Regional 1 South East (up until 2022-23 known as London & South East Premier and up until 2016-17 known as National League 3 London & South East) is a level five league in the English rugby union system. It is one of six leagues at this level. When this division began in 1987 it was known as London Division 1. The format of the league was changed at the beginning of the 2009–10 season following re-organisation by the

Rugby Football Union The Rugby Football Union (RFU) is the Sports governing body, 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 ...

while the name change from National League 3 to Premier was introduced for the 2017–18 season to make it more obvious that it is a regional league. London & South East Premier is the highest regional rugby union league covering London and south east England. Following the RFU Adult Competition Review the league was decreased in size from 14 to 12 and the name changed once more. The twelve teams play home and away matches from September through to March, making a total of twenty-two matches each. The results of the matches contribute points to the league as follows: * 4 points are awarded for a win * 2 points are awarded for a draw * 0 points are awarded for a loss, however * 1 losing (bonus) point is awarded to a team that loses a match by 7 points or fewer * 1 additional (bonus) point is awarded to a team scoring 4 tries or more in a match The first-placed team at the end of season wins promotion to National League 2 East. Three teams are relegated into a mixture of Regional 2 South East, Regional 2 Anglia and

Regional 2 Thames In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

2022–23

Six of the twelve teams participated in the 2021-22 competition. They are joined by Shelford,

Sudbury Sudbury may refer to: Places Australia * Sudbury Reef, Queensland Canada * Greater Sudbury, Ontario (official name; the city continues to be known simply as Sudbury for most purposes) ** Sudbury (electoral district), one of the city's federal e ...

, Colchester and

Harpenden Harpenden () is a town and civil parish in the City and District of St Albans in the county of Hertfordshire, England. The population of the built-up area was 30,240 in the 2011 census, whilst the population of the civil parish was 29,448. Har ...

all promoted from London 1 North together with Medway and

Bedford Athletic Bedford Athletic Rugby Club is a rugby union team based in Bedford, in the county of Bedfordshire. The club currently play in the fifth tier of the English rugby union system, participating in Regional 1 South East after being promoted from M ...

promoted from London 1 South and Midlands 1 East respectively. Sutton & Epsom,

Maidenhead Maidenhead is a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the county of Berkshire, England, on the southwestern bank of the River Thames. It had an estimated population of 70,374 and forms part of the border with southern Bu ...

, Havant,

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...

and

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

were level transferred into Regional 1 South Central. Teams leaving the division included

Dorking Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England, about south of London. It is in Mole Valley District and the council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs roughly east–west, parallel to the Pipp Br ...

, Sevenoaks and North Walsham who were promoted into National League 2 East. There was no relegation from the league at the end of season 2021-22.

Participating teams

2021–22

Nine of the fourteen teams participated in the 2019-20 competition. They are joined by Sutton & Epsom who were relegated from National League 2 South, along with three promoted sides; Havant, North Walsham and Westcombe Park.

who played in

South West Premier Regional 1 South West (formerly South West Premier and National League 3 South West) is a level five league in the English rugby union system. It is one of six leagues at this level. When this division began in 1987 it was known as South West ...

in 2019-20 were level transferred into London & South East Premier as the nearest club geographically to address an imbalance of teams in the league. Teams leaving the division included

Rochford Hundred Rochford is a town in Essex, England, north of Southend-on-Sea, from London and from Chelmsford, the county town. At the 2011 census, the civil parish, which includes the town and London Southend Airport, had a population of 8,471. History T ...

who were promoted into National League 2 South as champions along with Guernsey Raiders who won the virtual promotion play-off against Weston-super-Mare RFC, while teams relegated from the league included

( Midlands 1 East),

Guildford Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, around southwest of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The name "Guildf ...

( London 1 South) and

London Irish Wild Geese London Irish Amateur Rugby Football Club, also known as London Irish Wild Geese, is an amateur English rugby union club based in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, who play their rugby in Regional 2 Thames – a league at tier 6 of the English rugby u ...

( London 1 South). The teams competing in 2021–22 achieved their places in the league based on performances in 2019–20, the 'previous season' column in the table below refers to that season not 2020-21.

Participating teams

Final league table

2020–21

On 30th October the RFU announced that due to the coronavirus pandemic a decision had been taken to cancel Adult Competitive Leagues ( National League 1 and below) for the 2020/21 season meaning London & South East Premier was not contested.

2019–20

Nine of the fourteen teams participated in last season's competition. They are joined by

Guernsey Guernsey (; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; french: Guernesey) is an island in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy that is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown Dependency. It is the second largest of the Channel Islands ...

and

who were relegated from National League 2 South, along with three promoted sides;

and Sevenoaks. Teams leaving the division included Sutton & Epsom who were promoted into National League 2 South as champions and Westcliff who won the promotion playoff, while teams relegated from the league included Brentwood, Chingford and Shelford (all London 1 North).

Participating teams

Final league table

On 4 April, the Rugby Football Union confirmed the final table for the season.

2018–19

Nine of the fourteen teams participated in last season's competition. They are joined by

who were relegated from National League 2 South, along with four promoted sides;

, Brentwood, Chingford and CS Rugby 1863. Bedford Athletic had initially been promoted into Midlands Premier but were level transferred into London & South East Premier as the nearest club geographically to address an imbalance of teams in the league. Teams leaving the division included Barnes who were promoted into National League 2 South as champions along with

who won the promotion playoff, while teams relegated from the league included Southend Saxons ( London 1 North),

Towcestrians Towcestrians Sports Club (Towcestrians) is a British sports club based in Towcester, Northamptonshire. It was founded in 1933 as a rugby union club, and subsequently extended its scope to cricket, hockey, tennis, and softball. History Old To ...

( Midlands 1 East) and Westcombe Park ( London 1 South).

Participating teams

Promotion play-off

Each season, the runners-up in the London & South East Premier (National League 3 London & South East) and South West Premier (formerly National League 3 South West) participate in a play-off for the third promotion place to National League 2 South. The team with the best playing record, in this case Westcliff, hosted the match and beat their opponents Barnstaple 44 – 5 to win promotion to National League 2 South for the first time. This was Westcliff's first appearance in the play-offs and Barnstaple's second; in 2016 Barnstaple beat Tonbridge Juddians 31 – 30 at Tonbridge. The home team have won fifteen out of nineteen play-off matches and the south-east team have won the play-off thirteen times. ----

2017–18

Nine of the fourteen teams participated in last season's competition. They are joined by Barnes who were relegated from National League 2 South along with three promoted teams Sidcup, Tring and Tunbridge Wells.

Tonbridge Juddians Tonbridge Juddians Rugby Football Club is an English rugby union team based in Tonbridge in Kent. The club runs four senior teams, a ladies side and the full range of junior teams. The first XV play in National League 2 East for the 2022–23 sea ...

were promoted into National League 2 South as champions along with

who won the promotion playoff. Teams relegated from the league included Amersham & Chiltern and Colchester ( London 1 North) and Chichester ( London 1 South). To address an imbalance of teams,

were level transferred into the league from the Midlands Premier, as they were the nearest team geographically.

Participating teams

Final league table

Promotion play-off

Each season, the runners-up in the London & South East Premier, and

participate in a play-off for promotion to National League 2 South. The team with the best playing record, in this case Guernsey RFC, hosted the match and beat their opponents

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

38 – 23 to win promotion.

2016–17

Nine of the fourteen teams participated in last season's competition. They are joined by Dorking and Southend Saxons who were relegated from National 2 South while three promoted teams, Amersham & Chiltern,

and Sutton & Epsom were promoted into the league.

were promoted to National League 2 South as champions while Eton Manor and

Gravesend Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, situated 21 miles (35 km) east-southeast of Charing Cross (central London) on the Bank (geography), south bank of the River Thames and opposite Tilbury in Essex. Located in the diocese of Ro ...

were relegated to London 1 North and London 1 South respectively. Originally, Westcliff were supposed to go down as the 14th placed team, but they were granted a reprieve when

East Grinstead East Grinstead is a town in West Sussex, England, near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders, south of London, northeast of Brighton, and northeast of the county town of Chichester. Situated in the extreme northeast of the county, the civ ...

(who had finished 3rd) decided to take voluntary relegation, due to the loss of a key sponsor and dropped five leagues to

Sussex Spitfire 1 Sussex 1 (known as Harvey's of Sussex 1 due to sponsorship reasons) is an English level 9 Rugby Union League. It is made up of teams predominantly from Sussex. Teams play home and away matches from September through to April. The league champ ...

. Finally

Bracknell Bracknell () is a large town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, the westernmost area within the Greater London Built-up Area, Greater London Urban Area and the administrative centre of the Bracknell Forest, Borough of Bracknell Forest. It l ...

were level transferred back to National League 3 South West after just one season to address an imbalance in teams after having finished 11th. Current results see:
National League 3 London & South East results

Participating teams

Final league table

Promotion play-off

Each season, the runners-up in the National League 3 London and SE, and National League 3 South West participate in a play-off for promotion to National League 2 South. The team with the best playing record, in this case Wimbledon RFC, hosted the match and beat their opponents

Dings Crusaders RFC Dings Crusaders RFC is an English rugby union team based in the Bristol suburb of Frenchay having previously been based in Lockleaze up until 2018. The club was relegated from National Division Two South, the fourth tier of the English rugby uni ...

55 – 5 to win promotion. ----

2015–16

Participating clubs

(from 3rd (

National League 3 South-West Regional 1 South West (formerly South West Premier and National League 3 South West) is a level five league in the English rugby union system. It is one of six leagues at this level. When this division began in 1987 it was known as South West ...

) * Chichester * Colchester (promoted from London 1 North (champions)) *

* Eton Manor (promoted from London 1 North (play-off)) *

Hertford Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census. The town grew around a ford on the River Lea, ne ...

* Shelford (relegated from

2014–15 National League 2 South The 2014–15 National League 2 South is the sixth season (28th overall) of the fourth tier (south) of the English domestic rugby union competitions since the professionalised format of the second division was introduced. New teams to the divisio ...

) *

* Westcliff * Westcombe Park *

(promoted from London 1 South (champions))

Final league table

Promotion play-off

The runners-up in the National League 3 London and SE, and National League 3 South West participate in a play-off for promotion to National League 2 South. The team with the best playing record, in this case Tonbridge Juddian, host the match and their opponents are Barnstaple. Juddians lost the match 31 – 30 to a penalty in the last minute of the match and will stay in National 3 London and SE for next season. ---- ----

2014–15

Participating clubs

* Amersham & Chiltern (transferred from National 3 South West) * Barnes *

Bury St Edmunds Bury St Edmunds (), commonly referred to locally as Bury, is a historic market town, market, cathedral town and civil parish in Suffolk, England.OS Explorer map 211: Bury St.Edmunds and Stowmarket Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – ...

* Chichester (promoted from London 1 South) * CS Rugby 1863 *

(promoted from London 1 South) *

(relegated from National 2 South) *

* Tring * Westcliff (promoted from London 1 North) * Westcombe Park

Final league table

Promotion play-off

The runners-up in the National League 3 London and SE, and National League 3 South West participate in a play-off for promotion to National League 2 South. The team with the best playing record, in this case Exmouth, hosts the match; their opponents were Barnes and the match was played on 25 April 2015. At the end of full-time the match score was 22 – 22, and Barnes scored the only points in extra-time, to win the match 27– 22. ---- After extra time (80 mins: 22 – 22) ----

2013–14

Participating clubs

* Barking (relegated from National League 2 South) * Barnes *

Basingstoke Basingstoke ( ) is the largest town in the county of Hampshire. It is situated in south-central England and lies across a valley at the source of the River Loddon, at the far western edge of The North Downs. It is located north-east of Southa ...

(promoted from London 1 South) *

(promoted from London 1 North) * CS Rugby 1863 *

(promoted from London 1 South) *

* Old Elthamians * Thurrock *

* Tring * Westcombe Park

Final league table

2012–13

Participating clubs

* Barnes (relegated from National League 2 South) *

Bishop's Stortford Bishop's Stortford is a historic market town in Hertfordshire, England, just west of the M11 motorway on the county boundary with Essex, north-east of central London, and by rail from Liverpool Street station. Stortford had an estimated po ...

* CS Rugby 1863 *

(promoted from London 1 South) *

* Old Elthamians (promoted from London 1 South) * Staines * Thurrock (promoted from London 1 North) *

* Tring * Westcliff * Westcombe Park

Results

Promoted *2

*3 Westcombe Park *4 Barnes *5

*6 Old Elthamians *7 CS Rugby 1863 *8

*10 Tring *11 Thurrock *12

Relegated *13 Westcliff Relegated *14 Staines Relegated

2011–12

Participating clubs

* Ampthill *

* Canterbury (relegated from National League 2 South) * CS Rugby 1863 *

* Havant *

London Irish Amateur London Irish Amateur Rugby Football Club, also known as London Irish Wild Geese, is an amateur English rugby union club based in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, who play their rugby in Regional 2 Thames – a league at tier 6 of the English rugby ...

(promoted from London 1 South) * Luton * Staines * Tonbridge Juddian (promoted from London 1 South) * Tring * Westcliff (promoted from London 1 North)

Results

*1 Canterbury Promoted *2 Tonbridge Juddian *3 Ampthill Transferred *4

*6 CS Rugby 1863 *7 Tring *8 Staines *9

*10 Westcliff *11

*12

Relegated *13 Luton Relegated *14 Havant Relegated

2010–11

Participating clubs

* Ampthill * Barnes (relegated from National League 2 South) *

Civil Service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

(promoted from London 1 North) *

Diss Diss or DISS may refer to: *Diss, Alberta, a place in Canada *Diss, Norfolk, a market town in England, United Kingdom **Diss railway station **Diss Rugby Club ** Diss Town F.C. *Diss grass, a Mediterranean grass *Diss (music), a song whose primary ...

(promoted from London 1 South) * Havant *

* North Walsham * Staines (promoted from London 1 North) * Tring

2009–10

Participating clubs

First season as a national league *

* Havant *

Haywards Heath Haywards Heath is a town in West Sussex, England, south of London, north of Brighton, south of Gatwick Airport and northeast of the county town, Chichester. Nearby towns include Burgess Hill to the southwest, Horsham to the northwest, Crawl ...

* Jersey * North Walsham * Old Albanians * Portsmouth * Sutton & Epson * Tring

Original teams

When league rugby began in 1987 this division (known as London 1) contained the following teams: * Dartfordians *

Ealing Ealing () is a district in West London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. Ealing is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan. Ealing was histor ...

* Esher * Guildford & Godalming * Ipswich *

Lewes Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. It is the police and judicial centre for all of Sussex and is home to Sussex Police, East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, Lewes Crown Court and HMP Lewes. The civil parish is the centre of ...

* Old Gaytonians * Ruislip * Sutton & Epsom * Upper Clapton * United Services Portsmouth

London & South East Premier honours

In the first season of the English rugby union league pyramid, sponsored by Courage, there was four, tier five leagues. These were London Division 1, Midland Division 1, North Division 1 and South West Division 1. In 1987 the geographical area for teams in the south-east of England was known as the ''London and South East Division'' and covered the counties of Essex, Hampshire, Kent, Middlesex, Norfolk,

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

and

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

. The league was also known as London League 1 and London 1. There were eleven teams in the league and they played each team once, giving each team ten matches. This system prevailed for five seasons, and in 1992–93 the number of teams increased from eleven to thirteen. The following season (1993–94) the league was reorganised and the four tier five leagues became two; National 5 North and National 5 South. After three seasons, in 1996–97, a further reorganisation occurred, and there was a return to four, tier five leagues; with London Division One covering the same area as before. This system prevailed until 2009–10 when the number of teams was increased from twelve to fourteen and renamed National League Three London & South East. The league name changed once more for the 2017–18, when it was renamed to London & South East Premier.

London Division One (1987–93)

The original London Division One was a tier five league with promotion up to Area League 2 South and relegation down to either

London 2 North London 2 North is a Tier 6 English Rugby Union League. It is the other half of 'London 2' Leagues (the other being London 2 South). References 6 Rugby union leagues in London {{London-sport-stub ...

or London 2 South.

London Division One

The top six teams from London Division One and the top six from South West Division One were combined to create National 5 South. London Division 1 was now the name of a tier six league and was one of two feeder leagues for National 5 South.

London Division One

For the end of the 1995–96 season National 5 South was discontinued and London Division One returned to being a tier five league. Promotion was up to National 4 South (renamed to National 3 South in 2000–01), while relegation continued to

and London 2 South.

National League 3 London & SE

The division was renamed National League 3 London & SE following a restructuring of the national leagues which led to changes at all levels. It continued as a tier 5 league with promotion to National League 2 South (formerly National 3 South) and relegation to either London 1 North or London 1 South (formerly London 2 North and London 2 South).

London & South East Premier

The division was renamed London & South East Premier in order to make it more obvious that it was a regional league and the pinnacle of the London & South East region. It continued to be a tier 5 league with promotion to National League 2 South and relegation to London 1 North or London 1 South.

Promotion play-offs

Since season 2000–01 there has been a play-off between the runners-up of London & South East Premier and

for the third and final promotion place to National League 2 South. The team with the superior league record has home advantage in the tie. At the end of the 2019–20 season the London and south-east teams have been the most successful with thirteen wins to the south-west teams six; and the home team has won promotion on fifteen occasions compared to the away teams four.

Number of league titles

* Barnes (2) *

(2) * Canterbury (2) * Havant (2) * Barking (1) *

(1) *

Camberley Camberley is a town in the Borough of Surrey Heath in Surrey, England, approximately south-west of Central London. The town is in the far west of the county, close to the borders of Hampshire and Berkshire. Once part of Windsor Forest, Cambe ...

(1) * Cambridge (1) * Charlton Park (1) *

(1) *

(1) * Esher (1) * Jersey (1) *

* London Scottish (1) * London Welsh (1) * North Walsham (1) * Norwich (1) * Old Colfeians (1) *

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

(1) *

(1) * Sevenoaks (1) * Shelford (1) * Sidcup (1) * Southend (1) * Sutton & Epsom (1) * Tabard * Thurrock (1) *

(1) * Westcombe Park

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:London1 5 Recurring sporting events established in 1987 Sports leagues established in 1987

2022–23

Participating teams

2021–22

Participating teams

Final league table

2020–21

2019–20

Participating teams

Final league table

2018–19

Participating teams

Promotion play-off

2017–18

Participating teams

Final league table

Promotion play-off

2016–17

Participating teams

Final league table

Promotion play-off

2015–16

Participating clubs

Final league table

Promotion play-off

2014–15

Participating clubs

Final league table

Promotion play-off

2013–14

Participating clubs

Final league table

2012–13

Participating clubs

Results

2011–12

Participating clubs

Results

2010–11

Participating clubs

2009–10

Participating clubs

Original teams

London & South East Premier honours

London Division One (1987–93)

London Division One

London Division One

National League 3 London & SE

London & South East Premier

Promotion play-offs

Number of league titles

Notes

See also

References