East Midlands 2 was a tier 10 English Rugby Union league with teams from Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire and parts of Cambridgeshire taking part. Promoted teams moved up to East Midlands 1 and relegated teams dropped to East Midlands 3 until that division was cancelled at the end of the 1991–92 season. Restructuring of the East Midlands leagues at the end of the 2003–04 campaign meant that East Midlands 2 was discontinued and the majority of teams transferred into the new East Midlands/South Leicestershire 2 division.
Current season or competition: 2003–04 East Midlands 2 | |
| Sport | Rugby union |
|---|---|
| Instituted | 1987 |
| Ceased | 2004 |
| Number of teams | 7 |
| Country |  England |
| Holders | Corby (1st title) (2003–04) (promoted to East Midlands/South Leicestershire 1[a]) |
| Most titles | Multiple teams (1 title) |
| Website | East Midlands RFU |
Original teams
editWhen league rugby began in 1987, this division contained the following teams:
- Brackley
- Corby
- Cutler Hammer
- Deepings
- Northampton Casuals
- Northampton Men's Own
- Old Wellingburians[b]
- Oundle
- Sharnbrook & Colworth
- St Ives
- Vauxhall Motors
East Midlands 2 honours
editEast Midlands 1 (1987–1992)
editThe original East Midlands 2 was a tier 9 league. Promotion was to East Midlands 1 and relegation to East Midlands 3. At the end of the 1991–92 season all of the East Midlands and Leicestershire leagues were merged and most sides in East Midlands 2 transferred to the new East Midlands/Leicestershire 2[c].
| ||||||||||||||
| Season | No of teams | Champions | Runners–up | Relegated teams | Reference | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987–88 | 11 | Northampton Men's Own | Brackley | Deepings, Old Wellingburians | [1] | |||||||||
| 1988–89 | 11 | Wellingborough Old Grammarians | Corby | Cutler Hammer | [2] | |||||||||
| 1989–90 | 11 | St Neots | Bedford Queens | Deepings | [3] | |||||||||
| 1990–91 | 11 | Northampton Casuals | St Ives | Vauxhall Motors, Westwood, Bedfordshire Police | [4] | |||||||||
| 1991–92 | 11 | Rushden & Higham[d] | Daventry[e] | No relegation[f] | [5] | |||||||||
| Green backgrounds are promotion places. | ||||||||||||||
East Midlands 2 (2000–2004)
editAfter a gap of seven years East Midlands 2 was reintroduced ahead of the 2000–01 season as a tier 10 league. Promotion was to East Midlands 1 and there was no relegation. East Midlands 2 was cancelled at the end of the 2003–04 campaign and most teams transferred into the new East Midlands/South Leicestershire 2.
| ||||||||||||||
| Season | No of teams | Champions | Runners–up | Relegated teams | Reference | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000–01 | 10 | Kempston | Peterborough Lions | No relegation | [6] | |||||||||
| 2001–02 | 8 | Biddenham | Bedford Swifts | No relegation | [7] | |||||||||
| 2002–03 | 8 | Vauxhall Motors | St Ives | No relegation | [8] | |||||||||
| 2003–04 | 7 | Corby[g] | Oundle[h] | No relegation | [9] | |||||||||
| Green backgrounds are the promotion places. | ||||||||||||||
Number of league titles
edit- Biddenham (1)
- Corby (1)
- Kempston (1)
- Northampton Casuals (1)
- Northampton Men's Own (1)
- Rushden & Higham (1)
- St Neots (1)
- Vauxhall Motors (1)
- Wellingborough Old Grammarians (1)
Notes
edit- ^ Champions Corby would typically have moved up into East Midlands 1 but the cancellation of the East Midlands leagues meant they went into the new East Midlands/South Leicestershire 1 instead.
- ^ Old Boys side of Wellingborough School.
- ^ East Midlands/Leicestershire 2 was mostly formed of teams from East Midlands 2 and Leicestershire 2
- ^ Restructuring of the Midlands leagues saw champions Rushden & Higham transferred into the new East Midlands/Leicestershire 2.
- ^ Restructuring saw the top three clubs including Dunstablians transferred into the new East Midlands/Leicestershire 2. Clubs ranked 4th to 10th, including Old Wellingburians, Oundle, Colworth House, Deepings, Bugbrooke, Bedford Swifts and Old Northamptonians went into East Midlands/Leicestershire 3.
- ^ Although there was no relegation due to restructuring, bottom club Corby were transferred into the newly introduced East Midlands/Leicestershire 4.
- ^ Restructuring would see champions Corby transferred into the new East Midlands/South Leicestershire 1.
- ^ Runners up Oundle would also be transferred into East Midlands/South Leicestershire 1. All other clubs would join East Midlands/South Leicestershire 2.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Jones, Stephen; Griffiths, John (1988). Rothmans Rugby Union Yearbook 1988-89. Queen Anne Press. pp. 130–134. ISBN 0-356-15884-5.
- ^ Jones, Stephen; Griffiths, John (1989). Rothmans Rugby Union Yearbook 1989-90. Queen Anne Press. pp. 136–139. ISBN 0-356-17862-5.
- ^ Jones, Stephen; Griffiths, John (1990). Rothmans Rugby Union Yearbook 1990-91. Queen Anne Press. pp. 140–143. ISBN 0-356-19162-1.
- ^ Jones, Stephen; Griffiths, John (1991). Rothmans Rugby Union Yearbook 1991-92. Queen Anne Press. pp. 161–164. ISBN 0-356-20249-6.
- ^ Jones, Stephen; Griffiths, John (1992). Rothmans Rugby Union Yearbook 1992-93. Headline. pp. 183–185. ISBN 0-7472-7907-1.
- ^ "2000-2001 Midlands Division". England Rugby. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
- ^ "2001-2002 Midlands Division". England Rugby. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
- ^ "2002-2003 Midlands Division". England Rugby. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
- ^ "2003-2004 Midlands Division". England Rugby. Retrieved 19 December 2020.