PICTURES: St Helens RFC celebrate their 150th birthday

Past and present players joined other characters from the world of rugby league.

In these pictures are former captains like Kel Coslett, Harry Pinner, Chris Arkwright, Paul Wellens, James Roby, Ray French, Chris Joynt and George Nicholls - but there were a host of other club legends.

See how many you can recognise.

Here is a recap of Saints' special history.

St Helens R.F.C. was formed at a public meeting on a Wednesday evening in the Fleece Hotel in Church Street on the 19th of November, 1873.

William Douglas Herman arrived in our town in 1870 as a Chemist to work at Pikington’s Crown Glass Works, coming up north from London where he had played rugby for Crescent FC in Battersea Park on the South Bank of the Thames, he was disappointed that at that time there was no rugby in the local area of St. Helens.

Herman wanted to create a team in our town and placed the following notice in the St. Helens Newspaper: “It is proposed to form a football club for St. Helens and neighbourhood. Gentlemen taking an interest in the game are requested to attend a preliminary meeting to be held at the Fleece Hotel on Wednesday November 19, 1873 at 7.30pm.”

That meeting held at the Fleece on Church Street, saw some of the most prominent men of the time attend who had both commercial and industrial connections, and on that night William Douglas Herman was named both Chairman and Captain of the new St.Helens Club.

More than1,200 men and 50 women have played for St Helens in official competitive fixtures since that first match as part of the Northern Union (now known as the Rugby Football League).

In the sport of rugby league the Saints have achieved an astonishing 78 trophy successes.

Super League Era Honours.

Super League Champions: 1996, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2006, 2014, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022.

World Club Challenge Winners: 2001, 2007, 2023.

Challenge Cup Winners: 1996, 1997, 2001, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2021.

League Leaders’ Shield Winners: 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2014, 2018, 2019, 2022.

BBC Sports Personality Team Of The Year: 2006.

Pre Super League Honours.

Championship Winners: 1931-32, 1952-53, 1958-59, 1965-66, 1969-70, 1970-71, 1974-75.

Challenge Cup Winners: 1955-56, 1960-61, 1965-66, 1971-72, 1975-76.

League Leaders’ Shield Winners: 1964-65, 1965-66.

Regal Trophy Winners: 1987-88.

Premiership Winners: 1975-76, 1976-77, 1984-85, 1992-93.

Lancashire Cup Winners: 1926-27, 1953-54, 1960-61, 1961-62, 1962-63, 1963-64, 1964-65, 1967-68, 1968-69, 1984-85, 1991-92.

Lancashire League Winners: 1929-30, 1931-32, 1952-53, 1959-60, 1963-64, 1964-65, 1965-66, 1966-67, 1968-69.

Charity Shield Winners: 1992-93.

BBC2 Floodlit Trophy Winners: 1971-72, 1975-76.

Women’s Super League Era Honours.

Super League Champions: 2021, Challenge Cup Winners: 2021, 2022, 2023, League Leaders’ Shield Winners: 2021.