Sheffield Shield of New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia were already playing each other in ad-hoc matches. The new tournament commenced in the summer of 1892–93, mandating home and away fixtures between each colony each season. The three teams competed for the Sheffield Shield, named after its benefactor. A Polish immigrant, Phillip Blashki, won the competition to design the trophy, a silver shield. The competition therefore commenced some 15 years after Australia's first Test match. In 1999, the Australian Cricket Board (now Cricket Australia) announced a sponsorship deal which included renaming the Sheffield Shield to the Pura Milk Cup, then to
History of the Midlands Merit League Akkies RLFC. The final table (27 July) was as follows: Play-offs: Championship semi-finals Moorends-Thorne Marauders 'A' 44 Sheffield Forgers 22 Nottingham Outlaws 'A' 4 Wigan Riversiders 48 Shield semi-finals Nottingham 30 German Exiles 24 Sheffield 36 Birmingham Bulldogs 24 FINALS: Sunday 17 August 2008 GRAND FINAL: Moorends-Thorne Marauders 'A' 28 Wigan Riversiders 18 SHIELD: Nottingham Outlaws 34 Sheffield Forgers 32 2009 saw the largest ever entry, with over 30 teams split into two leagues; "Yorkshire and Humber" and "North West" with Midlands teams joining the newly created Midlands Rugby League. The top four teams in the two pools played-off for