The new ‘Rugby Reloaded’ looks at the last time British rugby league faced a global crisis: the outbreak of World War Two. How did it cope with travel restrictions, stadium requisitioning and equipment rationing? What was the response of players and fans? This is the first of a two part episode that looks at the impact of war on the game.
For a much more detailed look at the impact of the war on the game, see chapter 5 of my Rugby League in Twentieth Century Britain and for the broader context of sport in World War Two, take a look at Matt Taylor’s new book ' Sport and the Home Front: Wartime Britain at Play, 1939-45.