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Current season, competition or edition: 2023 National Conference League | |
Sport | Rugby league |
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Founded | 1986 (as BARLA National League) |
Divisions | Premier Division Division One Division Two Division Three |
No. of teams | 49 |
Country | England |
Confederation | RFL BARLA |
Most recent champion(s) |
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TV partner(s) | ouRLeague |
Level on pyramid | 4 to 7 |
Relegation to | |
Domestic cup(s) | Challenge Cup Conference Challenge Trophy BARLA National Cup |
Official website | www |
The National Conference League (known as the Impact Performance National Conference League for sponsorship reasons and often abbreviated to simply NCL) is the fourth tier of the male British rugby league structure, currently consisting of top-level amateur clubs based wholly within Northern England.
Since 2012, the National Conference League operates over a summer season in line with the professional game. [1]
The league was founded as the BARLA National League for the 1986–87 season with 10 teams: Dudley Hill, Egremont Rangers, Heworth, Leigh Miners Welfare (now Leigh Miners Rangers), Milford Marlins, Millom, Pilkington Recs, West Hull, Wigan St Patrick's and Woolston Rovers. The original NCL concept was one team per town.
The league added a second division in 1989, and expanded to three divisions (now named premier, first and second as opposed to first and second) along with a rebrand to the current name of National Conference League in 1993.
Somewhat confusingly, in the late 1990s and 2000s another major amateur competition was also titled conference: the Rugby League Conference (RLC), which operated a summer season as opposed to the traditional winter season retained by the NCL. The move to a summer season by the NCL in 2012 and a reorganisation by the RFL resulted in a merger of the leagues and the creation of a new NCL 3rd division out of the old RLC National Division, which was replaced by the Conference League South in 2013.
The National Conference League consists of four divisions. Teams can be promoted and relegated through all four divisions, and teams can also be relegated from Division Three into the regional leagues. For the 2018 season, there are three divisions of 12 teams, whilst the bottom tier consists of 13 teams.
Although it is considered the tier below League 1, teams are not promoted and relegated between the amateur NCL and the professional game, although NCL teams the Challenge Cup.
Level | League(s)/Division(s) | |||||
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1 | Premier Division | |||||
2 | Division One | |||||
3 | Division Two | |||||
4 | Division Three |
The Premier Division play-offs follows a similar structure to that in the professional game. The Champions are decided in a top six play-off competition. In week 1 of the play-offs, the teams placed 3rd and 6th play each other as do the teams paced 4th and 5th, the winners qualify for the Elimination Semi-Final. In week 2 of the pay-offs, the teams that finished the regular season 1st and second play each other in the Qualifying Semi-Final and takes place on the same weekend. The winner of the Qualifying Semi-Final progresses to the Grand Final while the loser has another opportunity to get to the Grand Final by playing the winners of the Elimination Semi-Final in Week 3 of the play-offs.
The Division One, Division Two and Division Three play-offs are contested by the teams that finished 3rd to 6th during the regular season. The top two teams are promoted automatically. These Play-offs are straightforward knock-out competitions composed of two Semi-Finals, between the teams finishing 3rd and 6th in one and those that finished 4th and 5th on the other, before the winners contest the Final a week later. The winner of the Final is promoted.
Premier Division | Division One | Division Two | Division Three |
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Egremont Rangers | Clock Face Miners | Barrow Island | Bentley |
Heworth | Crosfields | Dewsbury Celtic | Beverley |
Hunslet | Dewsbury Moor Maroons | Ellenborough | Distington |
Kells | Hull Dockers | Millom | Drighlington |
Lock Lane | Ince Rose Bridge | Myton Warriors | East Leeds |
Rochdale Mayfield | Leigh Miners Rangers | Normanton Knights | Eastmoor Dragons |
Siddal | Oulton Raiders | Oldham St Annes | Featherstone Lions |
Thatto Heath Crusaders | Skirlaugh | Pilkington Recs | Hensingham |
Wath Brow Hornets | Stanningley | Saddleworth Rangers | Leigh East |
West Bowling | Waterhead Warriors | Shaw Cross Sharks | Milford |
West Hull | Wigan St Patricks | Thornhill Trojans | Seaton Rangers |
York Acorn | Woolston Rovers | Wigan St Judes | |
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The Rugby League Conference (RLC), was a series of regionally based divisions of amateur rugby league teams spread throughout England, Scotland, and Wales.
Bedford Tigers RLFC is a rugby league club based in Bedford, England. The first team plays in the Southern Conference, with a second team in the East Premier League. The Tigers are a fore running club in the amateur game in the south of England and continue to push boundaries of what can be achieved in the sport both on and off the field. As a club, Bedford Tigers have moved to their own ground in 2018 and boast two senior sides as well as two junior sides, a satellite programme and proposed schools program too.
Moorends-Thorne Marauders RLFC is a rugby league club based in Thorne, Doncaster, South Yorkshire.
Millom R.L.F.C. is an amateur rugby league club based in the town of Millom in Cumbria. It is the oldest amateur rugby league club in the world, having been founded in 1873.
The Midlands Hurricanes are a semi-professional rugby league club based in Birmingham, West Midlands, England. They were founded in 2021 and took over the professional franchise owned by Coventry Bears previously entering the third tier of the British rugby league system, currently known as League 1 in 2015.
The St Albans Centurions are a rugby league club based in St Albans, Hertfordshire. The club plays their home games at Toulmin Drive, St Albans and their clubhouse is in High Oaks, St Albans.
The Hemel Stags are an amateur rugby league club based in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire. They were semi-professional and played in Betfred League 1 from 2013 until 2018. They withdrew from the professional system when their licence was purchased by Eric Perez and permission was granted by the RFL to relocate it, this would ultimately lead to Cornwall R.L.F.C. entering League 1. The extensive community rugby league teams at Hemel Stags were unaffected As such, Hemel Stags still ran an amateur team at the Southern Conference League East Division in the 2021 season
Dewsbury Celtic is a rugby league club in the town of Dewsbury, West Yorkshire. They play in the NCL Division Two after gaining promotion from Division Three in the Autumn of 2019.
Bradford Dudley Hill RLFC is an amateur rugby league team based in Bradford, West Yorkshire. Originally formed after the First World War, the club was re-established in 1948.
Thatto Heath Crusaders is an amateur rugby league club situated in Thatto Heath, St Helens, Merseyside. The club currently competes in the National Conference League Premier Division
Gateshead Storm are an amateur rugby league club in the North East of England. They play in the NCL Division Three.
The Rugby League Conference National Division was the fourth division of the British rugby league system.
Birmingham RLFC are a rugby league team based in Birmingham, United Kingdom. They play in the Midlands Premier division of the Rugby League Conference.
The National Conference League is the top league in the pyramid of amateur rugby leagues. It was formerly run by the British Amateur Rugby League Association (BARLA) in winter but now forms tier 3 of the RFL's pyramid in summer.
West Hull A.R.L.F.C. is an amateur rugby league football club from Kingston upon Hull, currently playing in the National Conference League Premier Division. The team plays their home matches at West Hull Community Park and their strip colours are green and gold.
The Hull & District League is a BARLA winter league for clubs from Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire. It consists of clubs playing in two divisions. It is one of only four amateur leagues older than the British Amateur Rugby League Association.
Egremont Rangers is an amateur rugby league club in Egremont, Cumbria, which plays at Gillfoot Park and competes in the National Conference League Division 1.
The 2015 Championship 1, known as the Kingstone Press League 1 for sponsorship reasons, was a semi-professional rugby league football competition played in England, the third tier of the sport in the country.
The 2012 National Conference League was the 27th season of the National Conference League, the top league for British amateur rugby league clubs, and was the first season that the league was played in the summer.
The 2010–11 National Conference League was the 26th season of the National Conference League, the top league for British amateur rugby league clubs, and was the final season that the league was played in the winter.