History - Tries in a season record-breakers. - Bramley Buffaloes

As Bramley took part in their first season in the “Northern Union” (1896-97) right-winger Hambrecht topped the Bramley try-scoring list with five tries, The following season saw the record broken as centre Parker crossed for eleven tries including scoring six tries in four matches including home braces against Liversedge (14-0) and in the next match which was a 13-8 defeat of Bradford Northern.  His sixth and record-breaking try came a week later as he scored the match-winning try in a 5-3 victory at Batley. Parker would equal his own record in the 1901-02 season after scoring the only try in the final match of the season as Bramley lost 3-5 at home to Manningham.

Three-quarter Myers also scored eleven tries during the 1903-04 season which included two tries in each of the home games against Brighouse Rangers (12-8) and Dewsbury (8-7) and Normanton (19-5), his record-equalling try coming in the 18-4 home victory against Birkenhead in the final match of the season.

Nine years would pass before left-centre T.Tinsdale took the record to twelve in the 1912-13 campaign.  He equalled the record as he scored in the heroic 18-19 defeat at Hunslet before shooting over for his twelfth try three days later in the 10-25 home defeat against Barrow, Bramley had also played and lost 0-22 at home to Runcorn two days earlier as they played three matches in four days over the Easter period!

The 1931-32 season resulted in the record being equalled as Whittaker scored his 12 from various back positions and where he was helped to the record as he crossed for four tries in the 35-11 home thrashing of Hull.

Powerhouse prop-forward Rowan became the first and only forward to ever hold the Bramley record when he went over the whitewash sixteen times during the 1933-34 season.  He scored tries in fifteen matches to show his consistency with his only brace of tries coming in the 13-30 home defeat against neighbours Hunslet, which was also the first of four consecutive matches in which he scored, at Dewsbury (13-21) and Hunslet (3-24) and in the 13-3 home victory against Barrow.  His record-breaking 13th try came in the 20-11 Rugby League Challenge Cup tie victory at home to Dereham Wanderers, he also scored in the next round as Bramley defeated St Helens 17-12 at home to reach the quarter-final before bravely going down 6-8 away to Oldham.

The 50-51 season saw Dennis Warrior create a new record as he topped the Bramley try-scoring list with an impressive 17 to his name, this included scoring in four consecutive matches during October, tries at Huddersfield (11-21) and Bradford Northern (16-30) and two at home to Whitehaven in a 24-18 victory and finally a try in the 14-all draw with the visiting Dewsbury side.  Dennis finished the season with an even better run as he scored in the final six matches of the season, a try in each, first at Hull KR (12-38) then at home to Halifax (12-6) followed by away trips to Oldham (11-24) and Dewsbury (5-7) the final home game of the season versus Barrow (24-11) and then in the 9-all draw at Liverpool Stanley to take his total to seventeen.

The record would last until the 1955-56 campaign before centre/winger Garbutt lifted the record to eighteen.  His total included a hat-trick in the 23-5 home victory against Hull KR and also scored two tries in the away loss at Hull (14-47) the 25-7 win at Castleford and the 35-12 home thrashing of Batley. His final try to created the new record came in the last match of the season which was an emphatic 27-5 home victory at the expense of Keighley.

The 1958-59 season saw the record broken again when Willis Rushton ended the season with twenty tries to his name.  Willis scored in five consecutive matches during August and September with two tries in the 18-12 home victory against Featherstone, followed by scoring against Dewsbury 22-14 also at home and then in the defeats at Huddersfield (7-21) and at home to Hull in the Yorkshire Cup (16-34) and then in the 30-15 home win versus Keighley.  Later in the season, he scored a brace of tries in the 14-4 victory at Dewsbury and then surpassed that with a hat-trick in a nail-biting 15-13 tussle at home to the Gallant Youths Batley with his record-breaking tries coming as he crossed the line for two tries at home to Doncaster at the end of March.

Australian-born centre Allan Smith became the joint holder of the record when he scored his twentieth try of the season in the final match of the 1972-73 season as Bramley lost 8-45 to Leeds at Headingley in the top-sixteen play-off match.  While not scoring a hat-trick during the season Alan crossed for two tries in a match four times, these being in the home victories against Pilkington Recs in the John Player Trophy (26-5) and Hunslet (15-8) and in the away trips to Barrow (24-17) and Batley (19-13).

The season of 1985-86 will always be remembered as “The Peter Lister season” as Peter was at his dazzling best throughout the season and completely smashed the record.  A try after coming on as substitute in the 14-13 home victory against Batley in the first game of the season was the start of a lightning start to the new season as Peter crossed for 13 tries in the opening 12 fixtures including braces of tries against Doncaster (league and Yorkshire Cup), Fulham and Runcorn.  His second try at Runcorn secured a very late 31-29 victory and could only have been scored by “Twister” Lister.  After going through a “lean” spell Peter hit the try line in three successive games including two in one of Bramley’s greatest ever victories when they defeated highflying top of the table Whitehaven 38-14 at the Recreation ground.  The performance of the Bramley team and especially Lister and Mason is still talked about by Bramley fans who had made the long trip that day.  The 22-14 defeat at home to Barrow was quickly forgotten as Peter crossed for his 20th and the new record-breaking 21st try of the season, and to celebrate he scored another two in the 46-10 home drubbing of Keighley the following week.  With the record now secured Peter then went up another gear and crossed the whitewash nine times in four matches (all at McClaren Field) including a hat-trick at home to Runcorn (36-22) and two in each of the matches against Doncaster (14-10) Mansfield Marksmen (46-20) and Workington (32-22). After scoring in the first match of the season Peter completed his try-scoring feats for the season with a try in the last match of the season, a 14-8 win at home to Whitehaven.  An incredible season ended with Peter topping the try-scoring list with 34, amazingly 18 tries ahead of club-record signing (at that time) Andy Mason.