East Rugby League
| Founded | 1997 |
|---|---|
| Country |  England |
| Number of clubs | 11 |
| Level on pyramid | 9 |
| Domestic cup(s) | Community Challenge Cup |
| Current champions | Bedford Tigers A |
The East Rugby League is a summer rugby league competition for amateur teams from the East of England. The competition was formed in 1997 as one of the two founding divisions of the Rugby League Conference. It ended its time in the conference as the RLC East Regional before being know by its current name from 2012 with restructure of amateur rugby league in Great Britain.
History
The Rugby League Conference was founded in 1997 as the Southern Conference, a 10-team pilot league for teams in the South of England and the English Midlands. The initial line-up of divisions included an Eastern Division and this has been a feature of the Conference ever since.
The Premier Divisions were set up in 2005 for teams who had achieved a certain playing standard and were able to travel further afield to find stronger opposition.
The Eastern Division became the East Division in 2009.
The RFL restructured amateur rugby league in 2012 and the Eastern region became rebranded as East Rugby League.
The East Premier was set up for the 2013 season with an East Entry League below this for emerging clubs and second teams. 2013 is also the inaugural year for the East Cup. The competition operates for all tier 4 clubs in the Eastern Counties of England. (Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk & Suffolk)
In 2014, a new division between the Premier and Entry level was formed and named East Division 1. It provides a more structured level for teams who cannot compete with the standard of the established East Premier. Promotion and relegation between the two competitions begins in 2015.
Position in Pyramid
- 1: Super League
- 2: Championship
- 3: League 1
- 4: National Conference League/Conference League South
- East Premier League
- East Division 1
- East Entry League
- East Merit League
Participating teams by season
Premier Division (1997–present)
RLC era (1997–2011)
- 1997: Bedford Swifts, Ipswich Rhinos, Kingston, North London Skolars, West London
- 1998: Bedford Swifts, Cambridge Eagles, Ipswich Rhinos, Northampton (failed to start season), South Norfolk Saints
- 1999: Bedford Swifts, Cambridge Eagles, Hemel Stags, Ipswich Rhinos, South Norfolk Saints
- 2000: Bedford Swifts, Cambridge Eagles, Hemel Stags, Ipswich Rhinos, South Norfolk Saints, St Albans Centurions
- 2001: Bedford Swifts, Cambridge Eagles, Ipswich Rhinos, South Norfolk Saints, St Albans Centurions
- 2002: Bedford Swifts, Cambridge Eagles, Ipswich Rhinos, Luton Vipers, St Albans Centurions
- 2003: Cambridge Eagles, Essex Eels, Ipswich Rhinos, Luton Vipers, South Norfolk Saints, St Ives Roosters
- 2004: Cambridge Eagles, Hemel Stags 'A', Ipswich Rhinos, Luton Vipers, Middlesex Lions, North London Skolars 'A', South Norfolk Saints, St Ives Roosters
- 2005: Bedford Tigers, Cambridge Eagles, Luton Vipers 'A', South Norfolk Saints, St Albans Centurions 'A', St Ives Roosters (Luton Vipers A failed to complete the season)[1]
- 2006: Bedford Tigers, Cambridge Eagles, Colchester Romans, South Norfolk Saints, St Ives Roosters (Northampton failed to start the season)
- 2007: Bedford Tigers, Cambridge Eagles, Colchester Romans, Greenwich Admirals, St Ives Roosters, Thetford Titans[2]
- 2008: Cambridge Eagles, Colchester Romans, Greenwich Admirals, Hainault Bulldogs, Northampton Casuals, St Ives Roosters, Thetford Titans
- 2009: Bury Titans, Cambridge Eagles, Colchester Romans, Hainault Bulldogs A, St Ives Roosters, Northampton Casuals, Norwich City Saxons (Cambridge Eagles and Hainault Bulldogs A failed to complete the season)
- 2010: Bedford Tigers, Bury Titans, Northampton Casuals, Norwich City Saxons, St Albans Centurions A, St Ives Roosters (St Albans Centurions A failed to complete the season)[3]
- 2011: Bedford Tigers, Bury Titans, Northampton Demons A, Norwich City Saxons, St Ives Roosters, Sudbury Gladiators (Northampton Demons A and Norwich City Saxons failed to complete the season)
East RL era (2012–)
- 2012: Bedford Tigers, Bury Titans, King's Lynn Black Knights, Milton Keynes Wolves, North Herts Crusaders, St Ives Roosters
- 2013: Bedford Tigers, King's Lynn Black Knights, Milton Keynes Wolves, North Herts Crusaders, St Ives Roosters (Stowmarket Titans failed to complete the season)
- 2014: Bedford Tigers, King's Lynn Black Knights, Milton Keynes Wolves, North Herts Crusaders, Southend Spartans, St Ives Roosters
- 2015: Bedford Tigers, King's Lynn Black Knights, Milton Keynes Wolves, North Herts Crusaders, St Albans Centurions, St Ives Roosters
- 2016: Bedford Tigers, Brentwood Eels, Hemel Stags (community), NH Crusaders, St Albans Centurions, St Ives Roosters
East Division 1 (2014–2018)
- 2014: Bedford Tigers 'A', Brentwood Eels, Cambridge Lions, North Herts Crusaders 'A'
NB: Bovingdon Bulldogs failed to start the season and were replaced by North Herts Crusaders 'A'
- 2015: Brentwood Eels, Cambridge Lions, North Herts Knights, Southend Spartans
- 2016: Breckland Spartans, Cambridge Lions, King's Lynn Black Knights, MK Wolves, Southend Spartans
East Entry League (2013–2016)
- 2012: Bedford Tigers 'A', Hemel Stags 'A', North Herts Crusaders 'A', St Albans Centurions 'A'
- 2013: Bedford Tigers 'A', Cambridge Lions, North Herts Crusaders 'A', St Ives Roosters 'A', Wymondham Trojans
- 2014: Did not run (Bedford Tigers 'B', North Herts Crusaders 'A' and St Ives Roosters 'A' were scheduled to participate but North Herts Crusaders 'A' joined division 1 and the other 2 teams folded)
- 2015: Bedford Tigers 'A', Cambridge Lions 'A', Milton Keynes Wolves (after dropping out of premier division), St Albans Centurions 'A'
Winners
| Year | Premier Division | Division One | Entry League | Community Challenge Cup | Community Challenge Shield | Community Challenge Vase | 9s | Women's Championship | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | North London Skolars (now London Skolars) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| 1998 | South Norfolk Saints (now Bury Titans) | |||||||||||
| 1999 | Ipswich Rhinos (now Eastern Rhinos) | |||||||||||
| 2000 | Hemel Stags | |||||||||||
| 2001 | Ipswich Rhinos (now Eastern Rhinos) | |||||||||||
| 2002 | Luton Vipers | |||||||||||
| 2003 | South Norfolk Saints (now Bury Titans) | |||||||||||
| 2004 | Ipswich Rhinos (now Eastern Rhinos) | |||||||||||
| 2005 | St Albans Centurions A | |||||||||||
| 2006 | Bedford Tigers (Beat St Ives Roosters) | |||||||||||
| 2007 | Bedford Tigers (Beat St Ives Roosters) | |||||||||||
| 2008 | Hainault Bulldogs | |||||||||||
| 2009 | Northampton Casuals (Beat Bury Titans) | |||||||||||
| 2010 | Northampton Demons | |||||||||||
| 2011 | Sudbury Gladiators (Beat Bury Titans) | |||||||||||
| 2012 | North Herts Crusaders (Beat St Ives Roosters) | |||||||||||
| 2013 | North Herts Crusaders (Beat St Ives Roosters) | Bedford Tigers A | North Herts Crusaders (Beat Bedford Tigers) | St Ives Roosers (Beat MK Wolves) | King's Lynn Black Knights | |||||||
| 2014 | St Ives Roosters (Beat Bedford Tigers) | Brentwood Eels | — | North Herts Crusaders (Beat Bedford Tigers) | King's Lynn Black Knights (Beat Brentwood Eels) | MK Wolves | ||||||
| 2015 | Bedford Tigers (Beat St Ives Roosters) | Brentwood Eels | Hemel Stags A | Bedford Tigers (Beat King's Lynn Black Knights 46–4) - MOM Paul Ryder | St Ives Roosters (Beat NH Crusaders) | Southend Spartans (Beat NH Knights) | Bedford Tigers | |||||
| 2016 | Hemel Stags (Beat Bedford Tigers) | MK Wolves | Bedford Tigers A | Bedford Tigers (Beat Hemel Stags 22–16)[5] | Brentwood Eels (Beat NH Crusaders 32–26)[5] | King's Lynn Black Knights (Beat Eastern Rhinos A 36–16)[5] | Bedford Tigers | |||||
| 2017 | Hemel Stags (Beat Bedford Tigers) | Luton Vipers | — | Bedford Tigers (St Albans Centurions 38–12) | NH Crusaders (Beat Hemel Stags) | Luton Vipers (Beat Hemel Stags A) | St Albans Centurions | |||||
| 2018 | North Herts Crusaders (Beat Bedford Tigers) | North Herts Knights | Bedford Tigers (NH Crusaders 24–14) - MOM Ollie Peters | St Ives Roosters (Southend Sharks unable to attend match) | — | NH Crusaders | ||||||
| 2019 | Brentwood Eels (Beat St Ives Roosters 18–16) | — | St Albans Centurions (Brentwood Eels 30–28) - MOM Kristian Naylor | — | Bedford Tigers | |||||||
| 2020 | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | — | |||||||||
| 2021 | Brentwood Eels (Beat Bedford Tigers A 40–18) | — | — | — | — | |||||||
| 2022 | St Albans Centurions (beat Bedford Tigers A) | Canvey Knights (Beat NH Knights) 22-18 (Player of the Match Brett Smith 'Canvey Knights') | ||||||||||
| 2023 | Bedford Tigers A (Beat Anglian Vipers 38–28) MOM Scott Aspinall | Bedford Tigers (Beat Hemel Stags 54–20) - MOM Ryan Litchfield | — | Bedford Tigers A (Beat Anglian Vipers 20–18) MVP Zoe Booth | ||||||||
References
- ^ "Conference set for further expansion". Warrington Guardian. 31 January 2005. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
- ^ "Perfect Ten for RL Conference". Love Rugby League. 2 April 2007. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
- ^ "RL Conference breaks 100 team barrier". Love Rugby League. 12 April 2010. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
- ^ https://www.rugby-league.com/competitions/community-leagues/east-rugby-league [bare URL]
- ^ a b c "Bedford Tigers retain East RL Cup after second-half fightback". RFL. 11 July 2016. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
External links
- Official RLC website Archived 11 May 2010 at the Wayback Machine