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1988–89 Courage Area League North

The 1988–89 Courage Area League North was the second full season of rugby union within the fourth tier of the English league system, currently known as National League 2 North, and was the counterpart to Courage Area League South (currently National League 2 South). By the end of the season Roundhay were crowned league champions, just 1 point ahead of runners up Broughton Park, gaining promotion to the 1989–90 National Division Three.

1988–89 Courage Area League North
Countries England
ChampionsRoundhay (1st title)
Runners-upBroughton Park (not promoted)
RelegatedBirmingham
Matches played110

At the other end of the table Birmingham were easily the weakest team, failing to register a single point as they suffered a second successive relegation, dropping to Midlands 1.[1] It would be Birmingham's final season as a single entity as they would merge with Solihull (themselves relegated the previous campaign) to form Birmingham & Solihull RFC for the 1989–90 season.[2]

Structure

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Each team played one match against each of the other teams, playing a total of ten matches each. The champions are promoted to National Division 3 and the bottom team was relegated to either North 1 or Midlands 1 depending on their locality.[3]

Participating teams and locations

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Locations of the 1988–89 Courage Area League North teams
Team Ground Capacity City/Area Previous Season
Birmingham Portway Portway, Birmingham, West Midlands Relegated from National 3 (12th)
Broughton Park Hough End Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester 6th
Durham City Hollow Drift Durham, County Durham Runners up (not promoted)
Lichfield Cooke Fields Lichfield, Staffordshire 8th
Morley Scatcherd Lane Morley, West Yorkshire Relegated from National 3 (11th)
Northern McCracken Park 1,000 Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear 5th
Preston Grasshoppers Lightfoot Green 5,000 Preston, Lancashire 4th
Roundhay Chandos Park Roundhay, Leeds West Yorkshire 3rd
Stoke-on-Trent Hartwell Lane Barlaston, Staffordshire Promoted from Midlands 1 (champions)
Stourbridge Stourton Park 3,000 Stourbridge, West Midlands 7th
Winnington Park Burrows Hill Norwich, Cheshire Promoted from North 1 (champions)

League table

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1988–89 Courage Area League North table
Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1 Roundhay (C) 10 8 1 1 235 81 +154 17 Promoted
2 Broughton Park 10 8 0 2 179 92 +87 16
3 Stourbridge 10 6 0 4 118 79 +39 12
4 Northern 10 5 0 5 182 131 +51 10
5 Winnington Park 10 5 0 5 188 155 +33 10
6 Preston Grasshoppers 10 5 0 5 161 141 +20 10
7 Durham City 10 5 0 5 172 157 +15 10
8 Morley 10 5 0 5 135 141 −6 10
9 Lichfield 10 4 1 5 112 113 −1 9
10 Stoke-on-Trent 10 3 0 7 88 138 −50 6
11 Birmingham (R) 10 0 0 10 29 371 −342 0 Relegated
Source: [1]
Rules for classification: Points are awarded as follows:
  1. 2 pts for a win
  2. 1 pt for a draw
  3. 0 pts for a loss
If teams are level at any stage, difference between points for and against applies
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated

Sponsorship

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Area League North is part of the Courage Clubs Championship and was sponsored by Courage Brewery.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Area League 1988/89". The Rugby Archive. Archived from the original on 30 December 2017. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
  2. ^ "Club History". Birmingham & Solihull RFC. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
  3. ^ "Leagues 1988/99". Birmingham Moseley Rugby Club. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
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