The Midlands Junior League is an age group

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

development competition for clubs in the

English Midlands The Midlands (also referred to as Central England) are a part of England that broadly correspond to the Kingdom of Mercia of the Early Middle Ages, bordered by Wales, Northern England and Southern England. The Midlands were important in the Ind ...

. It is run by the

Midlands Rugby League The Midlands Rugby League Premier Division is the highest level of amateur rugby league in the English Midlands. It was previously the Midlands Premier Division of the Rugby League Conference. Many of the clubs run juniors in the Midlands Junio ...

. Many of the teams taking part also run open-age sides in the

Rugby League Conference The Rugby League Conference (RLC) (also known as the Co-operative Rugby League Conference as a result of sponsorship from The Co-operative Group), was a series of regionally based divisions of amateur rugby league teams spread throughout England, ...

History

The adult ''Midlands Merit League'' was founded in late 2005 to support the growth of rugby league in non-heartland areas. The 2007 season saw the introduction of an informal under-15 league ''Midlands Junior League'' based on Merit League principles. In 2008 the junior competition featured under-14 and under-16 divisions. The adult Midlands Merit League later evolved into the

and the

RL Merit League The Midlands Merit League, was a summer rugby league tournament in England held between 2006 and 2009. It was a feeder league to the Rugby League Conference and had a season that ran from April to August. In its last season of 2009, it was also kn ...

(for clubs in the

North of England Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North Country, or simply the North, is the northern area of England. It broadly corresponds to the former borders of Angle Northumbria, the Anglo-Scandinavian Kingdom of Jorvik, and the ...

). Midlands clubs voted against clubs outside the Midlands being included for the 2010 season. In 2010 the Under-12s took a tournament based format and Under-11s and Girls Under-12s started on a similar basis. 2011 saw the addition of an Under-18s league and saw the Under-14s take on a tournament based format, with the Under-12s replaced by an Under-13s. In 2023, the Midlands Junior League continued its development. 4 regional festivals at U7-U16 age groups were planned for the summer of 2023, with a host of friendly fixtures arranged between clubs also.

Participating clubs

The following teams will participate in 2023:

Format

Teams play an equal number of games. The top four teams in each age group will contest the semi-finals with first playing fourth and second playing third. Win: 3 points Draw: 2 points Defeat not conceded, fielding 13 players: 1 point Default on game within three days of fixture: 0 points, with 40-0 score-line awarded to the opposition. The under-14, under-13 and under-11 boys and under-12 girls competitions take place on a tournament format.

Past winners

* 2007 Under-15s:

Telford Raiders Telford Raiders ARLFC are a rugby league club based in the town of Telford in Shropshire, England. Their first team plays in the Midlands Regional division of the Rugby League Conference and they have a development team in the Midlands Rugby L ...

* 2008 Under-14s: Derby Dragons, Under-16s:

Northampton Knights Northampton Demons is a rugby league club based in Duston, Northampton. They play in the RFL Midlands Rugby League Men's South Division. History Background - Nene Valley and Northampton Knights ''Nene Valley'' were set up in 1989 and they trai ...

* 2009 Under-12s:

, Under-14s:

Redditch Ravens North East Worcestershire Ravens, also known as NEW Ravens, are a rugby league club based in opwood Worcestershire. They play in the Midlands Premier division of the Rugby League Conference and Midlands Rugby League attracting players from all ...

, Under-16s: Nottingham Outlaws * 2010 Under-12s:

, Under-14s:

, Under-16s:

Birmingham Bulldogs Birmingham RLFC are a rugby league team based in Birmingham, United Kingdom. They play in the Midlands Premier division of the Rugby League Conference. History ''Birmingham Bulldogs'' were founded in 1989. The club's first season was in 1989� ...

* 2011 Under-16s:

Coventry Bears The Midlands Hurricanes are a semi-professional rugby league club jointly based in Birmingham and Coventry, West Midlands, England. They were founded as the Coventry Bears in 1998 and entered the third tier of the British rugby league system, ...

, Under-18s:

Northampton Demons Northampton Demons is a rugby league club based in Duston, Northampton. They play in the RFL Midlands Rugby League Men's South Division. History Background - Nene Valley and Northampton Knights ''Nene Valley'' were set up in 1989 and they trai ...

* 2012 Under-16s:

Gloucestershire All Golds Gloucestershire All Golds is a rugby league team based at the University of Gloucestershire, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. University of Gloucestershire All Golds consists of six different teams, with the first team entering Kingstone Press C ...

, Under-18s:

Leicester Storm Leicester Storm are an amateur community rugby league football club based in Leicester, England. They compete in the Conference League South and their Academy Team compete in the 3v Sport Midlands Rugby League. The club's home is Phoenix Par ...

External links

Midlands rugby league siteRugby League Conference official site
{{British_Rugby_League_links Rugby League Conference Junior rugby league Children's sport in the United Kingdom

History

Participating clubs

Format

Past winners

See also

External links