The 2016 County Championship Plate, also known as Bill Beaumont Cup Division 2, was the 15th version of the annual
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
,
County Championship
The County Championship (referred to as the LV= Insurance County Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales and is organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). It bec ...
organised by the
RFU
The Rugby Football Union (RFU) is the national governing body for rugby union in England. It was founded in 1871, and was the sport's international governing body prior to the formation of what is now known as World Rugby (WR) in 1886. It pro ...
for the
tier 2 English counties
The counties of England are areas used for different purposes, which include administrative, geographical, cultural and political demarcation. The term "county" is defined in several ways and can apply to similar or the same areas used by each ...
. Each county drew its players from rugby union clubs from the third tier and below of the
English rugby union league system
Men's Rugby union in England consists of 106 leagues, which includes professional leagues at the highest level, down to amateur regional leagues. Promotion and relegation are in place throughout the system.
Women's Rugby union in England cons ...
(typically
National League 1,
National League 2 North
National League 2 North is one of three, level four leagues in the English rugby union system and provides semi-professional competition for teams in the northern half of England, the North. The remainder of England is covered by the two counte ...
or
National League 2 South
National League 2 South (known before September 2009 as National Division Three South) was a level four league in the English rugby union system until the end of season 2021–22. It was one of two leagues at this level, with its counterpart, N ...
). The counties were divided into two regional pools (north/south) with four teams in each and the winners of each pool meet in the final to be held at
Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium () in Twickenham, south-west London, England, is a rugby union stadium owned by the Rugby Football Union (RFU), English rugby union governing body, which has its headquarters there. The England national rugby union team play ...
. New counties to the division included
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
and
Durham County who were relegated from the
2015 Bill Beaumont Cup
The 2015 Bill Beaumont Cup, also known as Bill Beaumont Cup Division One, was the 115th version of the annual, English rugby union, County Championship organized by the RFU for the top tier English counties. Each county drew its players from ru ...
while
Leicestershire
Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...
were promoted as the winners of the
2015 County Championship Shield
The 2015 County Championship Shield was the 11th version of the annual English rugby union County Championship, organized by the RFU for the tier 3 English counties. Each county drew its players from rugby union clubs from the fifth tier and b ...
.
At the end of the pool stage, pool winners
East Midlands
The East Midlands is one of nine official regions of England at the first level of ITL for statistical purposes. It comprises the eastern half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It consists of Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Li ...
(north) and Kent (south) met in the final at Twickenham. Despite it being their first final against regulars Kent, East Midlands won 33-27, with former Tongan international,
Maama Molitika
Maama Molitika (26 August 1974) is a Tongan former rugby union footballer. He is 6'5". He has played numerous times for the national Tongan team, making his debut in June 1997 against Fiji. He was also in the Pacific Islanders rugby union team sq ...
, scoring three tries in the game. He would finish as the competition's top try scorer.
Competition format
The competition format is two regional group stages divided into north and south, with each team playing each other once. This means that two teams in the pool have two home games, while the other two had just one. The top side in each group goes through to the final held at
Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium () in Twickenham, south-west London, England, is a rugby union stadium owned by the Rugby Football Union (RFU), English rugby union governing body, which has its headquarters there. The England national rugby union team play ...
, with both teams also being promoted to the
top tier for the following season. Typically there was no relegation although teams have dropped out/been invited to join the division.
Due to changes to the County Championships to be implemented for the 2017 competition, four teams instead of two would be promoted to the top tier. This meant that the two group winners would be joined by two other teams from the plate competition based on how well they have done over the past couple of seasons.
Participating Counties and ground locations
Group stage
Division 2 North
;Notes
Round 1
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Round 2
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Round 3
Division 2 South
;Notes
Round 1
[
----
]
Round 2
[
----
]
Round 3
[
]
Final
[
]
Total season attendances
*Does not include final at Twickenham which is a neutral venue and involves teams from all three county divisions on the same day
[
]
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). Statistics will also include final.
Top points scorers
[
]
Top try scorers
[
]
See also
* English rugby union system
Men's Rugby union in England consists of 106 leagues, which includes professional leagues at the highest level, down to amateur regional leagues. Promotion and relegation are in place throughout the system.
Women's Rugby union in England cons ...
* Rugby union in England
References
External links
NCA Rugby
{{DEFAULTSORT:Plate
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
2015–16 County Championship