Structured season and RFU Leagues

Dear Clubs,

I have been asked to forward the attached documents with this additional information as soon as possible.   The documents should be read with the explanatory information below to ensure clear understanding of the impact of these changes. Please ensure they are circulated to all appropriate people in your Clubs.

  • National and Regional leagues will commence on the first weekend in September 2023 with regular breaks scheduled through the season.
  • Clubs are allocated to leagues at National and Regional level after promotion and relegation issues are finalised and in accordance with the principles set out by the Future Competitions Strategy prior to 22/23 season.  This means clubs are clustered using a mapping tool that minimises travel distance and time travelled.  There will still be some outliers in this structure but it has been planned to ensure the majority of clubs are travelling less distance.  It does mean that some clubs change leagues at the same level, and will play a number of different clubs to those they met last season.
  • Relegation from Regional 2 returned clubs to their CB league at Counties One.  In some instances there were no clubs relegated to Counties One and in others there were more than one team relegated to that level.  This will have led to the cascade effect of additional teams being relegated at Counties One, cascading into other Counties leagues below.  Organising Committees are working to mitigate this impact but some clubs may find they have been placed in a different league to the one they anticipated.
  • Counties Leagues will have 3 options for start date in 23/24 following feedback and experience from last season.  Organising Committees will work with CBs and Clubs to provide the best option for clubs in those leagues.  These options are:
    • Week 1 start with regular defined breaks in the season
    • Week 1 fixtures can be postponed, if both clubs agree by 1st August, to first break week, which would mean they have a run of 7 fixtures at the start of the season.

In the  Midlands ROC we will be following this option.

    • Week 3 start with limited breaks in season for player unavailability and weather impact
  • The fixtures for the Counties Leagues will be sent out as soon as they are completed.
  • Regional and Counties Leagues will conclude 4 weeks later in 23/24, the week after Easter on April 6th 2024.
  • National Leagues will conclude on last week of April 2024.
  • A Rapid Review of the 22/23 Papa Johns Cup is being carried out with input from a wide range of stakeholders, examining all aspects of structure, entry criteria, funding, to build on this year’s inaugural competition and make the 23/24 edition even better for those that choose to enter.
  • Next season the Papa Johns Cup competitions will be scheduled in a 5 week window after the end of the regular league season.  This will be reviewed for season 24/25 after any changes proposed by the Rapid Review have been implemented.
  • County Championship window for Men and Women is fixed from 11 May to 8 June, but the U20 dates are provisional and subject to further work by the CC Organising Committee.

Combined Structured Season 2023-24

National Regional RFU Leagues 23-24

Midlands Counties Leagues v5

Kind regards

Robin

Honorary Secretary of RFU Midlands ROC