North Lancashire/Cumbria Explained

North Lancashire/Cumbria
Current Season:	2017–18 North Lancashire/Cumbria
Sport:	Rugby union
Teams:	14
Champion:	De La Salle (Salford) (1st title)
Season:	2017–18) (promoted to North 1 West
Most Champs:	Fleetwood
Count:	3
Website:	England RFU

North Lancashire/Cumbria (usually referred to as North Lancs/Cumbria) was an English Rugby Union League at the seventh tier of club rugby union for teams from North Lancashire and Cumbria that ran until the end of 2017–18 season. Promotion from this division used to be into North 1 West with the champions going straight up and the league runners up facing the league runners up from South Lancs/Cheshire 1 for their place. Clubs at the bottom of the table were relegated either to North Lancashire 1, South Lancs/Cheshire 2 or the Cumbria League depending on their geographical location.

The division was initially known as North-West East/North 1 when it was created in 1987, and had a number of different names since with North Lancs/Cumbria being the longest running. At the end of the 2017–18 season, the RFU had to cancel the division after 19 Lancashire clubs withdrew from RFU competitions across the leagues to form their own competitions. As a result, all Lancashire based teams in this division that wanted to remain in the RFU league structure were transferred into Lancs/Cheshire 1, while the Cumbria sides were transferred into Cumbria 1.^[1]

Teams 2017–18

Team	Ground	Capacity	City/Area	Previous season
Aldwinians	Audenshaw Park			9th
	Bower Park			3rd
	Avenue Street			6th
	Holden Road			Promoted from Lancashire (North) (play-offs)
De La Salle (Salford)	De La Salle Sports & Social Club			2nd (lost promotion play-off)
Eccles	Gorton Street			Relegated from North 1 West (14th)
Fleetwood	Melbourne Avenue			8th
Hawcoat Park	Hawcoat Park			7th
Keswick	Davidson Park			Promoted from Cumbria League (champions)
Littleborough	Rakewood Road			11th
Oldham	Manor Park			4th
Tarleton	Carr Lane			Promoted from Lancashire (North) (champions)
Trafford MV	MacPherson Park			10th
Wigton	Lowmoor Road			5th

Participating Clubs 2016-17

• Aldwinians
• Aspatria
• Bolton
• Carlisle (relegated from North 1 West)
• De La Salle (Salford)
• Fleetwood
• Hawcourt Park
• Littleborough (promoted from Lancashire (North))
• Oldham
• Silloth
• Trafford MV (promoted from Lancashire (North))
• Upper Eden
• Wigton
• Workington (promoted from Cumbria League)

Participating Clubs 2015-16

Team	Ground	Capacity	City/Area	Previous season
	Audenshaw Park			6th
	Gambrel Bank			Promoted from North Lancashire 1 (playoffs)
	Bower Park			4th
	Avenue Street			Relegated from North 1 West (12th)
	De La Salle Sports & Social Club			5th
	Melbourne Avenue			8th
	Hawcoat Lane			9th
	Manor Park			Promoted from North Lancashire 1 (champions)
	The Jim Brough Rugby Park			Promoted from Cumbria League (champions)
	Newlands Avenue			3rd
	St Georges Park			Promoted & level transferred from South Lancs/Cheshire 2 (2nd)
	Pennine Park			10th
	Richmond Terrace			11th
	Lowmoor Road			Relegated from North 1 West (14th)

Participating Clubs 2014-15

• Aldwinians
• Aspatria
• Blackburn
• De La Salle (Salford) (promoted from North Lancashire 1)
• Fleetwood
• Furness (promoted from Cumbria League)
• Hawcoat Park
• Heaton Moor (promoted from North Lancashire 1)
• Leigh (relegated from North 1 West)
• St Benedicts
• Tarleton
• Upper Eden
• Whitehaven
• Wigan

Participating Clubs 2013-14

• Aldwinians
• Aspatria
• Blackburn
• Bolton (promoted from North Lancashire 1)
• Eccles
• Fleetwood (relegated from North 1 West)
• Hawcoat Park (promoted from Cumbria League)
• Keswick
• Littleborough
• St Benedicts
• Tarleton (promoted from North Lancashire 1)
• Upper Eden
• Whitehaven
• Workington

Participating clubs 2012−13

• Aldwinians
• Aspatria (relegated from North 1 West)
• Blackburn
• Didsbury Toc H
• Eccles
• Egremont
• Heaton Moor
• Keswick (promoted from Cumbria League)
• Littleborough
• St Benedicts
• Upper Eden
• Whitehaven (promoted from Cumbria League via Play-offs)
• Wigton (relegated from North 1 West)
• Workington

Original teams

When league rugby began in 1987 this division contained the following teams:

• Calder Vale
• Colne & Nelson
• Eccles
• Fleetwood
• Furness
• Littleborough
• Moresby
• Old Aldwinians
• Oldham
• Toc H
• Vickers

North Lancashire/Cumbria Honours

North-West East/North 1 (1987–1992)

The original incarnation of North Lancashire/Cumbria was known as North-West East/North 1, and was a tier 9 league with promotion up to North West 2 and relegation down to either North-West East 1 or North-West North 1.

<											----> North-West East/North 1 Honours
Season	No of Teams	Champions	Runners–up	Relegated Teams
1987–88	11	Old Aldwinians		Colne & Nelson, Calder Vale
1988–89	11	Moresby
1989–90	11	Ashton-on-Mersey		Fleetwood, Heaton Moor
1990–91	11	Kirkby Lonsdale		Eccles, Burnage
1991–92	11	Old Salians		No relegation
Green backgrounds are promotion places.

Cumbria/Lancs North (1992–1996)

As part of the north-west league restructuring North-West East/North 1 was renamed as Cumbria/Lancs North for the 1992–93 season with promotion continuing up to North West 2 and relegation down to either Lancashire North 1 (formerly North-West East 1) or Cumbria. Initially a tier 9 league, the creation of National 5 North for the 1993–94 season meant that Cumbria/Lancs North dropped to become a tier 10 league.

<											----> Cumbria/Lancs North Honours
Season	No of Teams	Champions	Runners–up	Relegated Teams
1992–93	13	Penrith		Keswick, De La Salle (Salford)
1993–94	13	Fleetwood		Smith Brothers, Metrovick, Moresby
1994–95	13	Windermere		De La Salle (Salford)
1995–96	13	Workington
Green backgrounds are promotion places.

North Lancs/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. Cumbria/Lancs North was renamed as North Lancs/Cumbria, and the cancellation of National 5 North and creation of North West 3 meant that it remained a tier 10 league. Promotion was now to North West 3 while relegation was to either North Lancashire 1 or Cumbria.

<											----> North Lancs/Cumbria Honours
Season	No of Teams	Champions	Runners–up	Relegated Teams
1996–97	10	St. Benedict's		Ambleside
1997–98	10	Rochdale		Ashton-under-Lyme
1998–99^[2]	10	Blackpool		Keswick
1999–00^[3]	10	Oldham		Furness, Millom, Ambleside, Windermere, Hawcoat Park, Trafford MV, Tyldesley, Ormskirk
Green backgrounds are promotion places.

North Lancs/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 North Lancs/Cumbria became a tier 7 league, with promotion to North 2 West (currently North 1 West). Relegation continued to be to either North Lancashire 1 or Cumbria.

<											----> North Lancs/Cumbria Honours
Season	No of Teams	Champions	Runners–up	Relegated Teams
2000–01^[4]	12	Workington
2001–02^[5]	12	Rochdale
2002–03^[6]	12	Oldham
2003–04^[7]	12	Fleetwood
2004–05^[8]	12	Rossendale
2005–06^[9]	12	Carlisle
2006–07^[10]	12	Aldwinians
2007–08^[11]	11	Blackburn		St. Benedict's, Didsbury Toc H, De La Salle (Salford)
2008–09^[12]	12	Tyldesley		No relegation
2009–10^[13]	14	Wigton
2010–11^[14]	14	Aspatria
2011–12^[15]	14	Fleetwood		Furness, Millom, De La Salle (Salford)
2012–13^[16]	14	Wigton
2013–14^[17]	14	Eccles
2014–15^[18]	14	Blackburn
2015–16^[19]	14	St. Benedict's
2016–17^[20]	14	Carlisle
2017–18^[21]	14	De La Salle (Salford)
Green backgrounds are promotion places.

Promotion play-offs

Since the 2000–01 season there has been a play-off between the runners-up of North Lancashire/Cumbria and South Lancs/Cheshire 1 for the third and final promotion place to North 1 West. The team with the superior league record has home advantage in the tie. At the end of the 2017–18 season the North Lancashire/Cumbria and South Lancs/Cheshire 1 team sides have nine wins apiece; and the home team has won promotion on thirteen occasions compared to the away teams five.

<						----> North Lancs/Cumbria v South Lancs/Cheshire 1 promotion play-off results
Season	Home team	Score	Away team	Venue	Attendance
2000–01^[22]	Warrington (SLC)	HWO	Carlisle (NLC)		N/A
2001–02^[23]	Oldham (NLC)	15-24	Aspull (SLC)
2002–03^[24]	Penrith (NLC)	25-10	Widnes (SLC)
2003–04^[25]	Rossendale (NLC)	24-28	Bowdon (SLC)
2004–05^[26]	Leigh (SLC)	13-15	Tyldesley (NLC)
2005–06^[27]	Wilmslow (SLC)	43-10	St Benedicts (NLC)
2006–07^[28]	Leigh (SLC)	40-15	Blackburn (NLC)
2007–08^[29]	Rossendale (NLC)	20-16	Burnage (SLC)
2008–09^[30]	Widnes (SLC)	41-52	Vale of Lune (NLC)
2009–10^[31]	Kirkby Lonsdale (NLC)	13-12	Widnes (SLC)
2010–11^[32]	Widnes (SLC)	26-19	Fleetwood (NLC)
2011–12^[33]	Kirkby Lonsdale (NLC)	21-18 (aet)	New Brighton (SLC)
2012–13^[34]	Broughton Park (SLC)	32-13	Eccles (NLC)
2013–14^[35]	Bolton (NLC)	21-18	Northwich (SLC)		500
2014–15^[36]	Leigh (NLC)	34-26	Liverpool St Helens (SLC)
2015–16^[37]	Bolton (NLC)	20-27	West Park St Helens (SLC)
2016–17^[38]	Douglas (I.O.M.) (SLC)	15-14	De La Salle (Salford) (NLC)		600
2017–18^[39]	Anselmians (SLC)	65-14	Aspatria (NLC)	Malone Field, Eastham
Green background is the promoted team. NLC = North Lancashire/Cumbria and SLC = South Lancs/Cheshire 1

Number of league titles

• Fleetwood (3)
• Aldwinians (2)
• Blackburn (2)
• Carlisle (2)
• Oldham (2)
• Rochdale (2)
• St. Benedict's (2)
• Wigton (2)
• Workington (2)
• Ashton-on-Mersey (1)
• Aspatria (1)
• Blackpool (1)
• De La Salle (Salford) (1)
• Eccles (1)
• Kirkby Lonsdale (1)
• Moresby (1)
• Old Salians (1)
• Penrith (1)
• Rossendale (1)
• Tyldesley (1)
• Windermere (1)

See also

• Cumbria RU
• Lancashire RFU
• English rugby union system
• Rugby union in England

Notes and References

1. Web site: North West league restructuring (June 14 2018). RFU North. 14 June 2018.
2. Web site: 1998-99 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
3. Web site: 1999-00 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
4. Web site: 2000-01 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
5. Web site: 2001-02 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
6. Web site: 2002-03 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
7. Web site: 2003-04 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
8. Web site: 2004-05 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
9. Web site: 2005-06 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
10. Web site: 2006-07 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
11. Web site: 2007-08 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
12. Web site: 2008-09 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
13. Web site: 2009-10 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
14. Web site: 2010-11 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
15. Web site: 2011-12 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
16. Web site: 2012-13 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
17. Web site: 2013-14 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
18. Web site: 2014-15 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
19. Web site: 2015-16 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
20. Web site: 2016-17 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 30 April 2017.
21. Web site: 2017-18 Northern Division. England Rugby. RFU. 28 April 2018.
22. Web site: 2000-01 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 26 May 2001.
23. Web site: 2001-02 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 27 April 2002.
24. Web site: 2002-03 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 26 April 2003.
25. Web site: 2003-04 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 24 April 2004.
26. Web site: 2004-05 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 7 May 2005.
27. Web site: 2005-06 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 29 April 2006.
28. Web site: 2006-07 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 28 April 2007.
29. Web site: 2007-08 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 26 April 2008.
30. Web site: 2008-09 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 25 April 2009.
31. Web site: 2009-10 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 1 May 2010.
32. Web site: 2010-11 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 14 May 2011.
33. Web site: 2011-12 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 28 April 2012.
34. Web site: 2012-13 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 27 April 2013.
35. Web site: Bolton Make History. Bolton RUFC (Pitchero). 26 April 2014.
36. Web site: 2014-15 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 25 April 2015.
37. Web site: 2015-16 North Playoffs. England Rugby. 14 May 2016.
38. Web site: DOUGLAS EDGE IN PROMOTION THRILLER. Douglas (I.O.M.) RFC. 9 May 2017.
39. Web site: ANSELMIANS PROMOTED. Aspatria RUFC (Pitchero). 19 May 2018.