Explore the History and Heritage of Featherstone Rovers
Season 1977/78
| Played | Won | Drew | Lost | F | A | League | League Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 40 | 23 | 2 | 15 | 634 | 590 | First Division | 7th of 16 clubs |
Jeff Townend’s touchline penalty in 5th min. of injury time to beat Hull KR
| Leading Try Scorer | Leading Goal Kicker | |
|---|---|---|
| Steve Evans 22 | Harold Box 55 |
| Chairman | Club Captain | |
|---|---|---|
| Gordon Appleyard | Vince Farrar/Terry Clawson |
Nearly impossible to sum up this season. Start by selling Jimmy Thompson. Have a good run to Yorkshire Cup Final and lose to Cas!! Sell captain Vince Farrar. Suffer injury crisis. Slump in form, lose 6 out of 8 games. Coach Keith Cotton resigns. Enter relegation zone. Keith Goulding appointed coach. 37 year old Terry Clawson returns and made captain. Go on 10 match unbeaten run. Help Cas avoid relegation by playing reserve side before losing narrowly in challenge cup semi-final to Leeds at Odsal (yet again). Suffer ridiculous fixture congestion – play 8 games in 18 days. Players go on strike for last league game, get booted out of Premiership competition and fined £3000. Never a dull moment being a fev fan they say!
Throughout this mayhem Charlie Stone was player of the year but Bell, Bridges, Smith, Newlove, Gibbins, Kellett, Evans, Gilbert, Coventry, Quinn and Box were the core of a still damm fine side. Youngster Jeff Townend did a great job in replacing Thompson and Dave Hobbs made his debut – the flow of junior talent was still operating.
Dream Team
| Full Back | ||||||
| Harold Box | ||||||
| Winger | Centre | Centre | Winger | |||
| Steve Evans | Neil Tuffs | Steve Quinn | Paul Coventry | |||
| Stand Off | Scrum Half | |||||
| John Newlove | Dale Fennell | |||||
| Prop | Hooker | Prop | ||||
| Jeff Townend | Keith Bridges | Mick Gibbins | ||||
| Second Row | Second Row | |||||
| Charlie Stone | Peter Smith | |||||
| Loose Forward | ||||||
| Keith Bell | ||||||
Matches
| Date | Venue | Competition | Opponents | Result | Points For | Points Against | Match Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 August 1977 | Odsal | Yorkshire Cup | Bradford Northern | W | 20 | 9 | View |
| 28 August 1977 | Belle Vue | Yorkshire Cup | Wakefield Trinity | W | 12 | 2 | View |
| 02 September 1977 | The Willows | Division One | Salford | L | 3 | 7 | View |
| 11 September 1977 | Post Office Road | Division One | New Hunslet | W | 36 | 16 | View |
| 13 September 1977 | The Boulevard | Yorkshire Cup | Hull | W | 19 | 5 | View |
| 18 September 1977 | Wilderspool | Division One | Warrington | W | 27 | 17 | View |
| 25 September 1977 | Post Office Road | Division One | Wigan | W | 19 | 8 | View |
| 02 October 1977 | Naughton Park | Division One | Widnes | L | 10 | 15 | View |
| 09 October 1977 | Post Office Road | Division One | Hull Kingston Rovers | W | 22 | 15 | View |
| 15 October 1977 | Headingley | Yorkshire Cup | Castleford | L | 7 | 17 | View |
| 23 October 1977 | Post Office Road | John Player Trophy | Hull Kingston Rovers | W | 25 | 24 | View |
| 30 October 1977 | Post Office Road | Division One | St Helens | L | 5 | 12 | View |
| 06 November 1977 | Post Office Road | John Player Trophy | St Helens | W | 17 | 10 | View |
| 13 November 1977 | Odsal | Division One | Bradford Northern | L | 5 | 37 | View |
| 20 November 1977 | Post Office Road | John Player Trophy | Warrington | L | 11 | 14 | View |
| 27 November 1977 | Craven Park Hull | Division One | Hull Kingston Rovers | L | 12 | 28 | View |
| 10 December 1977 | Knowsley Road | Division One | St Helens | L | 19 | 20 | View |
| 18 December 1977 | McClaren Field | Division One | Bramley | W | 23 | 8 | View |
| 26 December 1977 | Wheldon Road | Division One | Castleford | L | 7 | 17 | View |
| 29 December 1977 | Crown Flatt | Division One | Dewsbury | W | 21 | 11 | View |
| 01 January 1978 | Belle Vue | Division One | Wakefield Trinity | D | 7 | 7 | View |
| 08 January 1978 | Post Office Road | Division One (Abandoned) | Leeds | L | 0 | 7 | View |
| 15 January 1978 | The Boulevard | Division One | Hull | W | 8 | 7 | View |
| 22 January 1978 | Post Office Road | Division One | Salford | W | 40 | 8 | View |
| 28 January 1978 | Headingley | Division One | Leeds | W | 15 | 5 | View |
| 05 February 1978 | Post Office Road | Division One | Widnes | W | 16 | 11 | View |
| 26 February 1978 | Hilton Park | Challenge Cup | Leigh | W | 23 | 14 | View |
| 28 February 1978 | Post Office Road | Division One | Leeds | W | 15 | 7 | View |
| 05 March 1978 | Post Office Road | Division One | Workington Town | W | 22 | 14 | View |
| 12 March 1978 | Post Office Road | Challenge Cup | New Hunslet | W | 23 | 7 | View |
| 19 March 1978 | Post Office Road | Challenge Cup | Castleford | W | 25 | 15 | View |
| 24 March 1978 | Post Office Road | Division One | Wakefield Trinity | W | 19 | 16 | View |
| 27 March 1978 | Post Office Road | Division One | Castleford | L | 15 | 32 | View |
| 01 April 1978 | Odsal | Challenge Cup | Leeds | L | 9 | 14 | View |
| 02 April 1978 | McClaren Field | Division One | Bramley | D | 17 | 17 | View |
| 05 April 1978 | Derwent Park | Division One | Workington Town | L | 10 | 20 | View |
| 09 April 1978 | Post Office Road | Division One | Hull | L | 16 | 21 | View |
| 11 April 1978 | Crown Flatt | Division One | Dewsbury | W | 8 | 6 | View |
| 13 April 1978 | Elland Road Greyhound Stadium | Division One | New Hunslet | W | 10 | 8 | View |
| 15 April 1978 | Post Office Road | Division One | Warrington | L | 10 | 23 | View |
| 17 April 1978 | Central Park | Division One | Wigan | L | 6 | 39 | View |