 | |
| Duration | 8 Rounds |
|---|---|
| Highest attendance | 65,187 |
| Broadcast partners |  BBC Sport |
| Winners |  St. Helens |
| Runners-up |  Huddersfield Giants |
| Biggest home win | Leigh East 86-10Askam |
| Biggest away win | Ovenden 10-50 York City Knights |
| Lance Todd Trophy | Sean Long |
The2006 Challenge Cup (also known as thePowergen Challenge Cup due to sponsorship fromPowergen) was the 105th tournament played forrugby league'sChallenge Cup. It features teams from across Europe including England, Scotland,Wales, France and Russia.
The competition started in January 2006 with the preliminary round where theGloucestershire Warriors from theRugby League Conference surprised an established Pennine League team inIllingworth. The final was scheduled to be played at the newWembley Stadium but in March 2006 it became apparent that the stadium would not be ready for the final on 26 August so it was switched toTwickenham.
In the finalSt. Helens proved too strong for theHuddersfield Giants, winning by 42 points to 12. It was Huddersfield's first final since 1953, when they also faced St Helens.
Sees the introduction of the major amateur clubs from theNational Conference League and the teams fromNational League 3
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thornhill Trojans | 30-12 | Eastmoor Dragons |
| 2 | West Bowling | 15-14 | Halton Simms Cross |
| 3 | Bramley Buffaloes | 30-12 | Thatto Heath Crusaders |
| 4 | Clayton | 24-32 | Warrington Wizards |
| 5 | Royal Navy | 16-38 | Wigan St Patricks |
| 6 | Eccles & Salford | 10-12 | Hunslet Warriors |
| 7 | Leigh East | 86-10 | Askam |
| 8 | Shaw CrossSharksARLFC | 32-22 | Oldham St Annes |
| 9 | Skirlaugh | 12-8 | Normanton Knights |
| 10 | East Leeds | 28-12 | Milford Marlins |
| 11 | Ovenden | 32-28 | Bank Quay Bulls |
| 12 | Bradford Dudley Hill | 42-12 | Gateshead Storm |
| 13 | York Acorn | 29-22 | Ince Rose Bridge |
| 14 | Royal Air Force | 13-42 | Siddal |
| 15 | Wigan St Judes | 12-33 | Kells |
| 16 | Walney Central | 18-0 | Ideal Isberg |
| 17 | East Hull | 46-0 | Castleford Lock Lane |
| 18 | Leigh Miners Rangers | 76-0 | Bransholme |
| 19 | Gloucestershire Warriors | 20-36 | Blackbrook |
| 20 | Seaton Rangers | 34-4 | Rochdale Mayfield |
| 21 | Barrow Island | 32-18 | Stanley Rangers |
| 22 | Crosfields | 20-28 | Oulton Raiders |
| 23 | Saddleworth Rangers | 33-32 | Hull Dockers |
| 24 | Widnes St Maries | 40-12 | St Albans Centurions |
| 25 | The Army | 38-18 | West Hull |
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leigh Miners Rangers | 38-26 | Oulton Raiders |
| 2 | Warrington Wizards | 20-22 | Bradford Dudley Hill |
| 3 | East Hull | 10-8 | Wigan St Patricks |
| 4 | Hunslet Warriors | 30-18 | Siddal |
| 5 | East Leeds | 22-46 | Widnes St Maries |
| 6 | York Acorn | 35-16 | Seaton Rangers |
| 7 | Walney Central | 0-28 | Saddleworth Rangers |
| 8 | Ovenden | 38-24 | Blackbrook |
| 9 | Skirlaugh | 25-12 | Wath Brow Hornets |
| 10 | Bramley Buffaloes | 22-28 | Shaw CrossSharksARLFC |
| 11 | Barrow Island | 18-28 | Kells |
| 12 | The Army | 14-20 | West Bowling |
| 13 | Leigh East | 14-32 | Thornhill Trojans |
Round 3 sees the introduction of theNational League 1 and 2 teams and teams from France and Russia. Amateurs Thornhill Trojans provided the first surprise result by beating national 2 team Workington Town. Late season snow caused a number of postponements on the Sunday.
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leigh Miners Rangers | 6-34 | Rochdale Hornets |
| 2 | Whitehaven | 72-0 | Pia |
| 3 | Thornhill Trojans | 16-12 | Workington Town |
| 4 | London Skolars | 20-10 | Gateshead Thunder |
| 5 | Batley Bulldogs | 24-10 | Limoux Grizzlies |
| 6 | Blackpool Panthers | 10-18 | Toulouse Olympique |
| 7 | Celtic Crusaders | 64-4 | Lokomotiv Moscow |
| 8 | Dewsbury Rams | 68-0 | Bradford Dudley Hill |
| 9 | Doncaster Lakers | 34-18 | Shaw CrossSharksARLFC |
| 10 | East Hull | 2-20 | Hunslet Hawks |
| 11 | Hull Kingston Rovers | 62-1 | York Acorn |
| 12 | Hunslet Warriors | 0-38 | Widnes Vikings |
| 13 | Leigh Centurions | 80-0 | Kazan Arrows |
| 14 | Oldham R.L.F.C. | 34-10 | Saddleworth Rangers |
| 15 | Skirlaugh | 14-36 | Featherstone Rovers |
| 16 | Swinton Lions | 42-18 | Sheffield Eagles |
| 17 | Kells | 6-26 | Halifax |
| 18 | Ovenden | 10-50 | York City Knights |
| 19 | West Bowling | 0-34 | Keighley Cougars |
| 20 | Widnes St Maries | 14-30 | Barrow Raiders |
Round 4 sees the introduction of theSuper League teams. Some matches are now televised live by theBBC. In this round the matches chosen for transmission were at Bradford and Wakefield.
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | St. Helens | 56-6 | Doncaster Lakers |
| 2 | Bradford Bulls | 23-12 | Hull |
| 3 | Catalans Dragons | 66-0 | Thornhill |
| 4 | Rochdale Hornets | 32-8 | Celtic Crusaders |
| 5 | Barrow Raiders | 40-8 | Oldham R.L.F.C. |
| 6 | Batley Bulldogs | 16-28 | Whitehaven |
| 7 | Featherstone Rovers | 44-10 | Keighley Cougars |
| 8 | Halifax | 8-40 | Huddersfield Giants |
| 9 | Harlequins | 48-6 | Toulouse Olympique |
| 10 | Hunslet Hawks | 0-22 | Hull Kingston Rovers |
| 11 | Leigh Centurions | 12-36 | Leeds Rhinos |
| 12 | Salford City Reds | 32-4 | Dewsbury Rams |
| 13 | Swinton Lions | 18-20 | York City Knights |
| 14 | Wakefield Trinity Wildcats | 22-32 | Wigan Warriors |
| 15 | Warrington Wolves | 56-0 | London Skolars |
| 16 | Widnes Vikings | 14-4 | Castleford Tigers |
No new teams enter at this stage. In this round the matches chosen for transmission were at St Helens and Widnes.
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Salford City Reds | 16-4 | Wigan Warriors |
| 2 | Huddersfield Giants | 38-4 | York City Knights |
| 3 | Widnes Vikings | 16-34 | Catalans Dragons |
| 4 | Leeds Rhinos | 66-0 | Rochdale Hornets |
| 5 | Hull Kingston Rovers | 44-12 | Featherstone Rovers |
| 6 | Harlequins | 82-8 | Barrow Raiders |
| 7 | Warrington Wolves | 46-2 | Whitehaven |
| 8 | St. Helens | 42-18 | Bradford Bulls |
In this round the matches chosen for transmission were at Hull KR and Leeds. Hull KR pulled off a major surprise when they beat Superleague team Warrington Wolves.
4 June 2006 |
 Leeds Rhinos | 36–18 |  Harlequins |
|---|---|---|
| Danny Williams (12),Scott Donald (8),Kevin Sinfield (8),Danny McGuire (4),Willie Poching (4) | (Report) | Luke Dorn (4),Tyrone Smith (4),Pat Weisner (4),Michael Worrincy (4),Rob Purdham (2) |
4 June 2006 |
 Hull Kingston Rovers | 40–36 |  Warrington Wolves |
|---|---|---|
| Byron Ford (12),Gareth Morton (12),Makali Aizue (4),Dwayne Barker (4),Ben Cockayne (4),Jon Goddard (4) | (Report) | Chris Bridge (8),Henry Fa'afili (8),Logan Swann (8),Martin Gleeson (4),Stuart Reardon (4),Michael Sullivan (4) |
4 June 2006 |
| Huddersfield Giants | 44–14 |  Salford City Reds |
|---|---|---|
| Michael De Vere (12),Paul March (8),Chris Nero (8),Robbie Paul (8),Martin Aspinwall (4),Brad Drew (4) | (Report) | David Hodgson (10),Aaron Moule (4) |
3 June 2006 |
| St. Helens | 56–10 |  Catalans Dragons |
|---|---|---|
| Ade Gardner (12),Paul Anderson (8),Vinnie Anderson (4),Sean Long (4),Jamie Lyon (4),Leon Pryce (4),Jon Wilkin (4) | (Report) | Stacey Jones (4),Justin Murphy (4),Laurent Frayssinous (2) |
Unlike earlier rounds, matches from now on will be played on neutral grounds. Huddersfield have the chance to win the Cup for the first time in 1953 when they beat this year's final opponents St Helens.
29 July 2006 |
| St. Helens | 50–0 | Hull Kingston Rovers |
|---|---|---|
| Jamie Lyon (18),Willie Talau (8),Jon Wilkin (8),Vinnie Anderson (4),Ade Gardner (4),Sean Long (4),Paul Wellens (4) | (Report) |
30 July 2006 |
| Leeds Rhinos | 12–30 | Huddersfield Giants |
|---|---|---|
| Scott Donald (4),Willie Poching (4),Kevin Sinfield (2) | (Report) | Michael De Vere (14),Stuart Donlan (8),Chris Nero (8) |
The final was originally scheduled to be played atWembley Stadium though because of the construction delay was alternatively held atTwickenham Stadium,London.
|
Teams:
St Helens:Paul Wellens,Ade Gardner,Jamie Lyon,Willie Talau,Francis Meli;Leon Pryce,Sean Long,Paul Anderson,Keiron Cunningham,Jason Cayless,Jon Wilkin,Paul Sculthorpe,Jason Hooper
Subs:Lee Gilmour,James Roby,James Graham,Maurie Fa'asavalu Coach:Daniel Anderson
Huddersfield:Paul Reilly,Martin Aspinwall,Stephen Wild,Michael De Vere,Stuart Donlan,Chris Thorman(c),Robbie Paul,Paul Jackson,Brad Drew,Jim Gannon,Chris Nero,Andy Raleigh,Stuart Jones
Subs: Paul Smith,Eorl Crabtree,Steve Snitch,Wayne McDonald Coach:Jon Sharp
| Next:2007 |
The tournament was screened in theUnited Kingdom by theBBC.
| Round | BBC live match |
|---|---|
| Round 4 | |
| Round 5 | |
| Quarter finals | |
| Semi finals | St. Helens vHull Kingston Rovers Leeds Rhinos vHuddersfield Giants |
| Final | St. Helens vHuddersfield Giants |