Essex 2 (also known as Essex Spitfire 2 for sponsorship reasons) was an English Rugby Union league at the tenth tier of the domestic competition. It was the basement division of club rugby in

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

with promoted teams moving up to Essex 1 and no relegation (up until 2008-09 relegated teams dropped to Essex 3 but this division has since been abolished). Essex 2 was created in 2003 by Essex-based teams who left East Counties 3 South. At the end of the 2013–14 season the division was abolished with teams either moving up into Essex 1 or into various Essex Merit leagues.

Original teams

When Essex 2 was introduced in 2003 it contained the following teams: * Bancroft - transferred from Eastern Counties 2 South (4th) *

Burnham-On-Crouch Burnham-on-Crouch is a town and civil parish in the Maldon District of Essex in the East of England. It lies on the north bank of the River Crouch. It is one of Britain's leading places for yachting. The civil parish extends east of the town t ...

- transferred from Eastern Counties 2 South (7th) *

Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Forest ...

- transferred from Eastern Counties 2 South (8th) *

Loughton Loughton () is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex. Part of the metropolitan and urban area of London, the town borders Chingford, Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Chigwell and Buckhurst Hill, and is northeast of Chari ...

- transferred from Eastern Counties 3 South (3rd) * Old Brentwoods - transferred from Eastern Counties 2 South (5th) * Old Edwardians - transferred from Eastern Counties 2 South (10th) *

Ravens Ravens may refer to: * Raven, a species of the genus ''Corvus'' Sports * Anderson Ravens, the intercollegiate athletic program of Anderson University in Indiana * Baltimore Ravens, a professional American football franchise * Benedictine Ravens, ...

- transferred from Eastern Counties 3 South (champions) * Runwell Wyverns - transferred from Eastern Counties 3 South (runners up) *

South Woodham Ferrers South Woodham Ferrers is a town and civil parish in the borough of Chelmsford, in the English county of Essex. It is approximately from London and southeast of the city of Chelmsford, and had a population of 16,453 at the 2011 Census, a decr ...

- transferred from Eastern Counties 2 South (6th) *

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

- transferred from Eastern Counties 2 South - transferred from Eastern Counties 2 South (9th)

Essex 2 honours

Essex 2 (2003–2009)

The original Essex 2 was a tier 9 league with promotion up to Essex 1 and relegation down to Essex 3.

Essex 2 (2009–2014)

Essex 2 remained a tier 10 league despite national restructuring 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 ...

. Promotion was to Essex 1 and there was no relegation since the cancellation of Essex 3 at the end of the 2008–09 season. Essex 2 was itself disbanded at the end of the 2013–14 season with all teams either promoted to Essex 1 or transferred to the Essex Merit Leagues.

Number of league titles

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east ...

(2) * Writtle Wanderers (2) *

Canvey Island Canvey Island is a town, civil parishes in England, civil parish and reclaimed island in the Thames estuary, near Southend-on-Sea, in the Castle Point district, in the county of Essex, England. It has an area of and a population of 38,170.Office ...

(1) * Clacton (1) *

(1) * Epping Upper Clapton (1) *

May & Baker May & Baker was a British chemical company founded by John May and William Gerrard Baker in Wandsworth, London in 1839. They initially specialized in the manufacture of chemicals derived from mercury and bismuth. Over the years they diversified ...

(1) * Pegasus Palmerians (1) *

(1)

Notes

References

{{Rugby union in England E Rugby union in Essex Sports leagues established in 2003 Sports leagues disestablished in 2014 2003 establishments in England 2014 disestablishments in England