Dewsbury Rams could have been playing in the Super League if their ground had been up to the necessary standards.

The Rams finished top of the Northern Ford Premiership in 1999 and 2000, but due to the Ram Stadium not meeting Super League requirements it has a capacity of 3,500, of which only 900 are seats they missed out.

Desperate to make it to the Super League, Dewsbury even proposed sharing the Don Valley Stadium with the Sheffield Eagles but this was rejected by the RFL.

This led to a couple of hard seasons on the pitch, which eventually finished with relegation to the third tier of rugby league for the first time in a decade.

Despite being favorites for an automatic return to the second tier, the Rams missed out at the final hurdle, as they lost home and away to the York City Knights and then the Sheffield Eagles.

However, the following year the Rams conducted a strong pre-season recruitment drive, signing Bryn Powell, Chris Hall, Frank Watene and Warren Jowitt, and promotion was achieved to National League One in 2006.

Dewsbury was formed in 1898, but had to wait until 1912 for their first honours, when they beat Oldham 8-5 in the Challenge Cup final at Headingley.

They repeated that success in 1943, defeating Leeds 16-15 over two legs, but it was not until 1973 that they enjoyed their solitary Championship success.