Twenty-one clubs form the Northern Rugby Football Union at Huddersfield

Background. Tensions between northern and southern rugby clubs escalated in the early 1890s due to disputes over professionalism and committee representation. Yorkshire clubs complained that southern clubs were over-represented on the Rugby Football Union committee and that meetings were held in London, making attendance difficult for northern members. These grievances led to the logical step of forming a separate professional league for northern clubs.

Precursor Meeting. On 27 August 1895, an emergency meeting in Manchester resulted in prominent Lancashire clubs, including Broughton Rangers, Leigh, Oldham, Rochdale Hornets, St Helens, Tyldesley, Warrington, Widnes, and Wigan, declaring support for their Yorkshire colleagues' proposal to form a Northern Union. This declaration set the stage for the subsequent gathering in Huddersfield.

Formation. Two days after the Manchester meeting, representatives of clubs met in the George Hotel, Huddersfield, to form the Northern Rugby Football Union. One account records 21 clubs present; another records 22. The meeting established the Northern Union as a governing body for rugby in Northern England, distinct from the Rugby Football Union.