Counties 1 Cumbria Explained

Counties 1 Cumbria
Current Season:2022–23 Counties 1 Cumbria
Sport:Rugby union
Teams:13
Champion:Upper Eden (2nd title)
Season:2021–22
Most Champs:Keswick
Count:5
Website:England RFU

Counties 1 Cumbria (formerly Cumbria League and Cumbria 1) is a competitive rugby union league at level 7 of the English rugby union system run by the English Rugby Football Union (RFU) for club sides based in Cumbria.[1] It was previously a tier 7 league but the creation of North 2 West demoted it to level 8. Promoted teams typically go up to North 2 West and since Cumbria 2 was cancelled at the end of the 2018–19 season there is no relegation. Each season a team from Cumbria 1 is picked to take part in the RFU Senior Vase - a national competition for clubs at level 8. The original Cumbria league was formed at the start of the 1992–93 season when the North-West North 1 division was cancelled.

Until the end of the 2017–18 season the Cumbria League was a single division involving 10 clubs and ranked at tier 8 of the English rugby union system. The champions were automatically promoted to the now discontinued North Lancashire/Cumbria league and until the 2016–17 season the second placed team faced the runner-up from Lancashire (North) for the final promotion place until Lancashire (North) was cancelled. There was no relegation due to it having been the lowest competitive league for Rugby Union in Cumbria. It ran alongside the Cumbria 2 North & West and Cumbria 2 South & East Merit Leagues.[2] [3]

This changed for the 2018–19 season due to RFU having to restructure the northern leagues after 19 Lancashire based clubs withdrew from the league system to form their own competition. The result was that the Cumbrian clubs based in North Lancashire/Cumbria joined the top 3 Cumbria League sides in Cumbria 1, while the rest of the Cumbrian League sides along with a handful of 2nd XV teams formed Cumbria 2.[4] [5]

Another change to the structure from the 2018–19 season was that the division would play two stages - the first involving all eight teams to decide who would be contesting promotion and relegation during the second stage when the division was divided into two mini leagues (one promotion/one relegation). In 2022 the RFU further restructured the adult community leagues and the Cumbria League was renamed Counties 1 Cumbria from the 2022–23 season.

Teams 2024–25

Departing were Carlisle promoted to Regional 2 North, Cockermouth were relegated from Regional 2 North while Ambleside re-joined the Cumbria league after an absence of twenty years, last having competed in 2003-04.

TeamGroundCapacityCity/AreaPrevious season
Ambleside Galava Park Re-entry
Bower Park 11th
Cockermouth Grassmoor Sports Centre Relegated from Regional 2 North (12th)
Creighton Sycamore Lane 10th
Egremont Bleach Green 3rd
Hawcoat Park Hawcoat Park 6th
Keswick II Davidson Park 9th
Millom Wilson Park 8th
Winters Park 7th
St. Benedict's Newlands Avenue 4th
Richmond Terrace 5th
Wigton Lowmoor Road 2nd
Windermere Dawes Meadow 12th
The Ellis Sports Ground 12,000 (2,000 seats) 13th

Teams 2023–24

Departing were Upper Eden and Cockermouth, promoted to Regional 2 North. Silloth finished 9th in 2022-23 but did not return for the new season.

Joining were Windermere re-joined the Cumbria league last having competed in 2019-20 together with Aspatria II and Keswick II.

TeamGroundCapacityCity/AreaPrevious season
Bower Park New entry
Rugby Ground, Warwick Road 1,500 (250 seats) Relegated from Regional 2 North (12th)
Creighton Sycamore Lane 11th
Egremont Bleach Green 3rd
Hawcoat Park Hawcoat Park 8th
Keswick II Davidson Park New entry
Millom Wilson Park 6th
Winters Park 10th
St. Benedict's Newlands Avenue 7th
Richmond Terrace 5th
Wigton Lowmoor Road 4th
Windermere Dawes Meadow Re-entry
The Ellis Sports Ground 12,000 (2,000 seats) 12th

Teams 2022–23

This was the first season following the RFU Adult Competition Review. The 2022–23 Counties 1 Cumbria league consists of 12 teams. Eight of these competed in the 2021–22 Cumbria 1 competition; Creighton, Egremont, Hawcoat Park, Millon, Upper Eden, Whitehaven, Wigton and Workington. Cockermouth and St. Benedict's dropped down from North 2 West having finished 7th and 12th respectively. Penrith II joined the league as a new team and Silloth returned to league rugby after not taking part in any competition since the 2019–20 season. A ninth member of the 2021–22 Cumbria 1 league, Furness, had also been assigned to Counties 1 Cumbria but withdrew before the start of the season.

TeamGroundCapacityCity/AreaPrevious season
Cockermouth Grassmoor Sports Centre
Creighton Sycamore Lane 9th Cumbria 1
Egremont Bleach Green 4th Cumbria 1
Hawcoat Park Hawcoat Park 5th Cumbria 1
Millom Wilson Park 6th Cumbria 1
Winters Park New entry
Silloth The Jim Brough Rugby Park Re-entry
St. Benedict's Newlands Avenue
Upper Eden Pennine Park 1st Cumbria 1
Richmond Terrace 2nd Cumbria 1
Wigton Lowmoor Road 3rd Cumbria 1
The Ellis Sports Ground 12,000 (2,000 seats) 8th Cumbria 1

Teams 2021–22

The teams competing in 2021-22 achieved their places in the league based on performances in 2019-20, the 'previous season' column in the table below refers to that season not 2020-21.

Outgoing teams St Benedicts and Cockermouth were promoted to North 2 West, and Windermere, who finished 12th but did not return, competed in the Cumbria 2 Shield (Group 1) instead. Silloth, who finished 11th, were initially due to compete but withdrew before the season began.[6] Consequently the league was reduced from 13 sides to 9.

TeamGroundCapacityCity/AreaPrevious season
Creighton Sycamore Lane 13th
Egremont Bleach Green 7th
Furness The Strawberry Grounds 10th
Hawcoat Park Hawcoat Park 6th
Millom Wilson Park 9th
Upper Eden Pennine Park 5th
Richmond Terrace 4th
Wigton Lowmoor Road 3rd
The Ellis Sports Ground 12,000 (2,000 seats) 8th

Season 2020–21

On 30 October 2020 the RFU announced [7] that due to the coronavirus pandemic a decision had been taken to cancel Adult Competitive Leagues (National League 1 and below) for the 2020/21 season meaning Cumbria 1 was not contested.

Teams 2019–20

TeamGroundCapacityCity/AreaPrevious season
Cockermouth Grassmoor Sports Centre 3rd
Creighton Sycamore Lane Transferred from Cumbria 2 (8th)
Egremont Bleach Green Transferred from Cumbria 2 (3rd)
Furness The Strawberry Grounds Transferred from Cumbria 2 (6th)
Hawcoat Park Hawcoat Park 7th
Millom Wilson Park Transferred from Cumbria 2 (7th)
Silloth The Jim Brough Rugby Park Promoted from Cumbria 2 (champions)
St. Benedict's Newlands Avenue 8th
Upper Eden Pennine Park 6th
Richmond Terrace 5th
Wigton Lowmoor Road 4th
Windermere Dawes Meadow Transferred from Cumbria 2 (4th)
The Ellis Sports Ground 12,000 (2,000 seats) Transferred from Cumbria 2 (2nd)

Original teams

When this division was introduced in 1992 it contained the following teams:

Cumbria honours

Cumbria (1993–1996)

The Cumbria league was formed from teams from the old North-West North 1 division when it was disbanded at the end of the 1991–92 season. Promotion was to Cumbria/Lancs North and as the basement division for clubs in the region there was no relegation. Initially a tier 10 league, the creation of National 5 North for the 1993–94 season meant that Cumbria/Lancs North dropped to become a tier 11 league.

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Cumbria
SeasonNo of TeamsChampionsRunners–upRelegated Teams
1992–93 9 Smith Brothers British SteelNo relegation
1993–94 9 Keswick CreightonNo relegation
1994–95 9 Carnforth CreightonNo relegation
1995–96 9 Ambleside No relegation
Green backgrounds are promotion places.

Cumbria (1996–2000)

The league system was restructured from top to bottom by the Rugby Football Union for the start of the 1996–97 season. The cancellation of National 5 North and creation of North West 3 meant that Cumbria remained a tier 11 league, with promotion into North Lancs/Cumbria (formerly Cumbria/Lancs North).

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Cumbria
SeasonNo of TeamsChampionsRunners–upRelegated Teams
1996–97 8 Furness No relegation
1997–98 8 Ambleside MoresbyNo relegation
1998–99[8] 8 Millom MoresbyNo relegation
1999–00[9] 8 Moresby SillothNo relegation
Green backgrounds are promotion places.

Cumbria (2000–2018)

Northern league restructuring by the RFU at the end of the 1999–00 season saw the cancellation of North West 1, North West 2 and North West 3 (tiers 7-9). This meant that Cumbria became a tier 8 league, with promotion continuing to North Lancs/Cumbria. As the lowest ranked league for clubs in the region there was no relegation until the introduction of Cumbria 2 at the end of the 2017–18 season.

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Cumbria 1
SeasonNo of TeamsChampionsRunners–upRelegated Teams
2000–01[10] 13 Hawcoat Park St. Benedict'sNo relegation
2001–02[11] 13 Hawcoat Park WindermereNo relegation
2002–03[12] 15 Netherhall WindermereNo relegation
2003–04[13] 13 Egremont NetherhallNo relegation
2004–05[14] 12 Netherhall MoresbyNo relegation
2005–06[15] 14 Whitehaven No relegation
2006–07[16] 14 Workington KeswickNo relegation
2007–08[17] 14 Keswick NetherhallNo relegation
2008–09[18] 12 Netherhall St. Benedict'sNo relegation
2009–10[19] 10 Whitehaven EgremontNo relegation
2010–11[20] 9 Millom EgremontNo relegation
2011–12[21] 10 Keswick No relegation
2012–13[22] 10 Hawcoat Park SillothNo relegation
2013–14[23] 12 Furness EgremontNo relegation
2014–15[24] 13 Silloth No relegation
2015–16[25] 10 Workington EgremontNo relegation
2016–17[26] 10 Keswick WhitehavenNo relegation
2017–18[27] 10 Upper Eden WhitehavenMultiple teams
Green backgrounds are promotion places.

Cumbria 1 (2018–2019)

Restructuring of the north-west leagues at the end of the 2017–18 season, including the cancellation of North Lancs/Cumbria and the introduction of Cumbria 2, meant that Cumbria was renamed to Cumbria and became a tier 7 league. Promotion was now up to North West 1 while relegation was to the new Cumbria 2.

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Cumbria 1
SeasonNo of TeamsChampionsRunners–upRelegated Teams
2018–19[28] [29] 8 Keswick No relegation[30]
Green backgrounds are promotion places.

Cumbria (2019–present)

After just one season Cumbria 2 was cancelled and Cumbria 1 reverted to being a single division named Cumbria, while the introduction of North 2 West for the 2019–20 season meant that Cumbria dropped back to being a tier 8 league with promotion into this new division and no relegation. Adult community leagues were cancelled for the 2020–21 season. In 2021–22 the league was contested by nine teams and the league restructure meant that no teams were promoted at the end of the season.

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Cumbria 1
SeasonNo of TeamsChampionsRunners–upRelegated Teams
2019–20[31] 13 St. Benedict's CockermouthNo relegation
2020–21 13
2021-22 9 Upper Eden Whitehaven No relegation
Green backgrounds are promotion places.

Promotion play-offs

From the 2018–19 season onwards there was a play-off between the runners-up of Cumbria 1 and North 2 West for the third and final promotion place to North 1 West. Previously Cumbria League sides had a play-off against Lancashire (North) for a place in the discontinued North Lancashire/Cumbria division (see following sub section). As of 2019–20 North 2 West sides have one win to Cumbria's zero; and the home side has one win to the away side's zero.

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Cumbria 1 v North 2 West promotion play-off results
SeasonHome teamScoreAway teamVenueAttendance
2018–19[32] Bowdon (LC) HWO Aspatria (C) N/A
2019–20 Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom. Both runners up - Cockermouth (C) and Glossop (NW) - promoted.

Discontinued promotion play-offs

Between the 2000–01 and 2016–17 seasons there was a play-off between the runners-up of the Cumbria League and Lancashire (North) for the third and final promotion place to North Lancashire/Cumbria. The team with the superior league record has home advantage in the tie. At the end of the 2016–17 season the Lancashire (North) teams have been the most successful with eleven wins to the Cumbria League team's four; and the home team has won promotion on twelve occasions compared to the away team's three. Since the cancellation of Lancashire (North) the play-off has been discontinued.

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Cumbria League v Lancashire (North) promotion play-off results
SeasonHome teamScoreAway teamVenueAttendance
2000–01[33] Tyldesley (L) 47-26 Hawcoat Park (C)
2001–02[34] Bury (L) 20-3 Windermere (C)
2002–03[35] Didsbury Toc H (L) 17-29 Upper Eden (C)
2003–04[36] Egremont (C) 27-19 Didsbury Toc H (L)
2004–05[37] Burnage (L) 60-0 Moresby (C)
2005–06[38] Kirkby Lonsdale (C) 20-23 Didsbury Toc H (L)
2006–07[39] Tarleton (L) 28-7 Keswick (C)
2007–08[40] Netherhall (C) 0-20 Burnley (L)
2008–09[41] No promotion playoff
2009–10[42] Didsbury Toc H (L) 42-10 Millom (C)
2010–11[43] Egremont (C) 19-18 Trafford MV (L)
2011–12[44] Whitehaven (C) 33-22 Trafford MV (L)
2012–13[45] Bolton (L) 27-7 Silloth (C)
2013–14[46] No promotion playoff
2014–15[47] Ashton-under-Lyne (L) 17-5 Workington (C)
2015–16[48] Littleborough (L) 37-3 Egremont (C)
2016–17[49] Burnley (L) 94-0 Whitehaven (C)
Green background is the promoted team. C = Cumbria League and L = Lancashire (North) (formerly North Lancashire 1)

Number of league titles

See also

Notes and References

  1. English Rugby Football Union, SSE Northern Division, [online], 2012, Available from:http://www.rfu.com/FixturesAndResults/Version/Northern.aspx [Last Accessed 16:19 16 April 2012]
  2. English Rugby Football Union, SSE Northern Division, [online], 2012, Available from:http://www.rfu.com/FixturesAndResults/Version/Northern.aspx [Last Accessed 16:49 17 April 2012]
  3. English Rugby Football Union, North Adult Merit Leagues, [online], 12 February 2013, Available from: Web site: Archived copy . 2013-02-12 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130329011518/http://www.rfu.com/fixturesandresults/version/adultmeritleagues-north . 29 March 2013. [Last Accessed 17:00 16 April 2012]
  4. Web site: North West league restructuring (June 14 2018). RFU North. 14 June 2018. 28 July 2018. 27 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180727181349/http://www.rfunorth.com/news/newsarchive.htm. dead.
  5. Web site: League structure for Cumbria 2018-19. Cumbria Rugby Union. 20 July 2018.
  6. Web site: Fallen giants of rugby union set to kick off new season . Cumbria Crack.
  7. Web site: RFU Cancels Adult Competitive Leagues for the 2020/21 Season . RFU . 2020-10-20 . 2020-11-09.
  8. Web site: 1998-99 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  9. Web site: 1999-00 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  10. Web site: 2000-01 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  11. Web site: 2001-02 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  12. Web site: 2002-03 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  13. Web site: 2003-04 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  14. Web site: 2004-05 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  15. Web site: 2005-06 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  16. Web site: 2006-07 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  17. Web site: 2007-08 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  18. Web site: 2008-09 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  19. Web site: 2009-10 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  20. Web site: 2010-11 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  21. Web site: 2011-12 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  22. Web site: 2012-13 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  23. Web site: 2013-14 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  24. Web site: 2014-15 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  25. Web site: 2015-16 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  26. Web site: 2016-17 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 30 April 2017.
  27. Web site: 2017-18 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 28 April 2018.
  28. Web site: 2018-19 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 26 January 2019.
  29. Web site: 2018-19 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 13 April 2019.
  30. Web site: 2018-19 Northern Division. England Rugby. Rugby Football Union. 13 April 2019.
  31. Web site: Men's level 5 - 7 leagues 2019–20. England Rugby. 25 April 2020.
  32. Web site: North Play Offs. England Rugby. 27 April 2019.
  33. Web site: 2000-01 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 2 June 2001.
  34. Web site: 2001-02 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 18 May 2002.
  35. Web site: 2002-03 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 26 April 2003.
  36. Web site: 2003-04 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 24 April 2004.
  37. Web site: 2004-05 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 28 May 2005.
  38. Web site: 2005-06 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 6 May 2006.
  39. Web site: 2006-07 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 28 April 2007.
  40. Web site: 2007-08 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 26 April 2008.
  41. Web site: 2008-09 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 25 April 2009.
  42. Web site: 2009-10 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 8 May 2010.
  43. Web site: Play-off promotion victory for Egremont. News & Star. 3 May 2011.
  44. Web site: 2011-12 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 28 April 2012.
  45. Web site: 2012-13 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 27 April 2013.
  46. Web site: 2013-14 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 26 April 2014.
  47. Web site: 2014-15 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 25 April 2015.
  48. Web site: 2015-16 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 7 May 2016.
  49. Web site: 2016-17 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 29 April 2017.

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