Only four teams are contesting the 2021/22 Cumbria County Cup, which will start with a semi-final on November 6.
The eight top-ranked clubs in the county were invited to take part this season but four of them declined.
Carlisle, Cockermouth, Wigton and Kirkby Lonsdale opted not to take part in the competition which was first contested almost 140 years ago.
Rather sadly history means little these days – unless someone is trying to rewrite it – and rugby union is only symptomatic of a malaise that affects a variety of sports across the country.
To be fair the effects of Covid-19 will have been taken into account but in general terms, there seems a willingness to reduce fixture lists to a minimum.
The County Cup will certainly not attract sponsorship when it’s being reduced to a side-show with limited matches, and in the present climate, it’s difficult to see the competition regaining its former prestige.
The draw for the semi-final was made last night by the competitions committee and resulted as follows: Aspatria v Penrith and Kendal v Keswick.
Aspatria certainly know all about the tradition and history of the competition having won it more than anyone else (31 times). The bulk of Penrith’s eight wins have come in recent times, since the turn of the century.
Kendal’s five wins have all come in the last 30 years while all of Keswick’s six wins came in the nine years immediately after the Second World War.
Of the clubs who decided to swerve the competition, Wigton have been by far the most successful over the years with 13 successes.
Carlisle had four wins while Cockermouth won it six times, the last in 1975. Kirkby Lonsdale have never won it.
