... I know I am, I'm sure I am...

Hello! The main aim of this website is to show the evolution of the Wakefield Trinity programme over the years. I also wanted to bring some scattered bits of information about the 1962 South African tour and the South African players who have played for us. It's consequently a bit of a work in progress. In the future I'd like to upload more about the club history, results, players and Trinity shirts and also scan in and share some of the really early programmes I have as they're obviously pretty rare. I've scanned some of my earliest programmes on the Pre 1950 tab - just click on the link.

All the programmes on here are mine, so any omissions are because I don't have a copy of that programme. I've got most home programmes from 1957 until when we very kindly got let into Super League and quite a few pre-war ones, so please let me know if you have any earlier ones that you are looking to sell.

My first Wakefield match was Batley away in October 1985 and I was hooked, even though we lost 8-4. I watched them home and frequently away until around 1996 when I went off to university and eventually ended up living down in East London. It was only in about 2005 that I decided to collect Wakefield home programmes, for no better reason than I saw an old one from the Fifties on Ebay that looked quite interesting and decided to buy it. I do have other hobbies and a social life as well...

My time spent watching The Mighty Wakefield Trinity can be summed up as follows:

• Darren Fritz, especially at Salford away
• winning the Yorkshire Cup Final against Sheffield
• losing the Yorkshire Cup Final two years earlier (fume)
• being well wrapped up for winter rugby but still having cold hands and feet
• the joy of winning the Division One Grand Final at the McAlpine. Just.
• never leaving before the final whistle, even if Wakefield were getting thrashed
• the frustrating inconsistency that is Wakefield Trinity
• Nigel Bell always giving 100%
• wishing that I'd seen the team and the ground in the glory years
• reading the Wally Lewis is Coming fanzine
• meaningful Boxing Day and New Year's Day local derbies
• Andy Wilson's unfortunate injury
• the special atmosphere at Belle Vue the last time we played the Australians
• Andy Mason's pre-match ritual
• running onto the pitch after the match for autographs
• dreading going to school after we'd lost to Castleford
• Michael Jackson before he got septicaemia
• rare away victories in Lancashire
• scarves flying out of the back windows of the car following rare away victories in Lancashire
• the amazing healing powers of my Mum's cooking after a defeat
• trying not to hear who won the Formula One on a Sunday so that I could get home and watch it on the Betamax after the match
• winning at Wilderspool and running onto the pitch with my mate who had his leg in plaster
• Rooftop Gardens
• Steve Pott's mohican
• In 1986 buying the Wakefield Schoolboys' Wembley brochure by mistake as I thought it was a proper programme
• Clubcall
• Ray French pronouncing Chris Perry's surname as 'Peray' when he played for Carcassone against Wigan at (I think) Central Park
• hoping that the new British Coal shirt would arrive in time so I could wear it proudly on my holiday in France
• that lady who used to shout 'come on Trinity' in a loud voice near the half-way line of the Western Terrace
• looking forward to, or dreading, watching the hightlights on Scrumdown
• having a Tracey and a Lyndsey in the team
• Losing 72-8 in February 2005 in the snow to the London Broncos at Griffin Park with the only high point being the Trinity supporter dressed as Hitler who won the half-time kicking competition. 

It's easy to look back on the good times and forget the bad. For a lot of the time the team was on its arse and the rugby we watched was rubbish. At least we still have a team to support. 

But now for some perspective - in the 1895/96 season Wakefield were nilled for seven consecutive matches, although two of those were nil-nil draws. In fact in that season we were nilled twenty times and scored only 38 tries from 42 games. At least the following season we were only nilled ten times. It was clearly a very different game back then...

As a professional potterer I'm disappointed it's taken me so long to cobble this website together, but there's always something else to do on a weekend such as mowing the lawn or hoovering the cat. I hope you find it enjoyable.

Cheers and Up the Trin!

Marcus 

May 2013 

Well, since then the crumbling Belle Vue has carried on crumbling and is sadly no longer fit for purpose.I know exactly what we need to do and have excellent plans for rebuilding Belle Vue in my head, but am still waiting for that Euromillions win... we'd only have to knock a few houses down and shift the pitch a bit...

The best news is that Wakefield Trinity are now plain old Wakefield Trinity again (although some of the Sky pundits are taking longer than others to get the hang of it). It made me sick to the pit of my stomach when people down here in London called the team the Wakefield Wildcats. I suppose I'm just an unashamed traditionalist. If a historic name linked to the origins of the club has been good enough since 1873, why change it? Absolute nonsense, although I do quite like Daddy Cool and I'm glad we kept him. I did my bit by buying home and away shirts for the first time since the mid 90's along with a raft of other stuff, and I'm pretty happy with it all! Maybe just need a bigger badge on the shirt next time...

March 2017

It's now 2022 and a new season beckons. I bought my Dad a season ticket for Christmas, so that was either the best or the worst present ever. I also got the new home shirt so will be proudly sporting that as I jog around East London. Things seem positive, although I wish they'd bring back a programme. The club has survived, the ground issue has been sorted and a new main stand is more than just a pipe dream. Staying at Belle Vue was absolutely the correct decision. The usual team strength in depth concerns remain, but it would be nice to beat Cas at least once this season for a change. In Willie Poching we trust!

January 2022

Well that didn't go according to plan... With ten games to go I couldn't see where we'd get a win from to survive, but survive we somehow did, and we managed to finish above Wire (and beat Cas for the first time in donkey's years). The concern now is a lack of new signings in the off-season due to the uncertainty of relegation. Still, the new East stand is taking shape and the new home and away shirts are great. Happy 150th birthday Wakefield Trinity! Beefy remains committed to the cause, even after all these years.

November 2022

2023 can bugger right off. Still, things are looking up, with a shiny new stand, terracing behind the goal that is no longer a death trap and a great new pitch. If they play more games on the weekend I may even be able to go to some of them, and I'm looking forward to dragging my Dad to away games at Whitehaven and Barrow, which we never did when I was a kid. Early days, but all the right noises are being made by the new owners. 

October 2023

After the disaster of 2023 we've had the triumph of 2024. I never thought I'd watch Trin at Wembley in my lifetime, so that was an amazing experience, albeit not the Challenge Cup Final. Following the floodlight debacle of the Wigan friendly, my hopes for the season were low, but in Matt Ellis we trust! There's a real buzz about the club, the season tickets are purchased and we're back with the Big Boys again. Let's hope for a win percentage next year like we've had this year... 

November 2024

Beefy  is the number one feline supporter of the Mighty Wakefield Trinity...