Rugby League National Leagues
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The Rugby League National Leagues (currently known as the LHF Healthplan National Leagues as a result of sponsorship) form the basis for rugby league competition in Great Britain below Super League. Up to the end of 2006 there were three leagues: Leagues One and Two were semi-professional, whilst League Three was "open"; professionalism is allowed, though most teams were in fact amateur. From 2007 onwards National League Three was rebranded to be part of the Rugby League Conference structure.
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[edit] Structure
A play-off structure is used to determine the winners of League One, who are then eligible for promotion to Super League, being replaced by the team being relegated from that competition. One team is relegated from League One, being replaced by the team finishing top of League Two. There is also a play-off structure involving the second bottom team of League One and the five teams finishing behind the league leaders in League Two; this allows for a potential second promotion/relegation spot.
The play-offs in each National League division are a top-six format. In National League Two the position of "first place" in the play-off structure is taken by the team attempting to avoid relegation from NL1, as the top team is promoted automatically.
There is no promotion or relegation between League Two and the amateur game at the moment; current RFL policy is to expand the top two leagues gradually over time. When the 'gap' in playing standards between League Two and the amatuer game is narrowed, promotion and relegation may be considered, however off-field standards may prevent the possibility. As yet no clubs have been admitted to League Two from League Three or the Rugby League Conference, however Bramley Buffaloes and Hemel Stags have promotion as a long term aim.
A cup competition, the National League Cup, is played for by all clubs in Leagues One and Two; in 2005 four League Three clubs were also admitted, in 2006 five League Three were admitted. The teams are organised into regional conferences, with knock-out stages following from the group stage. In 2007 four Rugby League Conference teams are scheduled to be included.
[edit] History and future development
Most of the clubs in Leagues One and Two had previously played in a single division containing all professional clubs below the Super League. This was known as the Northern Ford Premiership. London Skolars were a side elected from the Rugby League Conference and York City Knights were a new club based on the then recently defunct York Wasps. Blackpool Panthers were elected for the 2005 season to replace the defunct Chorley Lynx.
At the end of the 2005 an extra team was relegated from Super League in order to accommodate Les Catalans. In turn an additional team was relegated from National League One; thus the number of teams in this division remained at ten. In order to "even up" the numbers a new team was admitted into the League Two, a Welsh team called Celtic Crusaders based on the old rugby union team Celtic Warriors, thus increasing this division to twelve teams.
[edit] National League Three
Many of the teams in League Three, as well as London Skolars of League Two, came from the Rugby League Conference, an organisation of regional amateur teams throughout England and Wales including areas that have not traditionally been rugby league strongholds. Of the other League Three clubs three (Bradford Dudley Hill, Sheffield Hillsborough Hawks and Warrington Woolston Rovers (now Warrington Wizards)) came from the National Conference League and one (Huddersfield Underbank Rangers) came from the Pennine League. The remaining six founder members (Teesside Steelers, Manchester Knights, Coventry Bears, Hemel Stags, St Albans Centurions and South London Storm (as replacements for the now defunct Crawley Jets)) came from the Rugby League Conference. In the pilot season clubs played only 14 games in a semi-regionalised structure.
The following season saw an expansion to fourteen teams with Birmingham Bulldogs, Carlisle Centurions and Essex Eels elected from the Rugby League Conference. Also one League Three club, Bramley Buffaloes, was admitted directly to the league as a new club, though they can also be considered as a reincarnation of the previous Bramley club, which had long played in the professional leagues. Gateshead Storm also entered as late replacements for the defunct Teesside Steelers (who had been inaugural runners-up). The season was extended to twenty games starting a move towards a full season. Manchester Knights resigned from the league a few games before the end of the season.
Prior to the 2005 season South London Storm announced that they were joining the new Rugby League Conference Premier Division, along with Manchester Knights; the latter only lasting two weeks before folding. During season Carlisle Centurions and Birmingham Bulldogs failed to complete the season, and Coventry Bears and Essex Eels resigned after the season. Some feel the problems were a result of the change from a semi-regionalised structure to a full home and away set-up. All four of these found their way back into the Rugby League Conference, although Essex Eels later folded.
Dewsbury Celtic moved up from the Rugby League Conference Premier Division and Featherstone Lions, just a month after failing to finish the season in the National Conference League, were accepted to National League Three to give it ten members for the 2006 season.
A few weeks into the 2006 season Sheffield Hillsborough Hawks withdrew, and Bradford Dudley Hill returned the National Conference League after the season (having refused to play in the National League Three playoffs). St Albans Centurions also decided to join the Rugby League Conference Premier Division South, which left Hemel Stags as the only southern team in the league, which leaves the league's long term future as a national competition in some doubt.
In 2007 the National League Three teams will be absorbed into the Rugby League Conference, rebranded as the Rugby League Conference National Division with the addition of three teams from the Rugby League Conference Premier Division: Leeds Akkies, Cottingham Phoenix and East Lancashire Lions. It is thought the rebranding may be due to the number of teams withdrawing and the number of forfeited fixtures harming the image of the National Leagues as a whole, which is an issue while looking for a new sponsor.
[edit] Results
See Rugby League Championship Second Division and Rugby League Championship Third Division for full lists of lower league championship winners (1895-date).
| Season | League One Champions | Relegated from League One | League Two Champions | Also promoted to League One | League Three Champions |
| 2003 | Salford City Reds | Dewsbury Rams | Keighley Cougars | none | Warrington Woolston Rovers |
| 2004 | Leigh Centurions | Keighley Cougars | Barrow Raiders1 | none | Coventry Bears |
| 2005 | Castleford Tigers | Barrow Raiders, Featherstone Rovers | York City Knights1 | none | Bradford Dudley Hill |
| 2006 | Hull Kingston Rovers | Oldham Roughyeds, York City Knights | Dewsbury Rams1 | Sheffield Eagles | Bramley Buffaloes |
[edit] Footnote
- Denotes that championship was not decided using a play-off; league position alone determined the title-holder.
[edit] Teams for 2007
There are ten teams in league one and twelve in league two.
[edit] League One |
[edit] League Two |
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
| Rugby league in Britain and Ireland | |
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Competitions |
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National teams |
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Federations |
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Former competitions |
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| Rugby League National Leagues - National League One |
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| Rugby League National Leagues - National League Two |
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See also: Rugby League Championship Third Division |
