THE RFL have called a meeting of clubs for Thursday (November 12) at which leading amateur outfits have been invited to give their views on the success or otherwise of the National Community Rugby League Initiative.
Under the project the National Conference League, which would have celebrated its 40th anniversary this year, was controversially scrapped and its four divisions replaced by a new structure (after, it has repeatedly been stated by the RFL, full consultation) headed by a National Premier Division and First Division.
Those two ten-team competitions were underpinned by Regional Conferences in Cumbria, the North West and the South, with two more encompassing Yorkshire.
Further down a pyramid the RFL hailed as providing ambitious clubs with a pathway to the pinnacle of the grassroots game were regional leagues offering competition in such as Barrow, Cheshire, Cumbria, Hull, Lancashire, London and South-East, Midlands and Yorkshire.
Promotion to the National Premier was automatically granted to the Division One champions (Dewsbury Celtic) but they were also required to take part in six-team promotion play-offs.
Had Celtic emerged unbeaten from that knockout process, second-place Kells would have taken the other promotion spot.
In the event East Leeds, who closed at fourth, beat sixth-placed Oulton in the final and have been elevated.
Promotion to the National Leagues was through a series of Cross-Conference games, although the teams who qualified (Blackbrook and Ince Rose Bridge) declined to go up.
In addition to the promotion play-offs, the RFL introduced a knockout competition for teams finishing in the lower regions of the various Conferences. Myton beat Ashton in the Shield final.
The views of clubs will be revealed in an article in the next issue of Rugby League World magazine.
Meanwhile a stalwart supporter of the amateur game, who regularly attends matches across the north of England, has offered forthright opinions to League Express on how he would act if in charge.
Paul Hudson said: “The Shield competition is scrapped, never to see the light of day again. It’s an embarrassment to us all, a losers’ trophy. It’s not in my DNA.
“After the leagues were complete, Hindpool and Ulverston disappeared. After the play-off divisions were formed, Normanton and Stanley decided it wasn’t for them.
“A number of games were forfeits. Crosfields progressed without a game being played in their group and some groups had just two teams, with Drighlington (from West Yorkshire) travelling all the way to Cumbrian side Millom, who then went to Drighlington.
“Seaton trekked to Dudley Hill and Kippax travelled to Seaton in similar trips. Complete nonsense.
“Myton Warriors will have the Shield on their clubhouse wall hoping no stranger asks them about it, so for any team not making the top four, it’s season over unless you are a lucky loser.
“Still thinking about the Dr Beeching axe on the Shield, I don’t agree with rewards being offered for average and below-average performance.
“The clubs may have a different view. If so, the teams finishing 5, 6, 7, 8 could play the same system I’ve suggested for the teams finishing 1, 2, 3, 4.
“There is one major flaw with this though. Towards the end of the season some clubs might look at the league table and think that they are better off finishing fifth rather than fourth.
“If you put those 16 teams into a knockout competition you could well have forfeits if long-distance travel is involved. Maybe asking them to try again next season is the best answer.”
Looking ahead to 2027’s Yorkshire Conferences, Hudson suggested: “Transfer Myton, Beverley and Stanley from Yorkshire A to Yorkshire B and transfer Newsome, Siddal and Milford from Yorkshire B to Yorkshire A.
“You then have ‘west of Yorkshire’ and ‘east of Yorkshire’ divisions. The two then play all their opponents home and away. The top four in both of these groups then play off against each other (1 v 4 and 2 v 3). What I’m describing here is replicated west of the Pennines.
“There are now eight teams remaining. Now four cross-county games are played (again a 1 v 4 and 2 v 3 system is applied) with the highest-placed teams having home advantage in the finals.
“There is another option in the play-offs which would create two extra games. Instead of playing knockout rugby after the initial 18 games, another league is formed where each team plays all four teams from the other section (two games at home, two games away).
“The top two from the east and west Pennine divisions then contest the semi-final deciders, so the first meeting of east and west Pennine teams would be at the very end of proceedings.
“Any top-four team who do not wish to be promoted to Division One if successful will not be allowed to participate in the play offs. If that situation arises, the fifth-placed club from the same division will be offered the opportunity.”
He continued: “We are now down to the final four teams. The winners of those two games will be the two teams promoted to Division One.
“There is no way of knowing who those four teams will be, so I would suggest playing the games in Oldham.
“My preference would be to play both games on the same day but at different grounds, one at St Annes and one at Saddleworth, with one starting at noon and the other at 3.00pm.
“The spanner in the works would be if Saddleworth were drawn to play St Annes in one of the semi-finals, maybe Rochdale Mayfield could be used if that happened.”
Regarding higher in the tier, Hudson said: “Two teams are automatically relegated from Premier and the top two in Division One are automatically promoted as, if you finish as runners-up, you’ve earned that right.
“In the Premier Division, whoever finish top of the league are the champions. Then there is a top eight play-off to follow for a lesser trophy. This is the system the RFL adopted when the sport went to two divisions in the 1973-74 season.
“I’ll make a slight change here though. Instead of 1 v 8, 2 v 7 etc, I suggest an open draw. The draw could be made a few hours after the final round of matches. Who is not excited by a cup draw?
“Finally, something new but hopefully exciting. The team finishing third in Division One play at home to the team finishing tenth in the Premier Division. If they win, they too are promoted to the Premier Division. If they lose, it’s as you were.”
Turning to the Division One Promotion Play-Offs, Hudson, who had planned to travel from his home in Kippax to Whitehaven for the Kells versus East Leeds game, said: “I talked myself out of the long drive to Cumbria and went to Crow’s Nest Park instead for the Dewsbury Celtic versus Oulton tie.
“When I got home and saw the Kells score, I really felt sorry for them. They finished eleven points above East Leeds and 13 above Oulton. This injustice has to end.
“I’ve got the slogans, ‘stop the play-offs, reward the deserving teams’ and ‘RFL in turmoil, amateurs revolt’.
