Editing Regal Trophy (section)

==History==
The competition was introduced in 1971 as the Player's No.6 Trophy, with sponsors [[John Player & Sons]] announcing an £11,000 prize fund for the inaugural season.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Mather |first1=Harold |title=New prizes for clubs and players |work=The Guardian |date=19 May 1971 |location=London |page=21 |id={{ProQuest|185500934}}}}</ref> The competition was open to all professional [[Rugby Football League]] clubs, with a small number of amateur clubs taking part in most seasons. 

In [[1977–78 Player's No.6 Trophy|1977–78]], [[Kingston upon Hull|Hull]]-based [[West Hull A.R.L.F.C.|Cawoods]] defeated [[Halifax Panthers|Halifax]] 9–8 in the first round of the competition, the first time an amateur team had defeated professional opposition in any competition since 1909.<ref>{{cite news |title=Cawoods Make History By Enjoying Themselves |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000324/19771024/012/0012 |work=Hull Daily Mail |date=24 October 1977 |page=12 |via=[[British Newspaper Archive]] |url-access=subscription}}</ref>

In 1989, a new sponsorship deal was agreed with [[Imperial Tobacco]], and the competition was rebranded as the Regal Trophy.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Fitzpatrick |first1=Paul |title=Cashing in with a Regal deal |work=The Guardian |date=3 February 1989 |location=London |page=18 |id={{ProQuest|186885505}}}}</ref>

In 1992, several French clubs entered the competition.<ref>{{cite web |title=Rugby League: Allez Wigan |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby-league-allez-wigan-1554617.html |website=The Independent |access-date=29 July 2023 |date=29 September 1992}}</ref> This marked the first time that French teams had participated in a British rugby league competition, and clubs would later also be accepted into the [[Challenge Cup]] and domestic leagues.<ref>{{cite web |title=French clubs keen to return to Challenge Cup |url=https://www.loverugbyleague.com/post/french-clubs-keen-to-return-to-challenge-cup |website=Love Rugby League |access-date=29 July 2023 |date=20 November 2019}}</ref>

Following the introduction of the [[Super League]] in 1996, the Regal Trophy faced an uncertain future,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hadfield |first1=Dave |title=Tries to be given trial by television |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/tries-to-be-given-trial-by-television-1325590.html |website=The Independent |access-date=25 April 2023 |date=24 January 1996}}</ref> and was ultimately abandoned. The [[BBC]] could no longer fit the competition into its TV schedule due to the switch to playing rugby league in the summer, and Regal were unwilling to continue sponsoring the tournament without television coverage.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Roberts |first1=Chris |title=RL chiefs unveil expansion plans |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000901/19960514/015/0015 |work=Huddersfield Daily Examiner |date=14 May 1996 |page=15 |via=[[British Newspaper Archive]] |url-access=subscription}}</ref>