2018–19 RFU Championship
The 2018–19 RFU Championship, known for sponsorship reasons as the Greene King IPA Championship, is the tenth season of the professionalised format of the RFU Championship, the second tier of the English rugby union league system run by the Rugby Football Union. It is contested by eleven English clubs and one from Jersey in the Channel Islands. The competition is sponsored by Greene King for a sixth successive season.[1] Clubs in the league also competed in the inaugural RFU Championship Cup.[2]
| 2018–19 Greene King IPA Championship | |
|---|---|
| Countries |  England Jersey |
| Date | 31 August 2018 – 27 April 2019 |
| Champions | London Irish (2nd title) |
| Runners-up | Ealing Trailfinders |
| Relegated | Richmond |
| Matches played | 132 |
| Attendance | 226,061 (average 1,713 per match) |
| Highest attendance | 10,106 London Irish v Doncaster Knights 23 March 2019 |
| Lowest attendance | 602 Richmond v Hartpury 29 September 2018 |
| Tries scored | 913 (average 6.9 per match) |
| Top point scorer | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Shane O'Leary(Nottingham) 186 points |
| Top try scorer | Dean Adamson (Bedford Blues) 16 tries |
On 19 April 2019 London Irish were declared champions with a round to go, following an emphatic win away against struggling Richmond, claiming promotion back to the Premiership for the 2019–20 season, in what was their second Championship title in three seasons.[3] The next day (20 April), Richmond were relegated following relegation rivals Hartpury's victory at home against London Scottish.[4] Richmond would drop to the 2019–20 National League 1.
Coventry had the best campaign of a promoted club since the Championship's inception back in 2009–10 (regular season only), amassing 51 points on way to an 8th place finish - surpassing London Scottish's 45 point, 8th place finish back in 2011–12.
Structure
The Championship's structure has all the teams playing each other on a home and away basis. The first placed team in the competition is promoted to the Premiership; providing that club's ground fulfills the Rugby Football Union's Minimum Standards Criteria[5] while the bottom side is relegated to National League 1. As part of an agreement with the RFU, each club will receive £530,000 funding.[6][7] The British and Irish Cup, which the RFU Championship clubs played in with Welsh and Irish clubs, was scrapped due to the Championship clubs withdrawing and is to be replaced by a new cup competition – the RFU Championship Cup.[8][9]
Teams
On 24 March 2018 Rotherham Titans were relegated with three games to go, after losing away to Jersey Reds. Despite seeing some improvements in the second half of the season, the Yorkshire club were easily the weakest side in the division, dropping to 2018–19 National League 1, the lowest level the club have played for fourteen seasons.[10] Promoted in their place were the winners of 2017–18 National League 1, Coventry, who return to the second tier for the first time since being relegated at the end of the 2009–10 season.[11]
On 7 April 2018 Bristol were crowned champions of the 2017–18 season with two games to go following title rivals Ealing Trailfinders defeat that day to Doncaster Knights. They were therefore promoted to Premiership Rugby.[12] In winning the championship Bristol also became the most decorated tier 2 side in English league history with four league titles to-date. They are replaced by London Irish who return to the Championship after just one year in the Premiership.[13]
Table
| |||||||||||||||||
| Club | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Try bonus | Loss bonus | Points | |||||||
| C | London Irish | 22 | 20 | 0 | 2 | 835 | 340 | 495 | 18 | 1 | 99 | ||||||
| 2 | Ealing Trailfinders | 22 | 17 | 0 | 5 | 733 | 503 | 230 | 16 | 2 | 86 | ||||||
| 3 | Bedford Blues | 22 | 13 | 0 | 9 | 632 | 603 | 29 | 11 | 6 | 69 | ||||||
| 4 | Jersey Reds | 22 | 12 | 0 | 10 | 554 | 442 | 112 | 9 | 6 | 63 | ||||||
| 5 | Cornish Pirates | 22 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 556 | 507 | 49 | 12 | 7 | 59 | ||||||
| 6 | Yorkshire Carnegie | 22 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 475 | 549 | -74 | 8 | 3 | 55 | ||||||
| 7 | Nottingham | 22 | 10 | 1 | 11 | 508 | 597 | -89 | 7 | 3 | 52 | ||||||
| 8 | Coventry | 22 | 9 | 1 | 12 | 497 | 637 | -140 | 7 | 6 | 51 | ||||||
| 9 | London Scottish | 22 | 8 | 0 | 14 | 468 | 616 | -148 | 7 | 4 | 43 | ||||||
| 10 | Doncaster Knights | 22 | 8 | 0 | 14 | 546 | 617 | -71 | 6 | 4 | 42 | ||||||
| 11 | Hartpury College | 22 | 7 | 0 | 15 | 415 | 634 | -219 | 4 | 4 | 36 | ||||||
| R | Richmond | 22 | 6 | 0 | 16 | 430 | 604 | -174 | 4 | 5 | 33 | ||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
| Green background is the promotion place. Pink background is the relegation place. Updated: 21 April 2019 Source: "Greene King IPA Championship". England Rugby. | |||||||||||||||||
Fixtures & Results
Fixtures for the season were announced by the RFU on 22 June 2018.
Round 1
31 August 2018 19:45 |
| Hartpury College | 16 – 5 | Yorkshire Carnegie |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Gillman's Ground Attendance: 876 Referee: Andrew Jackson |
2 September 2018 15:00 |
| (1 BP) Nottingham | 21 – 27 | Bedford Blues |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Lady Bay Sports Ground Attendance: 1,145 Referee: Matthew O’Grady |
Round 2
Round 3
14 September 2018 19:45 |
| (1 BP) Nottingham | 29 – 19 | London Scottish |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Lady Bay Sports Ground Attendance: 1,135 Referee: Greg MacDonald |
15 September 2018 14:30 |
| Hartpury College | 17 – 46 | Cornish Pirates (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Gillman's Ground Attendance: 973 Referee: Michael Hudson |
- Postponed. Game to be rescheduled for 3 November 2018.[16]
Round 4
22 September 2018 14:30 |
| Hartpury College | 23 – 17 | Coventry (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Gillman's Ground Attendance: 953 Referee: Neil Chivers |
Round 5
28 September 2018 19:45 |
| Nottingham | 20 – 15 | Doncaster Knights (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Lady Bay Sports Ground Attendance: 1,337 Referee: Tim Wigglesworth |
Round 6
6 October 2018 14:30 |
| (1 BP) Hartpury College | 25 – 32 | Ealing Trailfinders (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Gillman's Ground Attendance: 637 Referee: Michael Hudson |
Round 7
14 October 2018 15:00 |
| Nottingham | 26 – 7 | Hartpury College |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Lady Bay Sports Ground Attendance: 930 |
Round 8
20 October 2018 14:30 |
| Hartpury College | 14 – 52 | Jersey Reds (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Gillman's Ground Attendance: 793 Referee: George Selwood |
Round 9
26 October 2018 19:45 |
| (1 BP) Nottingham | 42 – 27 | Ealing Trailfinders |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Lady Bay Sports Ground Attendance: 1,397 Referee: Anthony Woodthorpe |
Round 3 (rescheduled game)
- Game rescheduled from 16 September 2018.
Round 10
23 December 2018 15:00 |
| Nottingham | 15 – 15 | Coventry |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Lady Bay Sports Ground Attendance: 1,515 Referee: Tim Wigglesworth |
28 December 2018 19:45 |
| Hartpury College | 5–38 | London Irish (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Gillman's Ground Attendance: 1,531 Referee: Greg MacDonald |
Round 11
Round 12
18 January 2019 19:45 |
| (2 BP) Nottingham | 29 – 35 | London Irish (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Lady Bay Sports Ground Attendance: 1,576 Referee: Matthew O'Grady |
19 January 2019 14:30 |
| Hartpury College | 21 – 48 | Doncaster Knights (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Gillman's Ground Attendance: 957 Referee: Michael Hudson |
Round 13
Round 14
8 February 2019 19:45 |
| Nottingham | 15 – 33 | Yorkshire Carnegie (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Lady Bay Sports Ground Attendance: 1,124 Referee: Sara Cox |
Round 15
15 February 2019 19:45 |
| (1 BP) Hartpury College | 36 – 12 | Richmond |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Gillman's Ground Attendance: 1,011 Referee: Andrew Jackson |
Round 16
1 March 2019 19:45 |
| Nottingham | 20 – 18 | Cornish Pirates (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Lady Bay Sports Ground Attendance: 1,190 Referee: Andrew Jackson |
Round 17
8 March 2019 19:45 |
| Hartpury College | 21 – 20 | Nottingham (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Gillman's Ground Attendance: 835 Referee: Hamish Smales |
Round 18
Round 19
30 March 2019 14:30 |
| (1 BP) Hartpury College | 28 – 26 | Bedford Blues (2 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Gillman's Ground Attendance: 895 Referee: Adam Leal |
Round 20
Round 21
19 April 2019 19:45 |
| Nottingham | 24 – 20 | Jersey Reds (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Lady Bay Sports Ground Attendance: 1,307 Referee: Ian Tempest |
20 April 2019 14:30 |
| (1 BP) Hartpury College | 43 – 22 | London Scottish (1 BP) |
|---|---|---|
Gillman's Ground Attendance: 1,291 Referee: Craig Maxwell-Keys |
Round 22
Attendances
| Club | Home Games |
Total | Average | Highest | Lowest | % Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bedford Blues | 11 | 27,800 | 2,527 | 2,872 | 1,988 | 42% |
| Cornish Pirates | 11 | 20,190 | 1,835 | 2,963 | 1,448 | 46% |
| Coventry | 11 | 25,381 | 2,307 | 2,943 | 1,999 | 58% |
| Doncaster Knights | 11 | 12,761 | 1,160 | 2,006 | 868 | 23% |
| Ealing Trailfinders | 11 | 11,399 | 1,036 | 2,205 | 685 | 32% |
| Hartpury College | 11 | 10,752 | 977 | 1,531 | 637 | 49% |
| Jersey Reds | 11 | 17,940 | 1,631 | 2,515 | 1,034 | 41% |
| London Irish | 11 | 41,475 | 3,770 | 10,106 | 2,067 | 16% |
| London Scottish | 11 | 15,106 | 1,373 | 2,321 | 1,022 | 31% |
| Nottingham | 11 | 13,872 | 1,261 | 1,576 | 930 | 42% |
| Richmond | 11 | 13,326 | 1,211 | 2,743 | 602 | 27% |
| Yorkshire Carnegie | 11 | 16,059 | 1,460 | 1,726 | 960 | 7% |
Individual statistics
- Note that points scorers includes tries as well as conversions, penalties and drop goals. Appearance figures also include coming on as substitutes (unused substitutes not included).
Top points scorers
|
Top try scorers
|
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.svg.png.webp){kind=small}
Season records
Team
72 – 5 London Irish at home to Yorkshire Carnegie on 13 October 2018
61 – 20 Ealing Trailfinders away to Coventry on 23 March 2019
72 – 5 London Irish at home to Yorkshire Carnegie on 13 October 2018
London Irish at home to Yorkshire Carnegie on 13 October 2018
Ealing Trailfinders away to Coventry on 23 March 2019
Nottingham at home to Doncaster Knights on 29 September 2018
Hartpury College away to Doncaster Knights on 8 September 2018 Attendances
London Irish at home to Doncaster Knights on 23 March 2019
Richmond at home to Hartpury College on 29 September 2018
London Irish
Hartpury College [41]
|
Player
|
Notes
- Trailfinders Sports Ground capacity raised from 3,020 (1,200 seats) to 4,000 (2,200 seats) on 3 February 2019.
- Although Madejski's full capacity is 24,161, for most matches only the West Stand will be open with capacity of 7,579.
- Jersey Reds' round 3 home game against London Irish was re-scheduled to 3 November due to its proximity to Jersey International Air Display making availability of air transport and accommodation difficult.[16]
References
- "Greene King to be title sponsors of RFU Championship". The Rugby Paper. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
- "Championship Cup competition announced". RFU. 22 June 2018. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
- "London Irish: Club secure Championship title and promotion with win at Richmond". BBC Sport. 19 April 2019. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
- "Pack power gets Hartpury across the line to safety". The RUGBYPaper (553). Rugby Paper Ltd. 21 April 2019. p. 22.
- "Premiership: RFU Championship promotion play-off scrapped". BBC Sport. 3 March 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
- Last Updated: 03/03/17 5:43pm. "Championship play-offs to be scrapped with top team promoted automatically". Sky Sports. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
- "'The RFU Championship has become the wild west of professional rugby'". The Guardian. 13 March 2014. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
- "Indy exclusive: British and Irish Cup to be binned and replaced with a new cup". Independent. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
- "British and Irish Cup to be scrapped as English Championship clubs withdraw". BBC Sport. 15 November 2017. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
- "Titans officially relegated after defeat". Rotherham Advertiser. 24 March 2018.
- "Coventry defeat Caldy to claim National League one title and secure Championship rugby next season". Coventry Telegraph. 17 March 2018. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
- "Champions! Bristol Rugby win promotion to the Aviva Premiership". Bristol Post. 7 April 2018.
- "London Irish relegated from Premiership after one season back in top flight". BBC Sport. 28 April 2018. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (520). Rugby Paper Ltd. 2 September 2018. pp. 26–27 & 40.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (521). Rugby Paper Ltd. 9 September 2018. pp. 26–27 & 38.
- "Reds confirm home fixture dates". Jersey Reds. Jersey Reds. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (522). Rugby Paper Ltd. 16 September 2018. pp. 28–29 & 37.
- "London Irish VS Bedford Blues". Rugby Statbunker. 23 September 2018.
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- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (528). Rugby Paper Ltd. 28 October 2018. pp. 27–29 & 38.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (529). Rugby Paper Ltd. 4 November 2018. pp. 28 & 38.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (536). Rugby Paper Ltd. 23 December 2018. pp. 24–25 & 34.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (537). Rugby Paper Ltd. 30 December 2018. pp. 22–23 & 26.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (539). Rugby Paper Ltd. 13 January 2019. pp. 26–27 & 38.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (540). Rugby Paper Ltd. 20 January 2019. pp. 26–28 & 38.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (541). Rugby Paper Ltd. 27 January 2019. pp. 14–15 & 40.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (543). Rugby Paper Ltd. 10 February 2019. pp. 26–27 & 38.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (544). Rugby Paper Ltd. 17 February 2019. pp. 28–29 & 38.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (546). Rugby Paper Ltd. 3 March 2019. pp. 28–29 & 38.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (547). Rugby Paper Ltd. 10 March 2019. pp. 28–29 & 38.
- "Weekend referees, ARs and TMOs – 22-24 March". RugbyReferee.net. 21 March 2019.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (549). Rugby Paper Ltd. 24 March 2019. pp. 28–29 & 46.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (550). Rugby Paper Ltd. 31 March 2019. pp. 16–17 & 30.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (552). Rugby Paper Ltd. 14 April 2019. pp. 28–29 & 38.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (553). Rugby Paper Ltd. 21 April 2019. pp. 22–23 & 26.
- "RFU Championship". The RUGBYPaper (554). Rugby Paper Ltd. 28 April 2019. pp. 24–25 & 34.
- "Championship 18/19 Home attendances". Rugby Statbunker. 27 April 2019.
- "Championship 18/19 Leading top scorers". Rugby Statbunker. 27 April 2019.
- "Championship 18/19 Leading try scorers". Rugby Statbunker. 27 April 2019.
- "Championship 18/19 Most tries in a match (Team)". Rugby Statbunker. 21 April 2019.
- "Championship 18/19 Most conversions in a match (Team)". Rugby Statbunker. 21 April 2019.
- "Championship 18/19 Most penalties in a match (Team)". Rugby Statbunker. 21 April 2019.
- "Championship 18/19 Most drop goals in a match (Team)". Rugby Statbunker. 21 April 2019.
- "Championship 18/19 Most points in a match (Player)". Rugby Statbunker. 21 April 2019.
- "Championship 18/19 Most tries in a match (Player)". Rugby Statbunker. 21 April 2019.
- "Championship 18/19 Most conversions in a match (Player)". Rugby Statbunker. 21 April 2019.
- "Championship 18/19 Most penalties in a match (Player)". Rugby Statbunker. 21 April 2019.
- "Championship 18/19 Most drop goals in a match (Player)". Rugby Statbunker. 21 April 2019.