest players to appear for the club since the first game at the Willows in 1901. The team was selected by supporters, board members, sports writers and club historians.

Other notable players
These players have either; played in a Championship, Challenge Cup, or Lancashire County Cup final, or played in Lancashire League winning teams, received a Testimonial match, are Hall Of Fame Inductees, were international representatives before, or after, their time at Salford, or are notable outside of rugby league.

 * Jack Anderton 1888 British Isles tourist (RU)
 * 🏴 William "Billy" Banks
 * Les Bettinson (#4) circa-1965
 * 🏴 David Bishop
 * Ian Blease (Testimonial match 1996)
 * Charlie Bott
 * Andrew "Andy" Burgess (Testimonial match 1998)
 * 🏴 David Cairns (No. 7)
 * Colin Dixon (Testimonial match 1979)
 * Hugh Duffy (No. F), for Scotland (RU) while at Jed-Forest RFC (RU) 1955 1-cap (signed for Salford 1954–55)
 * Harry Eagles 1888 British Isles tourist (RU)
 * 🏴 Tex Evans
 * Albert Gear 1937–38 Challenge Cup Final winner, and try scorer
 * 🇳🇿 Harry Goldsmith 1914 final
 * 🏴 Clive Griffiths
 * 🏴 Adrian Hadley
 * William Jack Henry Hancock/Jack Hancock/John Hancock (England (RU), Newport RFC)
 * Warren Jowitt
 * Mark Lee (Testimonial match 2000)
 * David Major (Testimonial match 1989)
 * Stodger Meek (from Bream RUFC )
 * Frank Miles
 * 🏴 David "Dai" Moses
 * 🏴 Malcolm Price
 * Craig Randall 1991–98
 * 🏴 Maurice Richards (Testimonial match 1980)
 * Vincent Slater scored the winning try for Lancashire against Middlesex at The Oval on 12 March 1887
 * 🏴 Ferguson Southward circa-1925
 * 🏴 Harold Thomas
 * J. Williams circa-1920
 * Sam Williams 1888 British Isles tourist (RU)

Past coaches
• James Lomas 1922–26

• Lance Todd 1928–40

• Gus Risman 1954–58

• George Parsons 1960–63

• Ted Cahill 1963–64

• Griff Jenkins 1964–70

• Cliff Evans 1970–73

• Les Bettinson 1973–78

• Colin Dixon 1978

• Stan McCormick 1978

• Alex Murphy 1978–80

• Kevin Ashcroft 1980–82

• Alan McInnes 1982

• Malcolm Aspey 1982–83

• Mike Coulman 1983–84

• Kevin Ashcroft 1984–90

• Kevin Tamati 1990–93

• Garry Jack 1994–95

• Andy Gregory 1995–99

• John Harvey 1999–2000

• Steve McCormack 2001–02

• Karl Harrison 2002–07

• Steve Simms 2007

• Shaun McRae 2007–11

• Matt Parish 2011

• Phil Veivers 2011–13

• Alan Hunte 2013

• Brian Noble 2013–14

• Iestyn Harris 2014–15

• Ian Watson 2016–20

• Richard Marshall 2020–21

• Paul Rowley 2021–present

Seasons
Time spent in each division of the British rugby league system:
 * 1975–81: First Division
 * 1981–83: Second Division
 * 1983–84: First Division
 * 1984–85: Second Division
 * 1985–90: First Division
 * 1990–91: Second Division
 * 1991–95: First Division
 * 1995–96: Second Division
 * 1997–02: Super League
 * 2003: Championship
 * 2004–07: Super League
 * 2008: Championship
 * 2009–present: Super League

League

 * First Division / Super League:
 * Winners (6): 1913–14, 1932–33, 1936–37, 1938–39, 1973–74, 1975–76
 * Runners up (5): 1901–02, 1902–03, 1903–04, 1933–34, 2019

 * Second Division / Championship:
 * Winners (5): 1990–91, 1995–96, 1996, 2003, 2008
 * Runners up (1): 1984–85

 * RFL Championship Leaders' Shield
 * Winners (2): 2004, 2008

 * Lancashire League:
 * Winners (5): 1932–33, 1933–34, 1934–35, 1936–37, 1938–39

Cups

 * Challenge Cup:
 * Winners (1): 1937–38
 * Runners up (7): 1899–1900, 1901–02, 1902–03, 1905–06, 1938–39, 1968–69, 2020

 * Lancashire Cup:
 * Winners (5): 1931–32, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1936–37, 1972–73
 * Runners up (7): 1929–30, 1938–39, 1973–74, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1988–89, 1990–91

 * BBC 2 Floodlit Trophy:
 * Winners (1): 1974–75

 * Championship Cup:
 * Winners (2): 2003, 2008

Player records

 * Most tries in a game: 6 by Frank Miles vs Lees, 5 March 1898
 * Most goals in a game 14 by Steve Blakeley vs Gateshead Thunder, 23 March 2003
 * Most points in a game 39 by James "Jim" Lomas vs Liverpool City, 2 February 1907
 * Most tries in a season: 46 by Keith Fielding, 1973–74
 * Most goals in a season: 221 by David Watkins, 1972–73
 * Most points in a season: 493 by David Watkins, 1972–73
 * Most career goals: 1,241 by David Watkins, 1967–79
 * Most career tries: 297 by Maurice Richards, 1969–83
 * Most career points: 2,907 by David Watkins, 1967–79
 * Most career appearances: 496 (+2 as substitute) by Maurice Richards, 1969–83

Team records

 * Highest attendance (The Willows): 26,470 vs Warrington, 13 February 1937 (Rugby League Challenge Cup)
 * Highest attendance (AJ Bell Stadium): 7,854 vs Wigan Warriors, 25 June 2023
 * Highest attendance (all time): 97,939 vs Castleford, 17 May 1969 (Challenge Cup Final) at Wembley Stadium
 * Highest attendance vs an international touring team: 15,761 vs Australia, 21 October 1933 (1933–34 Kangaroo Tour) at The Willows
 * Biggest victory: 100–12 vs Gateshead Thunder, 23 March 2003
 * Heaviest defeat: 96–16 vs Bradford Bulls, 25 June 2000

Cultural references
A 1928 oil painting by the Salford-born artist L. S. Lowry, entitled Going to the Match, is a depiction of rugby league fans walking to a match. It is thought that the blue and red scarves worn by fans in the crowd and the red flag flying by the rugby ground indicate that this was a match played by Salford F.C. against Swinton. The painting was displayed at a 2012 exhibition in The Lowry, before being auctioned at Sotheby's, and it is now in a private collection.

title: Salford Red Devils


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Category:Missile guidance

 * Missile guidance — methods for in-flight guidance of guided missiles, after they have been launched.

title: Category:Missile guidance


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Talk:Wincenty Witos

Untitled
To all Polish speakers out there, this Polish-Wikipedia article should be translated to English and included here:

 * http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wincenty_Witos Polish Wikipedia article]

WpZurp 17:28, 23 Oct 2004 (UTC)

title: Talk:Wincenty Witos


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Leigh Leopards

The Leigh Leopards are a professional rugby league club based in Leigh, Greater Manchester, England. Leigh play homes games at Leigh Sports Village and compete in Super League the top tier of British rugby league.

Leigh Leopards have won the League Championship twice and Challenge Cup three times.

The clubs traditional home colours are red and white. They have a local rivalry with Wigan Warriors.

1878–1915: Early history
Leigh RFC was founded in 1878 by a surveyor named Fred Ulph. Leigh's first practice match was on 5 October 1878 at Buck's Farm in Pennington and their first game was against Eccles two weeks later.

In 1879, the club moved to a field behind the Three Crowns in Bedford and played there for 10 years. Leigh came to the attention of the wider district in 1885 when they had a 23 match unbeaten run with 21 wins and 2 draws. As attendances grew, improvements were made to the ground and the field's slope was levelled.

The club moved to Frog Hall Field, later known as Mather Lane, in 1889. The pitch was drained and levelled, a 10-foot-high hoarding was built around the ground, and a 500-seater stand was erected. The first game at Mather Lane was played on 7 September 1889 against Aspull and Leigh forward James Pendlebury scored the first try in front of a 2,000 crowd.

The 1894–95 season saw a new stand open on the south side in a momentous year for Rugby football. Leigh, along with Salford and Wigan, was suspended for professionalism by the Rugby Football Union, and placed joint bottom of the Lancashire league. With automatic promotion and relegation, it faced dropping down a division, and potential financial ruin. On top of years of arguments with the Rugby Football Union concerning player expenses, 22 teams including Leigh decided to form a breakaway governing body – the Northern Union.

The first season of the new game kicked off in September with Leigh recording a 6–3 loss against Leeds. Leigh finished ninth that season. Leigh had a great start in the new Union, they played well and the crowds increased; however they had mixed fortunes over the next few years. As the new century began, Leigh struggled and despite winning the West Lancashire and Border Towns Cup, the crowds and their fortunes dropped dramatically.

In the 1904–05 season, there was a dispute with Wigan in the Challenge Cup game. The game was played on 4 March 1905 and Leigh won 3–0 in front of 13,000 spectators. The Northern Union, after being alerted by Wigan, alleged that Leigh player Dick Silcock had played illegally after being absent from work in the week before the game without a permit breaking the 'working clause'. Leigh was found guilty of fielding an ineligible player and ordered to replay without expenses and for Leigh the gate receipts to be given to the Northern Union. Wigan won the replay 5–0 and Leigh were so incensed that the club considered leaving the Northern Union and starting an Association football club. Leigh became a limited company as a result of this financial blow.

In 1906, Leigh were Northern Union champions after a season with an 80% win rate. Many clubs complained that Leigh had provided themselves with an easy fixture list, ducking the challenge of the stronger clubs and play-offs were brought in.

In 1907–08, Leigh and Wigan were again in conflict in the Lancashire County Cup. An attendance record was set when 17,000 spectators watched Leigh and Wigan draw 3–3 at Mather Lane. Leigh lost the replay at Central Park but appealed for another replay because a Wigan player had left the field during the game without the referee's permission, Leigh lost the second replay.

In 1909, Mather Lane was upgraded when the embankment on the popular side was extended and raised giving the ground a capacity of 20,000 spectators. Around this time Leigh named its first coach – Jim Jolley. Over the next few years, Leigh had little success and crowd numbers dropped dramatically.

However, when the First World War began in summer 1914, the Northern Union believed that it would be over by Christmas and the season began as normal. Leigh performed poorly. Competitive rugby was suspended in 1915 until the hostilities ceased.

Inter-war years
Competitive rugby resumed in 1918 with an interim season from January to May. Leigh finished 2nd. Leigh had limited success just after the war and the Leigh directors set about building a new team. They had 19 players and even though their league performances were patchy, they had some success in the cups. In the 1920–21 season, in a round of the Lancashire Cup in which Leigh played Rochdale Hornets, an attendance record was set at Mather Lane when a crowd of 21,500 saw Leigh win 9–7. Leigh reached the final but lost to Broughton Rangers. In 1921 the club won the Challenge Cup with a shock 13–0 victory over Halifax at the Cliff in Broughton, Salford. In 1934, Leigh played under floodlights for the first time, losing 8–25 at London Highfield. Leigh were the first Lancashire side to win the Challenge Cup since 1911.

Over the following seasons Leigh was quite successful in the league and cup. The club attracted huge crowds, and a Leigh v Wigan derby was guaranteed to draw in the spectators. One such meeting when Leigh met Wigan in the first round of the Challenge Cup in 1923–24, saw a crowd of 33,500 at Mather Lane. However, the 1920s, and 1930s were marred by strikes, unemployment and periods of economic depression. The government levied an entertainment tax of around 20% on gate receipts, at a time when clubs were experiencing difficulties balancing the books. For Leigh the mini-boom was over.

In 1924–25, Leigh slipped to 20th in the league and suffered a record 9–52 defeat in the league game at Central Park on Christmas Day. In December 1925 star player Abe Johnson was transferred to Oldham for £650 and Leigh's decline continued the next season when they slipped to 4th from bottom in the league. The club lost every away match and suffered some heavy defeats as confidence left the team. 1926 was the year of the General Strike and Leigh admitted miners free of charge for many home games. Leigh had a decent season, finishing 7th in the league. Around this time, Mather Lane was improved including the construction of a covered terrace at one end, the doubling in size of the grandstand and an iron bridge was constructed across the canal to give the spectators easier access from the town centre.

Growing financial problems forced Leigh to sell players. In the 1930–31 season, the lack of experienced players had an effect on the field when Leigh won only one away game. The directors decided to ease the financial pressure by reducing players' wages. The players went on strike in response and Leigh were forced to play their reserves. The striking players eventually agreed to take a pay cut. Crowds fell to about 1,000 for home games and one midweek fixture against Swinton saw only 400 spectators. Leigh rallied briefly in 1931–32, encouraged by the return of Abe Johnson, but it didn't last. In the 1932–33 season, things were so bad that the players played for free in several games. The club had major financial problems and a young inexperienced team. Financial support from an outside source was received which enabled the club to continue. Things went from bad to worse in the 1936–37 season when Leigh won only five games all season and finished third from bottom in the league. Gate receipts crashed to an all-time low, with the final home game of the season against Broughton Rangers attracting a crowd of around 250 spectators.

From the start of the next season, a new pay structure was agreed with the players, with each receiving £1 each per game. Leigh lost their best players and any new signings were juniors or free transfers from other clubs. The Rugby League Management Committee visited the club in March and two of its members were co-opted on to the Leigh board until the end of the season and the A-team was scrapped to cut costs. The 1937–38 season opened with some encouraging signs as Leigh beat Rochdale Hornets in the Lancashire Cup, their first win in any competition for 21 games. They took the touring Australians to within two points on the opening match of their tour. These were desperate times though and when Dewsbury visited Mather Lane for a mid-week game in November 1937, only 200 spectators were there to see Leigh suffer a record home defeat of 64–6. This prompted the Leigh directors to resign en masse and the Rugby League Management Committee stepped in to prevent the club from folding by guaranteeing their fixtures until the end of the season. The following February, a members club was formed, though the RFL stayed in control until June and Leigh won only one of their last 15 games, again finishing 3rd from bottom.

The club found itself without a ground in August 1940 when Callender's Cable and Construction Company bought the Mather Lane site from the owners, Messrs. George Shaw & Company Ltd of the Leigh Brewery. The new owners needed the ground to store steel drums and cases and they advised Leigh that they were unable to let them have a lease on the ground. Leigh's last game at Mather Lane was a War Emergency League fixture against St Helens on 27 April 1940 where a crowd of only 300 spectators saw the visitors win 16–5. Leigh had intended playing in the 1941–42 Lancashire War Emergency League but weeks before the new season began, the Rugby Football League passed a resolution that clubs could only participate if they had a home ground. Leigh arranged to play at Hindsford Football Club's ground but this was over-ruled by the RFL and Leigh ceased operations for the duration of the Second World War.

Post-war
In 1946–47, the Rugby Football League drew up the fixture list but Leigh's name was omitted and it was only when local businessman James Hilton made a personal and impassioned plea to the Rugby Football League that Leigh were included. In January 1946, a public meeting at Leigh Liberal Club approved a motion to re-launch the club as Leigh RLFC. The club played the 1946–47 at Madeley Park, the home of Leigh Harriers & Athletic Club. In 1947, the club moved to Kirkhall Lane headquarters and in 1953 floodlights were installed at a cost of £4,100. The ground saw a record home crowd of 31,326 attend a Challenge Cup tie with St. Helens in the same year. Later, Kirkhall Lane was officially renamed Hilton Park after James Hilton.

Leigh signed Jimmy Ledgard from Dewsbury in January 1948 for a then record fee of £2,650. Joe Egan joined Leigh for a record £5,000 fee in October 1950 and succeeded Emlyn Jenkins as player / coach. Leigh finished 4th in the league in his first season. In Egan's second season, Leigh made it to the Lancashire Cup Final and a Challenge Cup semi-final as well as finishing 7th in the league. On Saturday 27 October 1951, 33,230 spectators saw Leigh lose 14–6 to Wigan in the final of the Lancashire County Cup at Station Road, Swinton. The club repeated that league placing a year later, this time helping Leigh win the Lancashire Cup in front of a crowd of 34,785 at Swinton. The 14 March 1953 brought the biggest recorded crowd at Hilton Park when 31,326 crammed in to see St Helens win 12–3, to make up for their Lancashire Cup defeat.

In 1951, Leigh signed Australian rugby union test forward Rex Mossop. The tough man known as "The Moose" played three seasons with Leigh before returning to Sydney to play for his local club Manly-Warringah. Mossop became a dual-international when he was selected to play for Australia against the touring Great Britain side in 1958.

An injury to Egan saw him sit out the entire 1953–54 season and his absence hit Leigh hard and the club finished 13th and interest in cup competitions also finished early. Joe tried to make a comeback the following season but was forced to retire, although once more the club enjoyed runs in the cup competitions, losing to Barrow in the Lancashire Cup semi-final and then getting knocked out of the Challenge Cup by Featherstone. Joe Egan remained with the club as coach and the team was successful in his final season, finishing 11th but winning the Lancashire Cup for a second time with a resounding 26–9 success over Widnes.

Leigh and Bradford Northern were the first rugby league clubs to stage matches on a Sunday in December 1954, although there was opposition from the Sunday Observance lobby. The 1955–56 season saw the introduction of a tournament titled the ITV Rediffusion Cup. Eight clubs participated in a series of games played at football grounds in the London area, with Warrington eventually running out 43–18 victors over Leigh at Loftus Road.

1971–1980: Alex Murphy era
Alex Murphy joined Leigh as player-coach in 1966. In 1971, Leigh reached the Rugby League Challenge Cup Final and defeated Leeds, 24–7. Murphy left Leigh on 20 May 1971 to become player-coach at Warrington.

In 1978, John Woods played and scored in every game as Leigh secured the Second Division. In 1982, Leigh were Champions for the second time, as Alex Murphy guided them to a tense 13–4 victory at Whitehaven, after Leigh trailed 4–1 at half time.

1981–1995: Relegation and ground moves
The 1981–82 season was memorable as the club lifted the Lancashire County Cup and ended the campaign as winners of the Championship for the second time in their history. Notable players during the season included John Woods, Des Drummond, Steve Donlan, and Alf Wilkinson. Unfortunately Alex Murphy resigned at the end of the season to take over at Wigan, with Colin Clarke taking the reigns at Leigh.

Leigh were relegated from First Division in 1985 but bounced back; winning the Second Division Championship in 1985–86, losing one league match. During the season, they twice broke the scoring record for most points in a game against Mansfield Marksmen (76–6) and Keighley (92–2).

Leigh were relegated from the First Division again in 1988 but again won the Second Division title to secure promotion at the first attempt.

Leigh relegated from First Division yet again in 1990 and crippling financial problems are revealed. For the 1990–91 season the club adopted the nickname the Bears, adding a bears emblem to the right breast of the club jerseys. The nickname was only used for one season and did not prove popular.

In January 1991, the club tried to sell its ground to ease cash problems. A consortium offered £200,000 to take over Leigh but the club ended up in administration. Swinton offered to ground share, Station Road, to help Leigh but this offer was refused. Tony Cottrell heads a consortium that takes over the club in 1991 and Alex Murphy is sacked on the eve of the new season.

Kevin Ashcroft takes over and guides the club to promotion behind Sheffield.

Steve Simms is appointed as the club's first overseas coach in 1992. John Woods broke the club record for points scored in a game at Leigh's home game against Ryedale-York in January 1992. In November 1992, Leigh get High Court reprieve following threat of eviction from Hilton Park. St. Helens inflict a new club record defeat with a whopping 64–9 win over Leigh at Knowsley Road. Leigh regain their form however with great wins at Wakefield Trinity, Hull and Sheffield; and finished the season with excellent results at home.

In February 1993, Leigh failed in a bid to buy back Hilton Park for £300,000 but in June, they were offered a reprieve and are allowed to stay for another 12 months. Leigh enter administration in July 1994.

In December 1994, Ian Lucas became head coach of Leigh, the youngest senior coach in the game. Despite victories over title chasing St Helens and Bradford, Leigh are relegated from the top division.

In 1995, the football club Horwich RMI made the decision to move from Horwich, near Bolton, to Hilton Park, changing their name to Leigh RMI in the process. As part of the deal a new company, Grundy Hill Estates, was formed to take over the ownership of the ground. Leigh added "Centurions" to their name for the 1995–96 season.

1996–2011: Summer era
In 1996, the first tier of British rugby league clubs played the inaugural Super League season and changed from a winter to a summer season. As the sport in Britain entered a new era, it was eight years before Leigh gained promotion to the top level of the game.

In April 1996, Eric Hughes was appointed head coach replacing Ian Lucas who was sacked after Leigh had won only one of its first five games of the season. Hughes was replaced by Keith Latham who was in charge until 1998. Norman Turley was head coach in 1998, Leigh finish bottom of the table with a succession of heavy defeats.

In October 1998 Ian Millward was appointed head coach. Under Millward, Leigh finish 4th in the Northern Ford Premiership. Millward left in 2000 to coach St. Helens.

Australian Paul Terzis was coach of Leigh from 1999 to 2003. His reign was notable for a number of 'near misses' as Leigh attempted to win promotion to Super League. In 2000, Leigh made it through to the Grand Final before losing 13–12 to Dewsbury. In 2001 Leigh recorded a shock Challenge Cup victory over Super League Salford, finished 9 points clear at the top of the Northern Ford Premiership winning 26 from 28 league games and claimed the Trans-Pennine Cup. However, Leigh were defeated in the play-off semi-finals and Widnes went on to win the Grand Final and a place in Super League.

In 2002 and 2003, the relegated Super League sides, Huddersfield and Salford remained fully professional teams. Thus, their full-time fitness and coaching led to defeat in successive grand finals for Leigh. A consortium saved Leigh from administration on the eve of the 2003 season. Towards the end of the 2003 season Paul Terzis was sacked.

In October 2003, Darren Abram was appointed head coach, with a view to taking them into Super League. When Halifax were relegated to play in the 2004 National League competition, their financial troubles meant they were unable to retain a full-time team and struggled, paving the way for Leigh to go about achieving their dream. Whitehaven were the opponents when Leigh won the National League One Grand Final 32–16 (after extra time, 16–16 at full-time) in 2004, thus securing promotion to Super League.

Leigh's Super League season of 2005 proved a disaster and the club were relegated to National League One after winning just two games. Abram resigned in August 2005 after a disagreement with the board, who felt unable to offer him the full-time contract he wanted for 2006 if the club were not in Super League. Tommy Martyn and Heath Cruckshank both try their hand at the job before Tony Benson was appointed head coach in September 2005. Leigh's relegation from Super League had been all but confirmed at the time of his appointment.

In July 2006, Leigh won the Northern Rail Cup after defeating Hull Kingston Rovers 22–18 at Bloomfield Road, Blackpool. It was the second time the club had won that particular trophy having also triumphed in the 2004 final against the same opposition. A loss to Batley in the play-offs signals the end of Tony Benson's reign.

Following Leigh's 23–22 defeat by Batley Bulldogs in the 2006 National League One playoffs, the club's future was thrown into doubt. The club's owners decided to part company with Tony Benson causing some of the back room staff and management to resign in support of their colleague. The uncertainty also caused a number of the club's playing staff to leave.

Darren Shaw was appointed as coach of the club in October 2006, however, it was found that Darren Shaw did not have the necessary qualifications to coach at this level and he was moved to the position of Football Manager, while assistant coach Paul Rowley was appointed as First Team Coach.

In January 2007, the club announced it would drop the Centurions name ahead of its move to a new stadium at Leigh Sports Village. The club changed the name of its stadium back to Hilton Park after renaming it the Coliseum a number of years earlier. However, due to an influx of letters, e-mails and telephone calls from Leigh supporters asking the club to re-think its decision; this decision was reversed in May.

Darren Shaw's first full season in charge of Leigh ended with a 19–6 play off defeat away to Whitehaven. Leigh's 2007 season was one dogged by inconsistency. Convincing wins were often followed by heavy defeats as Shaw was forced to field a number of youngsters due to injury problems. The unsettled nature of the side in 2007 was reflected by the fact that Shaw gave debuts to over 20 players over the course of the season.

Despite the disappointing end to the 2007 season, Shaw was given a contract to coach Leigh for the 2008 season. After a promising start to the 2008 season, Shaw tendered his resignation following defeats to Salford, Widnes and Featherstone Rovers. Darren Shaw was replaced by Neil Kelly.

Leigh move to the Leigh Sports Village in December and open the venue with a 4,600 crowd against Salford.

In April 2009, Neil Kelly took up the position of Director of Rugby at the club and his assistant Paul Rowley became head coach. Simon Knox became assistant coach. At the end of the 2009 season, despite winning a 'must win' game at home to Whitehaven 47–14 other results went against Leigh and they were relegated to Championship 1. Leigh were reinstated into Co-operative Championship on 11 November 2009 after the RFL Board took the decision after Gateshead Thunder's chairman Steve Garside wound up Gateshead and Newcastle Rugby Ltd.

Ian Millward returned as the club's head coach for 2010, Leigh took advantage of their reprieve and had a terrific season, finishing in third place in the Co-Operative Championship before losing at home in the play-offs to Sheffield Eagles, whilst also reaching the semi-finals of the Northern Rail Cup before being knocked out by eventual winners Batley Bulldogs.

The 2011 season saw Leigh start as league pacesetters losing their first league game of the season in early June at home to Halifax. That defeat was more than made up for by defeating Halifax 20–16 in the final of the Northern Rail Cup at Blackpool's Bloomfield Road on Sunday 17 July 2011 after a match-winning try in the final 30 seconds of a thrilling encounter from young centre Tom Armstrong. They finished the season well, finished 2n in the league, but they failed in the play-offs, losing to Featherstone Rovers in the qualifying final then losing to Sheffield Eagles in the final eliminator.

Ian Millward left his position as head coach at the end of the 2011 season to take over as head coach at Super League side Castleford Tigers. A new head coach has yet to be appointed (January 2012) with Paul Rowley and Neil Jukes currently in temporary charge of first team matters. Rowley was later appointed first team coach on a permanent basis in January 2012. After a successful first season in charge which included guiding the club to 2nd in the Championship and a Northern Rail Cup semi-final, Rowley was named Championship Coach of the year. In February 2013 Rowley signed a new contract at the club, which will keep him at the club until the end of 2015. Rowley resigned as Leigh Centurions head coach 10 days before the start of the 2016 Championship season, citing personal reasons.

2012–2016: Super League bid
In 2012 the club announced its intention to apply for a Super League licence. The club started the 'We BeLEIGHve' campaign, believing that Leigh will be the club nominated by the Rugby Football League to be promoted to the Super League in 2014.

In the 2014 Kingstone Press Championship season, Leigh recorded the best season in the club's history by going the entire season losing only two games; the first defeat coming at the hands of Leeds in the Challenge Cup, and the other coming at the hands of Doncaster. For their efforts, Leigh picked up the League Leader's Shield and went on to win the Grand Final for the first time in 10 years, with a 36–12 victory over bitter rivals Featherstone Rovers.

In 2015 Leigh finished top of the Championship for the second year in a row and were one of the favourites to finish in the top three of the Qualifiers to gain automatic entry to Super League after they knocked Salford Red Devils and Wakefield Trinity out of the Challenge Cup earlier in the year. However they ended up finishing bottom of the Qualifiers after several close games and were confined to another season in the Championship.

In 2016 Leigh gained automatic promotion after winning their first 5 matches in the middle eight's competition. The club were relegated after just one season back in the top division.

2017–2022: Promotion and relegation
It was announced on 14 December 2020 that Leigh would get the spare Super League place for the 2021 Super League season, left vacant after the Toronto Wolfpack withdrawal; Leigh beat five rival bids

Leigh started the 2021 Super League season poorly losing their opening eight matches. On 2 June 2021, it was announced that Leigh's head coach John Duffy had parted ways with the club by mutual consent.

On 23 August 2021, Leigh recorded their first victory in the 2021 Super League season after losing the previous 16 matches in the competition beating Salford 32–22. Despite that, they were already relegated from Super League. Leigh finished the season with only two wins from 22 matches.

2022–present: Back in Super League, rebrand and Challenge Cup win
On 28 May 2022, Leigh reached the final of the 2022 RFL 1895 Cup against Featherstone winning the match 30–16. It was Leigh's first triumph in the competition.

On 2 October Leigh defeated Batley in the Million Pound Game and won promotion back into Super League for the 2023 season. On 20 October 2022, Leigh Centurions changed its name to Leigh Leopards. In round 3 of the 2023 Super League season, Leigh earned their first win back in the top flight defeating Hull Kingston Rovers 30–25.

On 22 July 2023 they beat St Helens in the Challenge Cup semi final by 12 points to 10 to reach the Challenge Cup final for the first time since 1971. On 12 August 2023, Leigh played in the Challenge Cup final at Wembley Stadium and beat Hull Kingston Rovers by 17–16 after golden point extra time. A drop goal by Lachlan Lam won the game and the cup for Leigh. Leigh would finish 5th on the table in their first season back in the Super League to qualify for the playoffs. Leigh's season was ended in the elimination final game against Hull Kingston Rovers as they lost 20-6.

1947–2007: Hilton Park
In 1947, Leigh Rugby League Club moved to new headquarters in Kirkhall Lane, having played at Mather Lane before the Second World War and at Madeley Park (Leigh Harriers Athletic ground) immediately after the war. In 1953 floodlights were installed at a cost of £4,100. The ground saw a record home crowd of 31,326 attend a Rugby League Challenge Cup tie with St. Helens in the same year. Later, Kirkhall Lane was officially renamed Hilton Park after former club chairman Jack Hilton in recognition of his work in securing the site for the new ground.

In 1995, the association football club Horwich RMI relocated from the Grundy Hill Stadium, in Horwich to Hilton Park, changing its name to Leigh RMI in the process. As part of the deal a new company, Grundy Hill Estates, was formed to take over the ownership of the ground. Leigh added Centurions to its name for the 1995–96 season, and as part of the name change the stadium was renamed the Coliseum.

Leigh Centurions moved to Leigh Sports Village for the 2009–10 season. Hilton Park has since been demolished.

2008–present: Leigh Sports Village
Leigh moved into their new 12,500 capacity stadium, being made up of 10,000 seats, and a standing terrace of approximately 2,500 in late December 2008. The stadium forms part of the Leigh Sports Village complex was shared with Leigh Genesis football club. The old ground at Hilton Park has been demolished and the land sold for housing development. It was hoped that the new stadium would be the cornerstone of Leigh's application for a Super League franchise in the coming years.

The first game to be played at Leigh Sports Village took place on 28 December 2008. The friendly match against Salford was held as a ramp up event in order for the stadium management company to gain a full safety certificate.

On Thursday 21 May 2009, the Queen and Prince Philip visited the region to officially open Leigh Sports Village.

Coaching history
• Jim Jolley 1910

• Emlyn Jenkins 1948–49

• Joe Egan 1950–56

• Don Gullick 1958–60

• Gerry Helme ????-??

• Alex Murphy 1966–71

• Peter Smethurst 1971

• Derek Hurt 1971–72

• Les Pearce 1972–74

• Eddie Cheetham 1974–75

• Kevin Ashcroft 1975–77

• Bill Kindon 1977

• John Mantle 1977–78

• Tommy Grainey 1978–80

• Alex Murphy 1980–82

• Colin Clarke 1982

• Peter Smethurst 1982–83

• Tommy Bishop 1983–84

• John Woods 1984–85

• Alex Murphy 1985

• Tommy Dickens 1985–86

• William "Billy" Benyon 1986–90

• Alex Murphy 1990–91

• Kevin Ashcroft 1991–92

• Jim Crellin 1992

• Steve Simms 1992–94

• Denis Ramsdale 1994

• Ian Lucas 1994–96

• Eric Hughes 1996

• Keith Latham 1996–98

• Norman Turley 1998

• Ian Millward 1998–2000

• Paul Terzis 2000–03

• Darren Abram 2003–05

• Tony Benson 2005–06

• Darren Shaw 2006–08

• Neil Kelly 2008–09

• Paul Rowley 2009

• Ian Millward 2009–11

• Paul Rowley 2012–16

• Neil Jukes 2016–18

• John Duffy 2018–2021

• Kurt Haggerty (interim) 2021–2021

• Adrian Lam 2021–present

League

 * Division 1 / Super League:
 * Winners (2): 1905–06, 1981–82

 * Division 2 / Championship:
 * Winners (8): 1977–78, 1985–86, 1988–89, 2004, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2022
 * RFL Championship Leaders' Shield
 * Winners (5): 2004, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2022

Cup

 * Challenge Cup:
 * Winners (3): 1920–21, 1970–71, 2023

 * Lancashire Cup:
 * Winners (4): 1952–53, 1955–56, 1970–71, 1981–82

 * Trans-Pennine Cup:
 * Winners (1): 2001

 * Championship Cup:
 * Winners (4): 2004, 2006, 2011, 2013

 * 1895 Cup
 * Winners (1): 2022

 * BBC2 Floodlit Trophy:
 * Winners (2): 1969–70, 1972–73

Club records

 * Biggest win:
 * 100-4 v. York

 * Biggest loss:
 * 94-4  v. Workington

 * Highest all-time attendance:
 * 31,326 v. St. Helens (at Hilton Park, 1953)

 * Highest summer era attendance:
 * 10,556 v. Batley (at Leigh Sports Village, 17 September 2016)

Player records

 * Most tries in a game: 6
 * Jack Wood vs York, 1947
 * Neil Turley vs Workington Town, 2001
 * Most goals in a game: 16 by Krisnan Inu vs York, 2022
 * Most points in a game: 42 by Neil Turley vs Chorley Lynx, 2004
 * Most tries in a season: 55 by Neil Turley, 2001
 * Most goals in a season: 187 (inc 10 drop goals) by Neil Turley, 2004
 * Most points in a season: 468 by Neil Turley, 2004
 * Most career tries: 189 by Mick Martyn, 1954–67
 * Most career goals: 1,043 by Jimmy Ledgard, 1948–58
 * Most career points: 2,492 by John Woods, 1976–85, 1990–92
 * Most career appearances: 503 by Albert Worrall, 1920–38

title: Leigh Leopards


text:
The Glove

The Glove was a 1983 English musical collaboration and recording project by the Cure's Robert Smith and Siouxsie and the Banshees' Steven Severin. They released one studio album, Blue Sunshine, in 1983 as part of Severin's solo deal with Polydor. The latter came up with the band name, the album title and the blue/yellow sleeve concept, as Smith had to leave the project before completion due to prior commitments with the Cure.

History
Robert Smith and Steven Severin founded the Glove during a period when they were under heavy stress in their respective bands, the Cure and Siouxsie and the Banshees.

In June 1982, Smith was on the verge of a breakdown, drained from the production of the Cure's bleakest album, Pornography and its tour, substance abuse, and band infighting that led to the departure of bassist Simon Gallup. During the summer 1982, Smith asked Severin to play bass on an early version of the Cure's "Lament" for a single given to Flexipop magazine.

In October 1982, when playing two one-off shows in Madrid, Banshees guitarist John McGeoch had a nervous breakdown due to alcohol and the stresses of recording and touring, and was fired by the band returning home, shortly before the start of an important European tour. Smith was asked to fill in and officially became a member of the Banshees in November 1982. He had previously played live with the Banshees in 1979 on their Join Hands tour, when he replaced their guitarist John McKay, the latter had walked out at the start of the tour. The Cure had already been the support band, and Smith therefore had played two sets per night in September and October 1979.

Severin and Smith booked a studio in late 1982. The first song that they recorded was "Punish Me with Kisses".

In January 1983, two months after Smith rejoined Siouxsie and the Banshees, Siouxsie and drummer Budgie left England to record an album on their own as the Creatures.

In March, after returning from a Siouxsie and the Banshees tour in Japan and Australasia, Severin and Smith appeared on television to perform live the Cure's song "Siamese Twins", for a ballet conceived by Nicholas Dixion for a UK television program called Riverside: cellists Anne Stephenson and Gini Hewes played with them. Both soon started to work on a project called the Glove. The band's name referred to the enormous flying glove in the Beatles' 1968 animated movie Yellow Submarine. Their album's title, Blue Sunshine, referred to the horror film of the same name, in which people who took the fictional "Blue Sunshine" variety of LSD became psychotic murderers 10 years later. Smith described the recording sessions as "unreal": "We spent 12 weeks in the studio but actually recorded for about five days. The rest of the time was spent having an endless party to which we invited a succession of people. It was like a station -- once they got really out of it, they'd be moved on and the next batch brought in. In between all this we'd record a piece of piano or drum". During that period, the duo stayed up most of the nights watching "video nasties", including Dario Argento films.

Since Smith was contractually prohibited from singing with another band (one of the reasons he cited for the 2001 split from the Cure's longtime label), former Zoo dancer Jeanette Landray (a former girlfriend of Severin's bandmate Budgie ) was recruited as the lead singer. Smith sang on two of the songs, "Perfect Murder" and "Mr. Alphabet Says". With the latter, Smith sang lyrics other than his own.

Other musicians involved in this project were Andy Anderson (who was about to become the new Cure drummer), Martin McCarrick (a musician of Marc Almond who later joined the Banshees), and strings players Ginny Hewes and Anne Stephenson. Smith, Severin and Landray promoted the album with a tv appearance on the show Riverside in October 1983.

In 2005, Severin proposed re-releasing Blue Sunshine. Smith, who had been gradually reissuing editions of the Cure's back catalogue, agreed, and the Glove remaster was released as a 2-CD set on 8 August 2006 alongside three Cure re-releases. On the second disc, a dozen unreleased demo versions sung by Smith appeared for the first time. To commemorate Record Store Day 2013 a limited edition blue coloured vinyl version of the LP was produced.

Personnel

 * Robert Smith: vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards
 * Steven Severin: bass, keyboards
 * Jeanette Landray: vocals
 * Andy Anderson: drums
 * Martin McCarrick: keyboards, strings
 * Ginny Hewes: strings
 * Anne Stephenson: strings

Studio albums

 * Blue Sunshine (1983, Wonderland/Polydor)

Singles

 * "Like an Animal" (1983, Wonderland/Polydor)
 * "Punish Me with Kisses" (1983, Wonderland/Polydor)

title: The Glove